Aggressive cat

[I_love_cats]

We adopted a declawed cat from the Humane Society, he has no claws on all four paws and has a broken foot, it said on the papers that he jump off a shoebox. I don't believe that one bit, I think the owner step on his foot because he does get in the way too much. Toby is a big tabby, he grew since we adopted him and I hope he doesn't get any bigger, he is a good size. Lately, I have notice that he is more aggressive with my two other cats and he loves to bite people and he bites pretty hard. First, Toby licks then bites really hard. Is that because he has been declawed and has a broken foot. Toby can get pretty rough with my female girl, Sabrina but Joey can handle Toby. I'm worry when he gets playing with Sabrina that he is hurting her but I know he doesn't mean to. When she squeaks and meows, that is when I have to stop them. I see Toby biting her and she has a hard time getting away from him. Sabrina is alot smaller then Toby is, I don't mind them playing as long as he isn't getting too rough. Is their any solution to stop this behaviour and to stop him from biting people. Please help!! Thanks!! And should I use water to stop them.

[julijul]

I can certainly relate a bit to your problem!! First off, yes, I do think that Toby's biting does have to do with his being declawed. The first line of defense for a cat is their claws, and since he doesn't have any, he must use the second line, his teeth. Also, some cats do nibble as a sign of affection, so that might be it. I would reccommend that you watch for warning signs before Toby bites, such as twitching of the tail, ears back, hair up. He might be getting over stimulated if he does this while you are petting him.

When I first got my kitty Jonah, he would often bite me as I was petting him, or sometimes he would just run to me, bite down on my arm, then run off. After I added Finn to the household, he stopped biting me...but...he started beating up on Finn. Over the 6 months that Jonah and Finn have been together, they've gotten along remarkably better, they used to have nasty fights several times a day, now it's once a day or every other day. I spray them with water (the first time, I broke up the fight myself, and in the process, got myself really scratched), and then I'll usually give Jonah a "time out" if I can. (I'll leave him separated in my room). That seems to help. Also, you could try a herbal supplement called "rescue remedy". It helps to calm some cats down and can be added to their water.

I would also highly reccommend reading Pam Johnson Bennett's book "Think Like a Cat". It's a GREAT resource for all kinds of cat problems!!

Good luck with your crew!!

[I_love_cats]

Toby gets really wild when we are going to bed, he sleeps soo much through the day. I get the water going, spraying on them but the that helps for awhile then they at it again. She usually takes off running but Toby still comes around bugging. Thanks for the reply. I try that to see if it works but it might not work with my cats.

[neko1]

It could be because he's declawed. Poor thing. I don't see why people have to declaw all their cats nails. We had a lady come in once who wanted a four paw declaw cause she was worried about her waterbed!! So stupid!!
I agree with Julijul, he's probably using his teeth cause he has no other means of defense.

[julijul]

"Toby gets really wild when we are going to bed,"

You might want to have a *heavy* play session with Toby before you go to bed. Preferably 1/2 hour - 45 minutes with an interactive toy. My two LOVE interactive toys such as "Da Bird" or "The Cat Dancer" or Fly Toys from Metpet.

[I_love_cats]

I wish people would never get their cats declawed, it is not right. This stupid owner that, didn't like cats at all to get him declawed. They only suppose to do two paws not four paws, the vet did it was only in four the money. I volunteer at the Humane Society and I have people come in and ask for a declawed cat. One time a lad with her 3 kids wanted a declawed cat but we didn't have any at that time and I showed her ca cat but she didn't want it because it scratches furiture. She didn't want it ruin her couch because she had all new furiture. Well don't get a cat, if you are worry about your leather couch.

[smokey the elder]

I had a declawed foster named Spliffy who was a very bad biter at first. I worked with her for six months. I would pet her, and watch her body language very closely. When she had enough she'd "box" you with her paw. I would walk away and try for another petting session later. Gradually she bit less and less. Not only was she declawed; she had had virtually no social life for her first 7 years and basically had to be resocialized.

BTW, Spliffy was successfully adopted in January, so there is hope.