Cat vanity: I think mine is possessed by at least one demon

my weird cat

[West Texas Chuck]

I'm sitting in the den Friday night watching Samurai movies. My weird psycho cat Rocket jumps into my chair and gets all cuddly and lovey. I am patting him and he gets this look in his eyes and I know what is next. He bites the tar out of me.

[HereInTheHeartland]

Gary Larson is a genius; one of my favorites by him!

[HereInTheHeartland]

You should see the title of my new book; “Composting Cats For Fun and Profit”

[West Texas Chuck]

I’m am forwarding your posts to my wife.

Prepare to die.

[Revolting cat!]

Good thing Heartland is a continent away from West Texas.

[vetvetdoug]

In my professional experience all I can say is, I am thankful domestic house cats don't grow to weigh 80# or more!! Cats can be a challenge to treat.

[patriot08]

‘Cooper runs thru the house like a bat out of hell. Stops, stairs, runs back again.’

All cats do this once in a while. It’s called
‘the crazies”

[Outlaw Woman]

LOL! KC owns you doesn't she? Well ok, anyone who owns a cat knows they are 'owned'.. lol

[West Texas Chuck]

It’s all good. I think that FReeper has a purty good sense of humor.

But when She Who Must Be Obeyed sees those posts ... POW!

To the moon.

[boatbums]

Our youngest cat, Beaux, had the same kind of habit. I do not think it is malice, but either love bites or not knowing the boundaries. Beaux was a little too young (10 weeks) when we got him so I don't think he got the full effect of socialization he needed to get from his mom and siblings. Kittens DO bite and play hard and, whenever one is too rough, the "injured" party lets out a yelp and stops play. If the mom is the party, she pops them on the nose and it gets their attention.

What we did with Beaux is every time he bit, we popped him on the nose and put him down on the floor (if on our lap). It seems to have worked as he seldom, if ever, bites anymore. Our other cat, an older female, hisses at him if he gets too rowdy and bops him in the face. He IS learning acceptable behavior.

Your kitty just needs to learn boundaries. If he is being sweet and cuddly, and you are petting him, notice if his tail starts to twitch. If it does, it means he is getting irritated and you need to stop the petting and get your hands out of his reach. If he comes after them even when you stopped the petting, pop him lightly on the nose, say "NO" and put him down on the floor. It may take a few times for him to learn, but he has to learn what we like and don't like - it is NOT intuitive. Good luck!

One more thing...keep his claws clipped. Get him used to you doing this every month or so. It will help to limit injuries if he does catch you off guard. He's not being mean, just playing and learning right from wrong so hitting him, unlike how dogs may be trained, does NOT work on cats. It causes resentment and fear of you, neither of which makes a happy cat nor loving relationship.

[JRandomFreeper]

LOL! I rescued a male kitten approx 5 weeks from a drain. Mom and the rest of the kittens had been killed by a coyote, from the sign. And I could read the sign without glasses.

I took Sky to the local vet who knew me, and had boarded my catz for a brief TDY.

They gave him his shots and did all the magic and called me to pick him up.

When I got there, they comped the whole thing, and threw in 3 lbs of kitten food.

And wished me luck.

/johnny

[AnotherUnixGeek]

Just about every cat we owned in the past displayed the same behavior.

Weird. Our two Maine Coons have never bitten or scratched anyone - the most gentle, friendly cats I've ever met. Just big, happy and goofy - they're busy chasing a little RC helicopter my son is flying around as I type this. Maybe it's the breed.

[West Texas Chuck]

Good advice, very reasonable.

When we trim Rocket’s claws he whimpers like we are cutting his toes off. Missy, the gray tabby ... well you need them leather gauntlets for her. I’ve bled many times trying to cut her toes off.

[boatbums]

The canned air spray that people use to clean computer keyboards works VERY well to get a cat off wherever you don’t want them to be. It also is good because you aren’t spraying water or anything else on valuable things. A few sprays in their direction is all it takes. Eventually, just the sight of you reaching for the can is all it takes.

[GladesGuru]

cats are solitary predators, and as such they do not have many behavioral similarities to humans. Cats relate to humans as a kitten to the mother cat. The kitten stage is the only time a cat is cared for at all.

I found that understanding a cat was easier if I treated the cat in its own “language”.

Picked up the offending cat by the scruff of its neck, because that is how the female carries the kitten. Cats have a built in limp/submissive mode triggered by that hold.

If the cat knows you will either injure or kill it if it offends you - then kitty is a nice kitty.

With cats, if it learns you are the Mother Cat of the Universe, it will not risk your ire.

Regardless of what a Cat Lady tells you, love, (in human terms) is not part of the feline world - dominance is.

‘Nuff said.

[JRandomFreeper]

The kitten stage is the only time a cat is cared for at all.

Explain then my adult catz grooming each other.

love, (in human terms) is not part of the feline world - dominance is.

That seems to be spot on with my 45+ years of coping with catz.

/johnny

[boatbums]

I hope you aren't cutting his claws too closely. Look for a tiny black line on the underside of the nail (inside of hook) and make sure you only clip off the nail ABOVE the top of the line. Too close and it IS painful, can bleed and may get infected. If they cannot tolerate it, try to do only one paw at a time and then come back later for the others. With Beaux, I had to do two or three claws at a time and then let him down. Now he's okay with getting them all done at the same time especially since I give him a treat after wards. Boy loves his treats!

[boatbums]

I hope you aren't cutting his claws too closely. Look for a tiny black line on the underside of the nail (inside of hook) and make sure you only clip off the nail ABOVE the top of the line. Too close and it IS painful, can bleed and may get infected. If they cannot tolerate it, try to do only one paw at a time and then come back later for the others. With Beaux, I had to do two or three claws at a time and then let him down. Now he's okay with getting them all done at the same time especially since I give him a treat after wards. Boy loves his treats!

Let me also add, you cut off the tip of the nail of the claw above the end of the black line ONLY - not cutting into that line which is a tiny vein. I just wanted to make sure you didn't think I was saying to lop off the whole nail above the line where it starts. I hope I was clear enough.

[right way right]

Put him in a pillow case, tie it closed and put him on your lap and pet him through the pillow case. Be gentle.
See if he catches on that you want to be gentle.

Or, If that does not work, get some welding gloves and play rough,let him bite and scratch the gloves, put him on his back show him your dominate power. Show him who's boss. Don't harm him just show him your strength. He needs to see the results of his attacks as a losing prospect.

He's just playing, but your being wimpy. You're a big rat he wants to kick your butt, and chomp on your head, when he's and when done, eat your brains. He's dominating you.

[Mike Darancette]

Plus, Cooper runs thru the house like a bat out of hell. Stops, stairs, runs back again.

Just getting exercise. Maybe it needs a playmate.

[Delta 21]