We have had our cat since he was a kitten. He is always so lovable. Last night he attacked my ten year old daughter like he was possessed. He jumped up to her shoulder and was hissing and clawing. I got him off of her, and he went right back and attacked again. She is scratched from her shoulder to her ankle. I have never seen anything like it, and I did not see her do anything at all to provoke him. What could have caused this? Is it safe for her to be around him? What should I do about this? I have never had any type of experience like this, and I have had cats my whole life.
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Why did my cat attack my daughter?
- Thread starter niecyntab
- Start Date
Welcome to TCS!
Could she have had a "strange" scent about her, e.g., was she petting another animal? Are any strange cats hanging around outside your home? Could your cat be in pain from an undetected injury/illness?
We've got a few members who've had experience with this, and hopefully they'll be along to discuss it with you.
Could she have had a "strange" scent about her, e.g., was she petting another animal? Are any strange cats hanging around outside your home? Could your cat be in pain from an undetected injury/illness?
We've got a few members who've had experience with this, and hopefully they'll be along to discuss it with you.
Same as Jcat said: did she come in contact with any other animals or did any other animals come in contact with her clothes?(maybe she was at a friends house? Or was petting a stray?)
My parents have a female cat that tried to kill my brother once(literally). He had brought a male cat into the house when he was younger and had held it in his jacket. Later, he let it go outside and put the jacket one. When he came inside, my parents female cat, Shiraz, ran all the way down the stairs and lunged at my brother(he was about 15-16 at the time). He managed to run away, but not for long. She eventually cornered him and lunged at his neck. She barely missed his jugular, but managed to leave a claw shedding embedded in his neck as a reminder. He managed to run to his room, abtaining one more deep scratch in the ankle. As he shut the door behind him I watched in amazement as the cat did not slow down but slammed her body full force into the closed door. After that she took up her post on the stair and body-slammed the door a couple more times when my brother opened it to see if she was still there. Eventually, my mother had to put the cat upstairs for the rest of the day. However, to this day, my brother and Shiraz are best buddies and she loves him to pieces.
It was scary at the time, but now I just laugh about it. I mean, seeing my older brother screaming and running from a 5 pound white persian was pretty funny! LOL!
I think if your daughter takes a shower and changes her clothes(wash her old ones immediately) she will be just fine. After she cleans up, supervise her with the cat for a few minutes to make sure everything is ok.
My parents have a female cat that tried to kill my brother once(literally). He had brought a male cat into the house when he was younger and had held it in his jacket. Later, he let it go outside and put the jacket one. When he came inside, my parents female cat, Shiraz, ran all the way down the stairs and lunged at my brother(he was about 15-16 at the time). He managed to run away, but not for long. She eventually cornered him and lunged at his neck. She barely missed his jugular, but managed to leave a claw shedding embedded in his neck as a reminder. He managed to run to his room, abtaining one more deep scratch in the ankle. As he shut the door behind him I watched in amazement as the cat did not slow down but slammed her body full force into the closed door. After that she took up her post on the stair and body-slammed the door a couple more times when my brother opened it to see if she was still there. Eventually, my mother had to put the cat upstairs for the rest of the day. However, to this day, my brother and Shiraz are best buddies and she loves him to pieces.
It was scary at the time, but now I just laugh about it. I mean, seeing my older brother screaming and running from a 5 pound white persian was pretty funny! LOL!
I think if your daughter takes a shower and changes her clothes(wash her old ones immediately) she will be just fine. After she cleans up, supervise her with the cat for a few minutes to make sure everything is ok.
That's what I was thinking - perfume, soap, something different? Or was she playing with a strange dog/cat or other animal?
Hope your daughter is ok and doesn't become fearful of the cat (or other cats) because of it.
Hope your daughter is ok and doesn't become fearful of the cat (or other cats) because of it.
This is TOTALLY what happened to us the other day. Our cat (part Siamese) attacked my daughter and had her cornered in the living room. I had to use a tennis racket to hold the cat back while she ran out of the house. Then, I practically had an hour standoff with the cat while it lunged after me and the 2yr old I was trying to protect over and over. I was trying to just get out of the house with the baby and the cat kept going after us. It was crazy, like something out of a movie. I am SO relieved to hear this happened to someone else, because everyone I know thinks I am exaggerating.
Our cat has always been an inside cat and is female. She is not fixed as I have not hurried to do so since she is an inside cat. My husband called Animal Control after we ran the cat out of the house for protection. Animal Control left a cage and we eventually caught Shadow. She is back to being her sweet self and it broke my heart to have them take her away. Just that morning that she attacked she had slept with me that night. I don't know what in the heck happened for her to snap.
