Problem With The Devil Cat
 

So we have a problem - and are out of ideas. Looking to the wise folks of the TFP for some advice!

We "adopted" a cat when he was a kitten 2 years ago from the SPCA. He always playfully bit us no matter how we trained him. We tried a spray bottle, hitting him on the nose when he bit, sticking our finger down his throat when he bit (this is supposed to train them not to do this), yelling, etc etc but nothing worked; so we just lived with it. He bites fairly hard, I dont think he is trying to injure but he sometimes draws blood.

We got a second cat maybe a year and a half ago, she is no problem - the nicest cat, doesn't bite or anything. So we don't believe it was caused by our upbringing, we think it either was something that happened to him before we got him or it is just by nature.

We have tried every thing we have heard of to try to cure him of his biting. Absolutely nothing has worked.

Anyway, we are completely fed up with the way this cat is acting. He just totally bit my wife when she wasn't even petting him at all. We are really worried because whenever we have company he will try to bite them even if they are leaving him alone. He hisses at kids, we are scared one of these days that he will bite or hurt one. We are also trying to get pregnant so us having a baby would definately neccessitate us getting rid of him, even if we arent at that point yet. There is no way we would allow him to be around a baby.

So here is the issue; we can't figure out a humane way to get rid of him. Here are the options that we've come up with, and reasons why they don't work.

- Just put the cat outside and turn him into an outdoor cat - Problem is that our landlord lives nextdoor and hates cats and specifically said she didnt want an outdoor cat. They have chickens and the cat would probably end up killing them.

- Give the cat away - Problem is everyone we know knows this is the cat from hell and noone wants it. We couldn't imagine anyone that would meet him would want him, when we take him to the vet they have to wear these heavy gloves to prevent themselves from getting bitten.

- Give the cat to SPCA - 2 problems, noone would adopt the cat since he is so mean, and they would end up killing him; second is that I understand the SPCA puts you on some sort of blacklist if you adopt a cat from them and return it.

- Leave the cat out on some farm - Problem is if it is returned to the SPCA it has a tag implanted under its skin so they can tell who's it is.

It's a weird situation, we have some sort of affection for him and wouldnt want him killed, but at the same time we no longer welcome him in our house. I joked to my wife that I could just smother him or something but we could never do anything like that.

So... any ideas?! Are we just making this more complicated than it really is?

hmmm... short of pulling all its teeth i cant really think of anything...

Go buy some "sour apples" spray, when he bites he drinks; it'll teach him... It's how you trach dogs not to pee on carpets... I think the petshop should have it

Try giving the cat chewy toys, maybe with catnip or valerian root in them. The best toy might just be an old (clean) rag with a wad of catnip tied inside. Knot it really well, and let the cat chomp on the thing and tear it apart. Most biting is just displaced aggression or play behavior. Too bad you don't have a mouse problem - sounds like he'd enjoy hunting. Trip to the pet store? ;)

http://www.thepetprofessor.com/cat-info/cat-biting.html

http://www.ivillage.com/pets/expert/...=adid=12161552

Good sugguestion with the displaced aggression; my dog had a similar problem but learned through alternative methods; doubt aurigus is a pot head like my brother was :-x

We had some "no cat" spray that you use on furniture to stop them from using it - it does not really faze him. He will run away and then come back and bite you. The same thing happens with a spray bottle with water - you spray him and he will run away and then come back and bite you; he thinks you are trying to play with him I think.

JStrider: We joking said that we were going to file his teeth down, but I don't think that they do that :)

Castrate the little bugger.

But seriously, is he fixed?
I agree with the displaced agression theory. Buy a scratching post.

Yeah he's fixed. We tried going the toy/scratching post way, it did not seem to work then but maybe we will try now that he is older.

It's so sad - he chases our other cat around and she is not doing anything or paying attention to him at all. So maybe it is just that he doesn't have an outlet for playing.

What about a large dose of barbituate?

I know it sounds rotten, but it's not at all cruel. And if you're not willing to subject anyone else to have the cat (understandably) and you're unwilling to keep it (understandably), it sure doesn't seem that you have many other options.

