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Cat biting and aggressiveness

Lizerd619

Savannah Kitten
hello I have a four year old male f1 named Rocket, he has a very gentle side but has spurts of aggression. It was worse as a kitten but he still has episodes. We will be sitting in bed and he will “viper bite” and attack me and my husband, he has drawn blood and even sent my husband to the hospital he had to get 4 stitches. We’re looking for advise on how to help, we’re planning on kids soon and wouldn’t want to give him up. We play with him when ever we are home but we both work 8hr work days. Would getting another Savannah or dog help?
 

Brigitte Cowell

Moderator
Staff member
Oh wow, he's done this for four long years and now you are wanting to break that ingrained habit? It will definitely take some dedication and work now... it's so very important to work on such habits while a cat is young.

I would seriously consider consulting a feline behavior therapist such as www.thecatcoach.com to have your situation evaluated. I am concerned about your intention to add a baby soon given this behavior. And I say this having two F1s and introducing two human babies here in the past three years. Neither of my F1s had this tendency but were enough of a challenge dealing with the upheaval and changes that a new baby entails. You can make this easier for your F1 with some work... but the biting issue needs to be addressed!

I would also suggest trying to really study Rocket, try to work out what the situation is when he goes on these "attacks" and if there are any triggers that you can detect. Cats can be very subtle so it might take a bit of work to determine what the issue is here. When you say "sitting in bed" is when sometimes this happens, have you tried the "hunt, eat, sleep" routine? Where you have a vigorous play session where he is running and jumping and chasing a lure... then you give a midnight snack and then start your nighttime routine for going to bed.
 

Patti

Admin
Staff member
I agree with Brigitte that you need to try to figure out what triggers these episodes. Is this a form of play? A show of domination? Is he irritated about something? Is there possibly a cat outside triggering redirected aggression? Is there any particular part of your body that he is attacking - hands, feet, or coming at you from behind?

Seeking a cat behaviorist such as Marilyn Krieger (the Cat Coach) would be a smart move. I would be very hesitant to ever allow a child near or around this cat until his misbehavior is corrected.
 
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