Expert: Ali - 3/26/2009

Question
I have an almost 3 year old cat. She used to be very sweet natured....now when you pet her...she allows it for a very short time...then bites and gets the claws out...you never know when she is going to attack you...she also has started hisssing and growling at nothing...just herself...I just want the sweet little girl back

Answer
Mary,

It sounds to me like your cat may have a form of aggression referred to as play aggression, this is also sometimes called petting aggression. Play aggression is a behavior that's seen quite frequently in cats that were removed from their mother too early. The reasons for this are fairly simple, kittens learn about basic social skills and important things such as bite inhibition during those first 12 weeks of life. I generally recommend that kittens be allowed to stay with their mother and siblings for a minimum of 12 weeks, this allows them to learn basic social skills and if their human family members make a habit of handling the kittens appropriately the kittens will also learn how to interact appropriately with their human caregivers. Your cat may be responding inappropriately to human attention and affection because she likely never got the chance to learn basic feline etiquette and social behavior from her mother and siblings as a young kitten.

Play aggression can sometimes occur when a cat is overstimulated in some instances you'll see aggression when petting your cat for too long. This can be a difficult issue to overcome and it requires patience, persistence, training and consistency so that those interacting with your cat regularly are responding the same ways to the same behaviors. I've taken the liberty of including several articles from different websites about play aggression so that you have a general idea of what the cause of this behavioral issue is and how best to resolve it. The following link is also useful and contains several articles about play aggression that are well worth checking out:

http://www.sniksnak.com/cathealth/aggression2.html

There are a few important tips that can help to prevent aggressive responses from your cat. Firstly, it's very important that nobody in your family ever plays with this cat using their hands, human hands aren't toys and shouldn't be treated as such with any cat. If you find that your cat is pushy and aggressive during play or she scratches you then it's important to immediately stop the activity and ignore her. Having a good selection of cat toys can reduce play aggression, small toys that the cat can easily pick up and bat around work best. Some favorites in my household are the small soft foam ping pong shaped balls that bounce wildly when tossed around, small catnip mice, crinkle balls and of course small mice made from rabbit fur. Damaged toys can present a serious safety risk for your cat so it's important to make sure that you check any toys over frequently and discard any that are damaged.

In some cases play aggression can improve if pet parents consider getting their cat a properly socialized and well balanced feline sibling. It's very important to choose a well socialized cat that's calm, submissive and stable. At this point it's not in your best interests to take on another cat that may potentially have his/her own behavioral issues. There are different advantages and disadvantages it's important to be aware of when deciding whether to choose a 12+ week old kitten that's been allowed to remain with his/her mom and siblings for the first 12 weeks or opting for a cat that's roughly the same in size and age to your resident cat. An older cat is larger and stronger than a 12 week old kitten, but you have no way of knowing for sure that an adult cat isn't bringing their own psychological baggage into their new home. There is a risk that a 12 week old kitten could be accidentally injured if a fight does break out with your cat, but the basic social building blocks are fresher in a young kitten's mind. It's very important that you carefully consider what's best for your family, your cat's long term wellbeing, the physical safety and psychological wellbeing of another cat entering the house and of course whether or not you're able to commit to caring for your cat along with adopting another cat or kitten.

It sounds as though your cat has had the incredible luck of landing in the arms of a family that's willing to work with her towards resolving her behavioral issues, unfortunately that's not common, the number one cause of death for cats in North America is euthanasia secondary to behavioral problems. As it stands at the moment you are caring for a cat that needs the company of a stable, well socialized cat in order to learn appropriate social behavior with her human caregivers. Sometimes being able to play with a cat and have appropriate limits reinforced by a playmate can work wonders for cats that can be a bit difficult to work with.

One strategy that may potentially help discourage your cat's inappropriate aggression is putting her on a short time out either in a room behind a closed door or her kennel each time that she bites or scratches any human being. Most domestic cats are quite social and they will respond well to being put on a time out of sorts because they don't like to be ignored or isolated from the rest of the family. I'm sure that you understand how important it is to supervise your cat closely at this time in the event that there are children in your home, this recommendation is as much about protecting your cat as it is ensuring that nobody gets scratched or bitten. I'd be lying if I said that your cat would never lash out at a child so for the time being this cat must never be left in the company of children while unsupervised.