Honestly, I think putting it outside would be more cruel than sending it on a trip up the mortal coil if it's been an inside cat for its whole life. The only other thing you could do to prevent it from biting people would be to seclude it indoors, which might as well be prison.

Sounds like a rotten decision to have to make. Good luck...

Search the internet for a no-kill animal shelter in your area. They will take "undesirable" animals and bring them back to good health, if necessary, and find them new homes.

My suggestion is that you begin wrapping your head around the idead that this animal is defective and may have to die. Harsh, I know. But it seems to be the case.

I would never tollerate a pet that threatens my family or children.

Well, there ya go. I'd bite you, too. ;)
My cat likes to lie in wait, until some poor unsuspecting schmuck (me) walks by, then attacks, and hangs on to your leg for a few seconds, than jumps off to go tear through the house. That, I think, is all in play though.

Does it get outside at all? We have a boy and girl cat - they are inside at night but free to roam during the day (which in practice means they visit about 5 or 6 houses that surround ours...).

They both used to "nip" us (toes and fingers), but only in a playful manner when younger.

We do keep them inside if it is really wet outside - and on days like that the boy does get aggressive and chase/tackle/bite his sister.

It may just be that he is cooped up being inside all the time. This may sound funny but have you tried taking it for a walk outside on a leash? I know people that do it - this might help.

Your third solution, leaving the cat on a farm, is acceptable if you inform the farmer. I've had friends who do this; they found farmers who were willing to take the cats as "outside only" cats who they'd feed but otherwise not take care of. It's possibly a short life but an intense one, and it might be what he's best suited for.

Some cat breeds are just biters. I know that Siamese cats, back 75 years or so ago, were commonly notorious biters. It's mainly been bred out of them since, at least in this country. This wouldn't possibly be a siamese mix, would it?

He sounds just like my cat. KC will walk up and chomp on your leg for no reason other than you walked into the room. She is a fixed, well exercised cat with all the room she could ever need/want to play. Her bite has softened over time to a point I can live with it (it's actually quite fun to play with her).
Not sure if you can do anything about the behavior or not...best of luck.

Here's my pride and joy doing what she does best...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v11/splck/kc2.jpg

splck - I just had to check my two are still here - KC looks very similar to mine, shown in photography forum:
http://www.tfproject.org/tfp/showthread.php?t=75521

Here are a few more of KC in this post....
http://www.tfproject.org/tfp/showthread.php?t=62315


This how I deal with KC.
Link

Is she 18 or over? :lol:

my cat Stupid(yes Stupid) was quite aggressive up until recently. She was an inside/outside cat as was the dog. We had a pet door for them and they went in and out at their own discretion but usually stayed inside for the night and Stupid usually slept with me since I closed my bedroom door. I dont think they "blacklist" you per-se but its not wise to return it.

Also making it an "outdoor cat" may not last long as he sounds old enough to be very accustomed to indoor life and would have quite the time adjusting to the surroundings.

Dropping him off at a farm would be the same thing, and if he somehow got away, or someone found him and searched for the tag.... well you'd be SOL

Body language is key. and toys.. cats get bored easily so change their toys about every 6 weeks..and maybe he's jealous.. I know my 2 here in the apartment defianately know when Im focused on things other than the home.

Biting after petting is pretty common. Some cats do it, some don't. You can tell after a while when they've reached their limit; usually they get a certain look in their eyes, and their stance changes, and yes, the tail starts to switch a different way. That's the time to pull the hand away.

I've also noticed licking behavior turn to biting behavior when one cat is licking another. Usually the cat that is licking will eventually begin to bite the cat being licked; then go back to licking, then bite again, and so on. The cat being licked will take it for a while, but will eventually respond with bites. And sometimes, the cat doing the licking will not bite, but the cat being licked will respond to the licking with bites.

I can understand why a cat who's being licked would eventually have enough and bite. But why would a cat who's _doing_ the licking decide to start biting?