My husband is too afraid to trust her again with the kids, but the Animal Control lady said that it was because she wasn't fixed. That she has such a strong "need" to breed and being inside made it worse, like she was cooped up. She said that the night out probably gave her the chance to breed and that is why she was so sweet again this morning. Could this be? I told my husband that if I could back that up, I desperately want to give her another chance. I have until 11/10 to get her back from Animal Control before they put her to sleep. We can't afford to have extensive testing done on her, but we can afford to have her fixed, which is what I would do before she even came home. I told him we could put her in our bathroom (which is HUGE) and watch her for about a week to see if there were any disturbing behaviors before we allowed her around the children.
What do y'all think? I love this cat SO much and really hope this is the case. It broke my heart having her outside last night in the cold in that cage. I put a blanket around the cage and put the cage in the garage. I went out and petted her quite a bit before they took her away and she was FINE.
Our cat has always been an inside cat and is female. She is not fixed as I have not hurried to do so since she is an inside cat. My husband called Animal Control after we ran the cat out of the house for protection. Animal Control left a cage and we eventually caught Shadow. She is back to being her sweet self and it broke my heart to have them take her away. Just that morning that she attacked she had slept with me that night. I don't know what in the heck happened for her to snap.
My husband is too afraid to trust her again with the kids, but the Animal Control lady said that it was because she wasn't fixed. That she has such a strong "need" to breed and being inside made it worse, like she was cooped up. She said that the night out probably gave her the chance to breed and that is why she was so sweet again this morning. Could this be? I told my husband that if I could back that up, I desperately want to give her another chance. I have until 11/10 to get her back from Animal Control before they put her to sleep. We can't afford to have extensive testing done on her, but we can afford to have her fixed, which is what I would do before she even came home. I told him we could put her in our bathroom (which is HUGE) and watch her for about a week to see if there were any disturbing behaviors before we allowed her around the children.
What do y'all think? I love this cat SO much and really hope this is the case. It broke my heart having her outside last night in the cold in that cage. I put a blanket around the cage and put the cage in the garage. I went out and petted her quite a bit before they took her away and she was FINE.
I think you have no choice but to spay her and give her a second chance.Originally Posted by famlyferst
This is TOTALLY what happened to us the other day. Our cat (part Siamese) attacked my daughter and had her cornered in the living room. I had to use a tennis racket to hold the cat back while she ran out of the house. Then, I practically had an hour standoff with the cat while it lunged after me and the 2yr old I was trying to protect over and over. I was trying to just get out of the house with the baby and the cat kept going after us. It was crazy, like something out of a movie. I am SO relieved to hear this happened to someone else, because everyone I know thinks I am exaggerating.
Our cat has always been an inside cat and is female. She is not fixed as I have not hurried to do so since she is an inside cat. My husband called Animal Control after we ran the cat out of the house for protection. Animal Control left a cage and we eventually caught Shadow. She is back to being her sweet self and it broke my heart to have them take her away. Just that morning that she attacked she had slept with me that night. I don't know what in the heck happened for her to snap.
My husband is too afraid to trust her again with the kids, but the Animal Control lady said that it was because she wasn't fixed. That she has such a strong "need" to breed and being inside made it worse, like she was cooped up. She said that the night out probably gave her the chance to breed and that is why she was so sweet again this morning. Could this be? I told my husband that if I could back that up, I desperately want to give her another chance. I have until 11/10 to get her back from Animal Control before they put her to sleep. We can't afford to have extensive testing done on her, but we can afford to have her fixed, which is what I would do before she even came home. I told him we could put her in our bathroom (which is HUGE) and watch her for about a week to see if there were any disturbing behaviors before we allowed her around the children.
What do y'all think? I love this cat SO much and really hope this is the case. It broke my heart having her outside last night in the cold in that cage. I put a blanket around the cage and put the cage in the garage. I went out and petted her quite a bit before they took her away and she was FINE.
So, you do think that could be what it is? Have you heard of this before?
Oh dear lord ... what an ordeal for you and for this poor cat!!
Yes, by all means, get her spayed immediately and then isolate her in the room by herself (with your loving attentive visits frequently throughout the confinement) and allow her a peaceful recovery. If she hasn't returned to her sweet self afterwards (and you should really give it more time - a month or two is better if you can swing that), then instead of giving her over to AC (cats with known behavior problems are extremely more likely to be euthanized), then perhaps there is a different rescue organization or even an individual who would be willing to help you place her in a different home with people who are better equipped to work with her behavioral issues (should it be determined she actually has any).
It would be so tragic to have to give your girl up and I would hate to see that happen before you exhausted every method or better option first.