Your cat sounds like she might be quite sensitive based on the information that you've provided it doesn't take much to get an aggressive response from her. I feel strongly that it's important to protect your cat and any young visitors by providing him with a safe place that you can confine her to a room that's off limits to the children. The safe room should be away from the areas that your family would normally entertain guests and it goes without saying that this cat's safe room should be equipped with all of the usual kitty necessities. I don't anticipate the aggression you're seeing from your cat being a permanent concern, I think that she'll come around once you've had a chance to work with her and she'll be less likely to lash out. If you do decide to get your cat a feline playmate it's extremely important to ensure that you introduce them properly. Questions concerning new cat introductions are quite common and I've answered many, you can check out previous answers on the subject of new cat introductions to give you an idea of what would be involved. If your cat has shown a tendency to scratch or bite when handled I wouldn't recommend picking her up because that may cause the level of her aggression to escalate.

For now it's important that anyone who handles your cat keeps a close eye on her when they give her attention. Most people don't realize that the majority of cats will give off subtle warnings prior to scratching or biting human caregivers. Subtle cues can include suddenly stiffening all over, wagging or flicking her tail, you may also notice the fur on her body puff up like a Halloween cat. Other common signs that a cat may become aggressive include folding their ears flat against their head, unsheathing their claws, growling, or seeing their pupils (the black part of their eye) dilate. The physical changes that I've mentioned apply to most cats and should be seen as good indicators that your cat may become aggressive at any point.

Ultimately when I deal with a cat that's showing aggression I make a point of staying calm, getting angry or frustrated just isn't going to help the situation and may in fact make things worse. It's important to be assertive when dealing with any cat who has issues with aggression, getting frustrated or forceful isn't going to accomplish anything productive. It's important that nobody is afraid of being scratched or bitten by your cat because animals operate on instincts and body language, they're able to sense fear which can make an aggressive cat more powerful which isn't what you want. I fully understand that nobody wants to be scratched or bitten, however it's really not that big of a deal unless of course you have a suppressed immune system. For now I'd recommend that nobody with a weakened immune system handles your cat to avoid any potential medical problems. As a general rule it's best to avoid being bitten or scratched by a cat, but if it happens it's important to thoroughly clean and disinfect any cat scratches so that they don't become infected. Cat bites are a little more serious, they do have a tendency to get infected so I'd recommend getting medical attention if your cat bites anyone and breaks the skin. Above all it's crucial to watch your cat's body language closely, if we're right about her being taken away from her mother too early she may not show the usual signs of agitation before becoming aggressive.

Doing some basic obedience training with your cat may also help take the edge off of her aggression and reinforce the idea that you and your family members are the top cats in the household. It's important to note that cats living in groups instinctively have a social hierarchy. In a cat colony more submissive cats will do things when the more dominant cats allow them to and submissive cats won't show aggression to dominant ones. Essentially you have to help your cat to understand that in a household with a human family she is the submissive cat and she is to show a certain level of respect to the top cats which in this case are her human caregivers. You can use clicker/treat training to teach commands like "sit", "beg", "sit pretty", "down" or "stay". Although many people believe that cats can't be trained to perform some of the same basic tricks as dogs can that isn't the case - it's a question of finding out exactly what motivates your cat and using it to your advantage.

For my cats it's all about cookies, whether homemade or store bought my cats will do anything for cookies. I started off by working with my resident cats fairly early into their life with me. Basic obedience commands are a great place to start modifying a cat's behavior. You may want to start off by teaching a few simple commands such as "sit", "sit pretty" and "beg" because these are all taught pretty much the same way. In order to get a cat to sit you'll need to take the treat of choice, hold it between your hands and slowly bring it to your cat's nose while moving slightly towards her tail. If done correctly the cat will naturally sit, you can reward this with food and a clicker so that the cat eventually sees the click as a reward. Sit pretty can be taught by performing the basic sit then gently lifting the treat slightly, your cat should rise up on her haunches slightly, you will then reward the cat and praise her. Beg is similar to sit pretty except for the fact that you'll need to lift the treat higher so that your cat is standing up on her haunches.

