Thomas was a biting cat for years. We dug in and turned his cat biting behavior around in a matter of about 30 days.
So when I fielded this next question I did feel qualified to answer it. Mrs. Anonymous writes: My precious cat Apple (next picture down) is a female Siamese cat breed.
Most of the time she loves to cuddle with me and is a very loving cat. Although sometimes when I am petting her she turns around and bites me. On a few occasions it’s been a hard enough to break the skin.
Why does this cat bite me and can I train her not to go after my hands? Apple is literally biting the hand that feeds her. It is easy to mistake the reason behind the biting cat. She is not delivering a love bite but rather a clear indication that kitty has had enough of your human kindness.
Her aggression translates into please stop petting me or I will bite you even harder. Some cats bite because as kittens they were permitted to grab and claw at the human parents hands.
In the human cat relationship this play would be considered hand wrestling. These cats grow up thinking that it is just fine to bite and swat at their owners hand, just like they did when they were kittens.
But when they do this as adults with big teeth and sharp claws. They are not nearly as cute. Other cats bite because they are scared or do not feel well but because this has been going on her whole life it sounds like a classic case of induced cat aggression.
While some cats can tolerate being petted others feel over stimulated by the sensation and automatically react by lashing out. This is also a common trait in the Siamese cat breed.
Apple is probably lashing out at you as a last resort after delivering what she believes to be a clear warning. This may include tail lashing, ear flicking, dilated pupils, shifting position, tensing muscles, and ceasing to purr.
When kitty displays these warning signals that’s your cue to stop petting. She has communicated to you in her best cat way that she is done with being petted. If the attention continues a cat bite is the result.
You Can Teach Cat’s to Stop Biting
My advice is to pet Apple less frequently, but continue to greet her in a friendly tone but avoid petting her for a couple of days or even weeks.
She will think about this for a while, and wonder why your relationship has changed. After you continue this process for a while you will notice that she will desire physical attention.
When you do begin to pet her again do so for just a few seconds and then stop. Let her realize that this is a pleasurable experience and let her return to you for more.
Very short petting sessions are usually what many house cats are looking for. This may be in part due to the felines inherently short attention span. Also remember to be more in tune with her body signals so you can stop before Apple feels overwhelmed and save your hand from a biting cat.
We have a few more articles on the subject of miss behaving cats. In fact the most common questions are answered in full on the start page for problem felines. This next link takes you from this page on how to deal with a cat that bites to the behavior section.
Thomas would like you to share his website with friends and family. Just hover your cursor over the plus sign button and choose a convenient way to either bookmark or e-mail other cat lovers. Some of the most popular web 2.0 social services are available. Example: Facebook, Twitter, stumble upon and delicious.
Learn more about us and why we built this cat behavior website on the cats health and behavior homepage.