Yes, by all means, get her spayed immediately and then isolate her in the room by herself (with your loving attentive visits frequently throughout the confinement) and allow her a peaceful recovery. If she hasn't returned to her sweet self afterwards (and you should really give it more time - a month or two is better if you can swing that), then instead of giving her over to AC (cats with known behavior problems are extremely more likely to be euthanized), then perhaps there is a different rescue organization or even an individual who would be willing to help you place her in a different home with people who are better equipped to work with her behavioral issues (should it be determined she actually has any).
It would be so tragic to have to give your girl up and I would hate to see that happen before you exhausted every method or better option first.
It could very possibly be! I know my female (I am a breeder) gets extremely bitc*y while in heat ... she can be real fiesty and get quickly overstimulated.
You have to try having her spayed first ... like I said, I think it would be a really tragic thing to have to give her up without at least trying everything you can to keep her first!
I agree with you both. Only problem is convincing my husband who is afraid to allow her around our children again. Not that I don't care about my children, I just want to exhaust every avenue first, ya know?
Can you guys all act like vets and send him e-mails stating this? (JUST KIDDING!!!!!)
Can you guys all act like vets and send him e-mails stating this? (JUST KIDDING!!!!!)
*grin* Well, I am happy to help you talk with him about it, but I don't wanna misrepresent myself or anything like that. Let us know what you need to help persuade him for more time and let's all put our heads together to see what good ideas we can find.
This post saddened me. Another bad name for Siamese (or part Siamese). Poor kitty.
I too think she deserves another chance after spaying. I so hope your hubby will change his mind about her.
I too think she deserves another chance after spaying. I so hope your hubby will change his mind about her.
I told him what you guys/gals said and talked to him about it today. I think he is open to giving Shadow another chance. Of course, we will have her fixed before she is brought home, then I will keep her in the bathroom for awhile to see how she is acting. Hopefully he will say for sure yes by Monday morning. If so, I will call them FIRST thing.
(Not to make it sound like I need his permission, but I do respect his wishes on this situation as well as he is seeing mine in it as well.)
(Not to make it sound like I need his permission, but I do respect his wishes on this situation as well as he is seeing mine in it as well.)
You know what, I didn't think of it until you mentioned it, but when my parent's cat attacked my brother she was an inside cat and was not spayed at the time either. It makes a lot of sense. That HAS to be the reason behind my parent's cat's attack and your cat's attack. It's the only logical explaination.
Please give her another chance. Shiraz(my parent's cat) never had another "episode" after that one and is, to this day, one of the sweetest cats I have ever know. I little *itchy towards other animals, but a suck up to people.
Good luck with her! I hope your daughter doesn't hate the cat from now on. I know things like that can really put a 2-year old in quite a shock.
Please give her another chance. Shiraz(my parent's cat) never had another "episode" after that one and is, to this day, one of the sweetest cats I have ever know. I little *itchy towards other animals, but a suck up to people.
Good luck with her! I hope your daughter doesn't hate the cat from now on. I know things like that can really put a 2-year old in quite a shock.
The two-year-old is the child that I babysit. Shadow tried to attack her as well. My daughter, age 12, is the one that was actually scratched and bit. All of the children are scared of the cat now, but I think the older will understand if I explain to them that we are going to get Shadow "fixed" and she shouldn't attack again. The two-year-old will take longer, but hopefully she will not be SO scared of her for long. I don't know how her mother will feel about us taking the cat back in though.
Hmmmm...maybe if you explain everything to the mother she will understand. If she still doesn't feel comfortable with you babysitting her with the cat there then maybe you can just have the cat in a seperate bedroom while the girl is there. I hope everything works out all righ for everyone, especially Shadow.
I thought I would post a picture of my kitty. I am SO anxious now to go get her back. I sure hope all goes well Monday morning.
You could keep her shut in a separate room while the 2 y/o is there, until you are sure the kitty is safe. Or get a large crate to keep kitty in when the baby is there. Most likely the kitty will be fine once she is spayed. But we recently had a member who had to rehome her cat after it attacked her dog. The vet determined that the cat (who was unspayed) was allergic to the dog, and that was contributing to her attacks. So just in case your kitty has another problem in addition to not being spayed, I would be extra careful around the baby.
I'm sorry your daughter was injured, that must have been very scary. I hope she is healing well.
I'm sorry your daughter was injured, that must have been very scary. I hope she is healing well.
Aw, your kitty is very cute. Before we had our cat spayed, she was biting us if we touched her sides, which I thought was strange. But come to find out there were LOTS of ovarian cysts all over inside her, so they were hurting her and she didn't want us touching her.