Depending upon the time that you have available to train this cat and her attention span you could also try teaching "stay" and "down" as commands. Down is taught similar to the way that it is in dogs, once the cat is comfortable with the sit command you'll have her sit and hold the treat close to her nose while slowly lowering it to the ground, the cat will naturally follow and end up in the down position. Teaching "stay" is all about your cat's attention span, you'll need to start off small by getting the cat into a sit or down then giving the stay command and waiting several seconds to reward her. It's going to take some time to build the cat up to staying for any length of time, but with loads of patience, favorite treats and a fair amount of time and repetition it's possible. Although many people will tell you that cats aren't trainable I beg to differ, my cats all follow basic obedience commands with or without treats. For those who think that cats aren't trainable and that trying to train them is a waste of time it's worth thinking about the fact that all of the movies and television shows that feature feline actors require the cats to perform several basic tricks as well as tasks specific to movie and television sets like going to a specific mark. Cats are every bit as trainable as dogs, for the most part they won't do demeaning or humiliating tricks, but I think that has to do with their innate sense of dignity.

Sometimes basic obedience training isn't enough to completely stop play aggression in some cats. There are a few other tricks you can try which should hopefully make a difference. You can use a can of compressed air (the kind used to clean keyboards and electronic equipment, do be careful to avoid tilting the can or pointing it directly into the cat's face as it contains chemicals that can cause frost bite) or a spray bottle filled with water. The compressed air makes a hissing sound which most cats will immediately understand and that will usually convince a cat that's out of line to stop in their tracks. Another common tool is the spray bottle, it's important to use new spray bottles that haven't contained household cleaners, I normally purchase mine at the dollar store. Any spray bottle that adjusts to squirt a stream of water will work. For the majority of cats getting wet is offensive and being squirted in the face is the ultimate insult. It takes work for cats to dry their coats once they've gotten wet so most cats will shy away from getting wet whenever possible. As soon as your cat is calm after being disciplined it's important to praise her and consider offering some gentle pets and a treat.

If your cat doesn't seem to get the point behind the two basic humane disciplinary tools I've mentioned there is another effective approach that you can try. Cats living in colonies have a strict social order that prevents them from stepping out of line with more dominant colony members. In theory this means that if you work at helping your cat understand that she is at least one step below all of her human family members the aggression will stop. There are a few ways that you can help your cat to understand your position within the household's hierarchy. First of all, since your cat seems to be having some difficulty with the social order it's important not to allow her to dictate when, where, how long or how often she receives attention and physical affection. What this means in practical terms is that your cat isn't allowed to hop up onto furniture occupied by a human or anyone's lap without a specific invitation. If she does try to get up without being invited you and everyone else in the family are going to unceremoniously plop her onto the floor and ignore her while continuing whatever you happened to be doing before she tried to get your attention. This is only the first part of helping your cat to understand the boundaries and what behaviors will and won't be tolerated within your household.

The second part of educating your cat is to stop feeding her by putting her daily ration of kibble into a bowl on the floor. Each family member will carry around a part of your cat's regular dry food in a ziploc bag throughout the day. Essentially this means that your cat will have to work for all of her food either by coming to you when he's called or performing basic obedience commands. I understand that it may not be feasible to feed your cat her entire ration of dry food this way so you can also control her food intake by feeding her half of his daily ration in small meals throughout the day and getting her to work for the rest throughout the day. In the case of feeding your cat several small daily meals at frequent intervals throughout the day it's important to call her and have her come and sit before giving her with her food. This is one way of ensuring that your cat doesn't miss out on the food that she needs to meet her needs if your household is quite busy. It's important to have your cat learn how to come when she's called and have her perform tricks fairly frequently as this helps to reinforce the idea that human beings are the bosses within the household. The reason for making your cat work for her food is to help her understand that food comes from human beings not the floor, this means that the human family members are at least one step above your cat on the household hierarchy. Once your cat's aggression improves you can gradually increase the amount of food that she is allowed free access to throughout the day until she's eating the majority of her food out of a bowl, it's still important to continue having your cat work for her food regularly though so that you don't have to start rehabilitating her all over again.