Usually you can tell when he gets pissed when you are petting him - the telltale signs are he looks at you, ears go slightly back, tail starts to wag. But this past episode he was just sitting on the sofa with us and hissed and attacked my wife. It was pretty scary for her.

He's the best when he is nice but he turns and its a bit scary. Not for me any more but for other people. Like I said, it's a weird situation because we've grown to like him but when it gets to the point where you are scared of him - then its time to get rid of him. Not to mention when we have a kid, I don't want the cat to get anywhere near him/her. A kid, especially when they get older, doesn't know the cat will bite them and even 1 time would be too much.

When he was smaller he used to do the leg attack thing. He doesn't anymore with us but he does lie in wait and pounces on our other cat. We feel bad for her.

We do have an aunt that lives on a farm with a barn and there are a bunch of cats that live there. It might be best to see if we can drop him off there, or just ask everyone we know if they would want an outdoor cat! I feel bad for raising him indoors and then setting him loose outside but it beats being put to sleep... maybe?

I think we are just going to get him some toys, try one last time to train him to not bite. It sounds like he might just have pent up aggression since he is home alone all day.

There are a couple of things that are very important to remember when thinking about your options.

1) your standing with the SPCA shoudl be secondary to the welfare of the cat and
2) some of your ideas are less humnane then putting the cat down (ie turning it into an "outdoor cat")

Since you say you have some affection for this cat, but you know that you can't live with it and you are sure that you cannot find a loving home for it, euthanizing the animal is a very human choice.

It does not make you a bad person, and maybe it is the best thing in this situation. We had a cat with diabetes, and as the disease progressed we were faced with the choice of twice daliy insulin injections. Now this old cat of ours would probably have had other ideas being an icredibly independent creature, so we call a house cal lvet who put the cat down in our home.

I'm sure whereever you live there is such a veteranarian, and it is a very peaceful and humane way to take care of this unique problem. It may cost you a bit of cash for this, but there are many advantages:

1) the cat is eutanized in peaceful surroundings, so there is very little suffering.
2) the SPCA is not invloved, so that your concern over balck listing is eliminated.
3) what may be an unhappy existence for the cat itself (obviously there are some nuerological problems, who knows how happy it is?)
4) you no longer need worry about the biting cat, and your other cat, after some adjustment, will be happier.

As far as I'm concerned, this is your best option and, although I do not wish to imply that animals are disposal, it is possible that some animals are not meant to live as pets, and we have to accept that and do the best we can to be humane about it.

Good luck, both about the cat and the pregnancy, I hope everything works out for you.

Take care,
Peace.

Pierre

Thanks for taking the time to write.

We thought of this route as well. We would feel horrible about putting it down as he is a healthy cat besides the psychological problem, not to mention it costs a decent chunk of change to do this from what we hear.

I used to be a "decrease the surplus population" type of guy, I guess I'm becoming a softie!

what about the remote control shock thingys? like for when they jump on furniture? i mean if nothing else works.

I've read over and over that cats don't fight or struggle with dominance issues, that because they aren't pack animals they won't respond pack training.

I've yet to find a cat that that's strictly true for.

Whenever I've been faced with problem behavior from a cat, I've grabbed the scruff of their neck and pushed them down. Maybe rub them back and forth on the floor a few inches. I've seen cats on the brink of feral be brought back to 'sanity' with this method.

The best part about this is that it asserts dominance, not teaches fear. You're never doing much more than causing a little uncomfortable feelings and holding them still.

The second your cat bites, whip that hand out and grab the scruff of the neck and force submission. If the cat tries to peer around to bite you, or hisses at you while you do that, force more submission. Be unfailing about it.

It's not full proof, but it might work for you if you haven't tried it. I urge you to try this before doing anything more...extreme :(.

...

If you need to get rid of the kitty, I'm in favor of putting it down than turning it out. I love cats and prefer them over people most days, but I think I nice peaceful death is much better than getting hit by a car and suffering or being attacked by another animal, or starving to death, or freezing to death. People seem to think that because it's a cat it can still survive outside. It probably can only if it was doing so from the very beginning. Cats are way too domesticated for outdoor life.