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MANAGING
YOUR KITTEN'S ROUGH PLAY
Play-motivated
aggressive behaviors are common in young, active cats less than two
years of age, and in cats that live in one-cat households. When cats
play they incorporate a variety of behaviors, such as exploratory, investigative
and predatory behaviors. Play provides young cats with opportunities
to practice skills they would normally need for survival. Kittens like
to explore new areas and investigate anything that moves, and may bat
at, pounce on and bite objects that resemble prey.
Kittens
learn to inhibit their bite from their littermates and their mother.
A kitten separated from her family too early may play more roughly than
a kitten that had more valuable family time. In addition, if humans
play with a young kitten using their hands and/or feet instead of toys,
the kitten is liable to learn that rough play with people is okay. In
most cases, it's possible to teach your kitten or young adult cat that
rough play isn't acceptable behavior.
Encourage
Acceptable Behavior
Redirect your kitten's aggressive behavior to acceptable objects like
toys (see the handout: "Cat Toys and How To Use Them"). Drag
a toy along the floor to encourage your kitten to pounce on it, or throw
a toy away from your kitten to give her even more exercise. Some kittens
will even bring the toy back to be thrown again! Another good toy is
one your kitten can wrestle with, like a soft stuffed toy about the
size of your kitten, so she can grab it with both front feet, bite it,
and kick it with her back feet. This is one of the ways kittens play
with each other, especially when they're young. It's also one of the
ways they try to play with human feet and hands, so it's important to
provide this type of alternative play target. Encourage play with a
"wrestling toy" by rubbing it against your kitten's belly
when she wants to play roughly - be sure to get your hand out of the
way as soon as she accepts the toy.
Kittens
need a lot of playtime. Try to set up three or four consistent times
during the day to initiate play with your kitten. This will help her
understand she doesn't have to be the one to initiate play by pouncing
on you.
Discourage
Unacceptable Behavior
You need to set the rules for your kitten's behavior, and every person
your cat comes in contact with should reinforce these rules. Your kitten
can't be expected to learn it's okay to play rough with Dad, but not
with the baby.
Use aversives
to discourage your kitten from nipping:
- You
can use a squirt bottle filled with water and a small amount of vinegar
or a can of pressurized air to squirt your kitten with when she becomes
too rough. To use this technique effectively, you'll always need to
have the spray bottle or can handy. You can either place one in each
room, or carry one with you as you move around the house.
- In some
cases you may want to apply taste aversives to your hands. If you
have sensitive skin you may want to wear gloves and put the aversive
on the gloves. The possible disadvantage to this method is that your
kitten may learn that "hands with gloves taste bad and those
without gloves don't.
- Remember
aversives will work only if you offer your kitten acceptable alternatives.
Redirect
the behavior after using the aversive:
- After
you startle your kitten with the aversive, IMMEDIATELY offer her a
toy to wrestle with or to chase. This will encourage her to direct
her rough play onto a toy instead of a person. We recommend you keep
a stash of toys hidden in each room specifically for this purpose.
Withdraw attention when your kitten starts to play too roughly.
- If the
distraction and redirection techniques don't seem to be working, the
most drastic thing you can do to discourage your cat from her rough
play is to withdraw all attention when she starts playing too roughly.
She wants to play with you, so eventually she'll figure out how far
she can go if you keep this limit consistent. The best way to withdraw
your attention is to walk away to another room, and close the door
long enough for her to calm down. If you pick her up to put her in
another room, you're rewarding her by touching her. You should be
the one to leave the room.
PLEASE
NOTE: None of these methods will be effective unless you also give
your kitten acceptable outlets for her energy by playing with her regularly
using appropriate toys.
What
Not To Do
- Attempts
to tap, flick or hit your kitten for rough play are almost guaranteed
to backfire. Your kitten could become afraid of your hands, or she
could interpret those flicks as playful moves by you and play even
more roughly as a result.
- Picking
up your kitten to put her into a "timeout" could reinforce
her behavior because she probably enjoys the physical contact of being
picked up. By the time you get her to the timeout room and close the
door, she has probably already forgotten what she did to be put in
that situation.
Aggression
Kittens can bite or scratch through the skin. In these cases it's best
to seek help from a behavior specialist to work with your kitten's behavior.
Be sure to keep your kitten confined until you can get professional
help. Also, be sure to thoroughly clean all bites and scratches and
consult your physician, as cat scratches and bites can easily become
infected (see "Understanding Cat Aggression
Toward People.")
Reprinted
with permission from the Denver Dumb Friends League.