PLAY AGGRESSION IN FELINES

MAKING A NASTY CAT NICE

September 23, 1997

Submitted by: Klea Talbot

WHAT IS FELINE PLAY AGGRESSION?

Feline play aggression can be a very annoying and unsettling problem for any cat owner. Play aggression can be loosely defined as aggressive interactions, between the problem cat and another cat or between the cat and one or more people. The cat shows the aggression by giving signs (body postures) of fighting, exploring, predatory behavior or investigating toward the victim involved (more commonly directed to a person than another cat therefore this paper will merely discuss this aggression in terms of a human victim).

Play aggression is most common in cats two years old or younger, although it has been noted in some older cats. The aggression is usually initiated by the movement of the victim and is perhaps time of day and location specific (examples: when owner returns from work or wakes in the morning). The victim may be only one specific person or may be any person that passes through a selected area. This aggression may involve stalking, ambushing, or closely following a person and then quickly, silently rushing at the person and attacking them. The feet and legs tend to be the common target areas of cats engaging in play aggression. During the attack the cat may wrap itself around the victims limb, swat, claw, bite and kick. The cat may frequently run away from the victim after the attack is over.

WHY DOES PLAY AGGRESSION DEVELOP?

Play aggression tends to develop when a kitten has no other young cats to interact with. This commonly occurs if the kitten is weaned from its mother and litter mates too early and is placed in an environment with no other cats or the only cats the kitten has contact with are too old to play.

Early weaning deprives a kitten of proper social interaction. Social interaction between kittens is important and allows them to engage in play which includes behaviors used in fighting, stalking and killing prey, exploring and investigation techniques. Playing kittens may seem like they are being aggressive to one another, but they are continually giving each other signals to indicate that the interaction is meant as play and not as aggression. If one kitten gets carried away at play (bites or scratches too hard), the other kittens will usually correct the offender. The correction may be in the form of a growl, a serious bite or the play will simply stop. A kitten's mother also plays a role in socializing the kitten to interact properly with other cats and even with people. If a kitten bites the mother too hard while it is nursing the mother will correct the kitten with a swat or a low growl. This will teach the kitten to inhibit its bite so that it learns how to bite others without actually hurting them. The socializing that occurs between kitten and siblings, and kitten and mother allows the kitten to learn how aggressive the kitten can be before it hurts its playmate. If a kitten successfully learns social behavior, the kitten is less likely to hurt a playmate. Unsuccessful socializing is not the only component leading to play aggression. It can also be caused by an active cat being confined and not allowed to release its energy often enough. This is evident when play aggression occurs after periods when the cat has had little interaction with the owner (after owner returns from work or when the owner wakes in the morning) and the cat has had little opportunity to play.

CAN ANYTHING BE DONE ABOUT PLAY AGGRESSION?

Play aggression can be treated. Treatments could involve a companion for the cat or center around behavioral modifications that tend to redirect the aggression, interrupt the aggression, reward appropriate behavior (calm) or wear the cat out so it has no need to express the behavioral problem.

If the owner can anticipate when the cat is going to be aggressive the owner could do two things. The owner could present the cat with an alternative victim or choose to scare the cat and interrupt the behavior. An alternate victim may be presented as a toy that distracts the cat and demands a vigorous response from the cat. The owner may also choose to attempt to scare the cat so that the behavior is interrupted and will hopefully, eventually cease.

The owner may choose to reward the cat with food treats and attention (interactive playing with a toy or petting) only when the cat is behaving appropriately and ignore the cat (walk away) when it displays aggression. This will hopefully teach the cat that it will only get the interaction it seeks if it approaches the owner in a calm manner.

The owner may wish to actually increase the amount of time spent vigorously interacting with the cat in an attempt to decrease the cats desire to be aggressive. This can be done with toys that move, or toys that are small enough for the cat to carry. The owner could also engage in indirect wrestling between the cat and owner through a toy. It is important that the owner does not give the cat the opportunity to bite and scratch them. If the cat does bite or scratch the owner the cat may be encourage to repeat with those acts later.

An owner may also choose to provide a companion cat for the problem cat. The companion should be of approximately the same age. The companion may be helpful in decreasing the problem cats desire to attack the owner by giving the cat a play mate.

