Help! My cat is now worse than a child! (kittens, declawed, throw)
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I am beginning to near my wits end with my adopted cat. It's been 3 months now, and I know getting acclimated takes some time, but I'm beginning to fear his bad habits are getting worse instead of better.
Basically in a nutshell, when Jinx does not get his way he will act out. He will either attempt to scratch and bite me, or succeed in doing so. This can be anything from jumping on the table while trying to eat (which he has been better about), not climbing onto my laptop while I'm working, or just plain out of nowhere for no apparent reason at all. He will also throw a fit when he doesn't get his way in the form of growling and hissing. Earlier today he was sitting on the desk while I was typing. I hadn't even touched him, he had been sitting for a few minutes and he just bit my arm hard out of nowhere.
I know when I adopted him they told me his previous owners abandoned him. So with that in mind, I knew it would take a while for him to adjust. But he is getting more and more upset when he doesn't get his way. I've tried positive reinforcement (like giving treats for getting off the table), have locked him in the bathroom for a few minutes when he acts up, praising him when he's good. He's not a bad cat for the most part, and does cuddle with me and the BF. But I'm not sure what else to do at this point to curb this bad behavior. Should I just take him to a vet and make sure it's nothing serious? When I adopted him he had a checkup a month prior and they said all was okay at that time.
For the record before anyone asks, he is fixed, 4 years old, and has not been declawed.
I am beginning to near my wits end with my adopted cat. It's been 3 months now, and I know getting acclimated takes some time, but I'm beginning to fear his bad habits are getting worse instead of better.
Basically in a nutshell, when Jinx does not get his way he will act out. He will either attempt to scratch and bite me, or succeed in doing so. This can be anything from jumping on the table while trying to eat (which he has been better about), not climbing onto my laptop while I'm working, or just plain out of nowhere for no apparent reason at all. He will also throw a fit when he doesn't get his way in the form of growling and hissing. Earlier today he was sitting on the desk while I was typing. I hadn't even touched him, he had been sitting for a few minutes and he just bit my arm hard out of nowhere.
I know when I adopted him they told me his previous owners abandoned him. So with that in mind, I knew it would take a while for him to adjust. But he is getting more and more upset when he doesn't get his way. I've tried positive reinforcement (like giving treats for getting off the table), have locked him in the bathroom for a few minutes when he acts up, praising him when he's good. He's not a bad cat for the most part, and does cuddle with me and the BF. But I'm not sure what else to do at this point to curb this bad behavior. Should I just take him to a vet and make sure it's nothing serious? When I adopted him he had a checkup a month prior and they said all was okay at that time.
For the record before anyone asks, he is fixed, 4 years old, and has not been declawed.
Thanks in advance.
Have you tried looking into a cat behavoralist? When he jumps onto your laptop, do you pay attention to him or just ignore him? Sometimes cats will do things to get attention so that you will feed them. I have a cat who has "stray cat syndrome" not really a syndrome, she wants to eat ALL the time.
She will jump on you, meow at you, or even run in the direction of her food when you get up to do anything.
What's his behavor like when you lock him in the bathroom? Does he really get the idea that he was being bad? I'm not trying to sound patronizing at all, just trying to get a feel for how he reacts to you.
I found this online for you - I've read it through, it's got some good stuff. Hopefully this works for you!
Thanks for the link, I will check it out. In the bathroom, he seems to sense that he was bad, he will rub against my legs and purr.
He does seem hungry all of the time, and when he climbs on the desk I move him to one side and pet him.
I know my working from home this past month has him demanding more attention from me.
We'll see if any of these solutions work. I would much rather give him a chance than pass him off and have the abandonment cycle start all over again for him. But my other cats were never like this.
I used to put my cats on time out in the bathroom occasionally when they were kittens, and I'd always say "Time out!" as I was putting them there. After a few times, if they started to misbehave (usually harassing our oldest cat) or I could see they were about to misbehave, I'd say "Time out?" and reach as if to pick them up and they'd stop what they were doing and trot off somewhere else.
If he does get a bite or scratch in, yell "Ouch!", and either put him on time out or put him away from you and ignore him for a good long time.
An improvement in diet can make a world of difference. Cats that eat sub par foods, foods full of species inappropriate junk, dyes, additives, artificial stuff, grains, glutens, sodium nitrites, all that stuff can play havoc with a cat's temperament.
In addition to improving his diet (if it needs improving) structured play times are a must. Play his favorite interactive games with him every day, at the same times every day. Cats thrive on routine.
When he knows he is going to be getting your undivided attention, at x y and z o'clock, every day, at other times he will be more content to amuse himself.
Put a bird feeder outside a window.
Does he have a cat tree for climbing and jumping?
Feliway plug in diffuser can help with stress behaviors, too.
And make sure you keep his litter boxes clean. I'm not saying you don't Just trying to cover all the bases. Dirty litter boxes can also cause stress behaviors.
One useful thing I learned watching "My Cat From Hell" was about a cat's activity cycle. In the wild, that cycle is: hunt, eat, groom, sleep. Translated to a house cat, the cycle is: play, eat, groom sleep.
So if you play with him and feed him before you start working, he may go off and give himself a bath and take a nap for a few hours. Can't hurt to try it.
One useful thing I learned watching "My Cat From Hell" was about a cat's activity cycle. In the wild, that cycle is: hunt, eat, groom, sleep. Translated to a house cat, the cycle is: play, eat, groom sleep.
So if you play with him and feed him before you start working, he may go off and give himself a bath and take a nap for a few hours. Can't hurt to try it.
You know, I never really thought it through before, but that makes perfect sense.
My Little Cat has always had very little interest in food, but I discovered long ago that if I play her favorite Chase The Strip of Fur Attached to the String On A Stick Game, (Involving stalking, pouncing, chasing, leaping and dragging the toy to her den) for about 10 minutes before offering her food, she eats much better.
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Just trying to cover all the bases. Dirty litter boxes can also cause stress behaviors.