HOW CAN PLAY AGGRESSION BE TREATED?

It is important that the owner understand that, no matter what mode of treatment they choose to use on their cat, they must be consistent and always react the same way to the cats behavior.

If redirection of the cats aggression is chosen, it must be implemented before the cat is actually engaged in aggressive action. For example, as soon as the owner notices signs that the cat is going to be aggressive, the owner must create an alternate victim for the cat. This can be done by throwing a toy out to catch the cats attention so the toy will be used instead of the owner as the target for the aggression.

If the owner decides to interrupt the aggressive behavior and attempt to stop it, the owner must also be able to recognize when the cat is intending to become aggressive. The owner should implement some means of startling the cat before the aggressive behavior actually commences. The owner must use a humane method of punishing the cat. Noise making devices (fog horn), water pistols or compressed air may be used on the cat. It is important that the mode of punishment not be directly associated or physically related to the owner or the cat may experience fear aggression toward the owner.

Rewarding proper behavior and ignoring or avoiding inappropriate behavior are also possible treatments for play aggression. The owner should control when the cat can have contact with the owner by only giving the cat attention (treats, petting, interactive playing) when the cat is behaving appropriately. When the cat is about to become aggressive, the owner should minimize any contact with the animal, so that the owner can not be the victim of the cats aggression. Again the owner must always react the same way to the cats behavior, and must never tolerate or encourage aggressive behavior.

The owner may be able to schedule specific play times for the cat. These play times should be at key points in the cats day in order to increase the cats activity and decrease the cats tendencies to be aggressive. The owner may choose to interact vigorously with the cat early in the morning and again later when the owner gets home from work. The owner should always to be sure to only initiate the interaction while the cat is being good and before the cat has the opportunity to be aggressive.

A companion for the problem cat may discourage the aggressive behavior. A companion may decrease the cats boredom in the hours of the day that the owner is not spending time with the cat. If the companion is a good play mate the two cats will play together and wear each other out so that the problem cat will only seek affection from the owner instead of attacking the owner, because the cat is more tired.

A problem cat that displays play aggression can become a nice cat if the owner is willing to spend the time to help the cat correct the aggressive behavior of the cat.

Cat Training: Play Aggression

Michael Jordan
October 29, 2007

Play aggression

Aggression is an inherent aspect of your cat’s predatory nature: behaviors like stalking, chasing, leaping, pouncing, swatting, and biting are all common displays, and are always a major component of any play session.

Usually, this doesn’t constitute a problem: it’s just how cats play, and catering to your cat’s predatory whims can be pretty fun!

But when your cat becomes play aggressive, things can get very uncomfortable, very quickly: faced with a cat that doesn’t understand that such play is painful and even dangerous for her owner, playtimes with your cat can become a trial rather than a pleasure.

This problem is the number-one most common form of aggression that cats display towards humans. It happens when a bored, underexercised, and lonely cat becomes overstimulated during play – and typical play-time mock aggression becomes the real deal.

How do cats normally play?

Cats play in two ways: social (or interactive) play, which is directed towards other cats and humans; and solitary play, which is directed towards objects like balled up paper, mobile cat toys, and paper bags.

Play aggression is often present in either of these two modes of play, but it only becomes an issue when people are involved.

What causes play aggression?

Play aggression happens when your cat has an excess of unused energy – usually from a lack of exercise and owner interaction – and, as a result, becomes too rambunctious and vigorous during a play session.

Because all cat play is based around the predatory feline nature, an overstimulated cat vents this excess through an intensification of her normal predatory play: so, instead of swatting at you with claws sheathed, she extends them; instead of mouthing your hand, she gives it a sharp bite.

Unfortunately, the problem is usually self-replicating. The cat is play-aggressive because she’s not getting enough stimulating, interactive play time; but because she demonstrates this behavior whenever she gets played with, her owner plays with her less … which results in more play aggression … which results in even less play … and so on.

How can I tell when my cat’s about to become aggressive?

You can often tell when the play’s getting a bit out of control by paying attention to your cat’s body language and expression.

Normal, non-aggressive feline play behavior includes the ‘play face’, with a half-open mouth and heavily lidded eyes; the sideways hop (often with arched back); and a lightly switching tail (it’s going from side to side, but slowly and gently.)

When your cat’s getting too revved-up, her body language will alter dramatically. Her ears will go back, her tail will start lashing violently from side to side, and her pupils will enlarge. Her movements will also become significantly more vigorous and energetic: there’ll be increased speed and force to her playing.

What should I do when I sense things are getting out of control?

If you think your cat’s getting overexcited, the best thing you can do is to stand up and walk away – before she actually starts to display aggression! You can resume play as soon as she’s calmed down a bit; the idea is to intervene before she has the chance to vent her energy on you.

If it’s too late for this and she’s already started to bite or scratch at you, don’t reward her with attention – not even negative attention. Simply stand up and walk away. Leave the room, if necessary.

At this point, she will most likely try to initiate play with you again. When she does, don’t respond – play initiation is dominant behavior, and if you accede to her demands, it'll teach her that bothering you for attention results in her getting her own way.

If she’s particularly persistent, or the aggression is becoming hard to deal with, you can isolate her in a room by herself until she’s calm (which can take anywhere from five to twenty minutes.)

Main do’s and don’ts for play aggression

Remember, your cat isn’t really trying to ‘attack’ you – her intentions are purely playful. She just has to learn that aggressive behavior isn’t going to result in a rewarding play session for her. In order for her to learn this, you need to be consistent with your reactions: so don’t reward her with attention sometimes, and ignore her at other times. She’ll get confused, and won’t learn to curb her aggressive behavior.

Don’t ever use physical punishment to correct play aggression. There are two reasons for this: one, if you actually hurt your cat, this will result in increased aggression on her behalf; and two, even if it doesn’t hurt, it’s still going to scare her, which results in owner-avoidance and a general deterioration of your relationship.

Since play aggression is almost always due to boredom and an excess of energy, the best thing you can do is to provide lots of opportunities for stimulating interactive play with your cat. Try to make it aerobic exercise: get her running around, chasing things, climbing, pouncing, and so on.

Make sure the play is on your terms. Don’t allow your cat to initiate play – this is habit-forming, and teaches her that you can be manipulated.

If you find it difficult to make the time to play with your cat, scheduling in a couple of set ten-minute playtimes each day might help. Paying attention to your cat’s circadian rhythms (watching to see when she’s the most active) is a good idea as well: play with her when she’s wide-awake and raring to go. She’ll get more out of it.

What toys should I use?

Cats are predators. Their play is instinctively based around behaviors that will increase their ability to hunt.

Because of this, cats prefer toys that resemble prey – that is, small, mobile objects that move.

Try things like ping-pong balls, scrumpled-up paper, cardboard boxes, paper bags, dangling ropes affixed to the ceiling or doorways, scratching posts, and skeins of yarn for solitary play; and fake mice, cat dancers (like a mobile which you dangle and jerk around for your cat to play with), wands, and anything that rolls which you can toss for her for interactive play.

If she likes to climb and explore, you can also try creating an obstacle course for her to enjoy: rig up some branches, pillars, shelves, perches, and climbing ramps etc for her to clamber around on. Most cats enjoy being up high anyway, so this should go down a treat. You can also try hiding some small, tasty treats in various places to encourage her to get climbing.

For a really detailed look at how to deal with your cat’s behavior problems, take a look at Complete Cat Training. It’s a cutting-edge cat training manual that’s focused on training your cat and changing her behavior for the better.

For professional tips on transforming your cat’s behavior problems (as well as teaching her some pretty neat tricks, from sit and stay to roll over, play dead, and fetch!) Complete Cat Training comes very highly recommended.

You can visit the Complete Cat Training website by clicking on the link below: http://www.kingdomofpets.com/completecattraining

I have tried my best to provide you with a fair amount of material about play aggression so that you have a complete understanding of what's going on and the best ways of dealing with the problem. I really believe that it's possible to rehabilitate your cat, but it will take some patience, time and consistent treatment by every member of your household. While working with your cat make sure to be patient, gentle, calm and assertive, this is the best way of ensuring that this little girl gets the best chance in life at staying with her forever family. Based on the concern that you have for your cat and the fact that you're willing to work with her I'm guessing that there's a good chance she will do well with appropriate treatment.