What to Do When Kitten Plays Rough with Humans

When my adorable rescue kitten turned two months old her inner beast came out and she decided to play rough with me, to the point that sleeping was impossible and I had to go for medical care for a scratch that got infected.

Okay it is totally normal for kittens to play rough at this age, but unfortunately along with their play they do not realize that they need to tuck those claws and bite something other than their person’s feet, hand, arm, leg and earlobe.

I have often thought that when the cat inner beast emerges that kitten must think their persons head is a giant mouse because the beast kitten will attack my head in the middle of the night, with a full claw pounce. She will also try to snuggle up in my hair and as a result many strands of hair is missing. (as viewed on my pillow in the morning) Know that sometimes those dagger claws will puncture the skin and let me tell you this darling kitten’s playful behavior is not fun at all.

Another thing beast kitten does is lick on my earlobe and then she will give it a bite. My kitten is not hungry, this is just a phase of kitten-hood I guess, but why bite me? She has litter mates to play rough with she does not need to bite me.  (None of the other rescue kittens behave like this, the runt of the litter has issues) 

So when my kitten gets that look in her eye and I know that she intends to play rough with me, I divert her attention by spraying her scratching post with catnip and I bring out her spot skinneeez forest creatures catnip toys, basically toys filled with catnip. These toys keep her entertained and she ignores my hands, feet and head. I have also clipped the dagger claws so that she can no longer scratch me.

Also I have crate trained all of the kittens and they go into a large cat cage at night.  This cage has allowed everyone to get a good nights sleep.  Know that playing rough (biting and scratching) is a phase that all kittens go through and soon it will pass.  But you must continue to clip the claws and divert their attention, teach kittens what is off limits. 

Learn how to clip your cats nails by viewing this YouTube.com tutorial video.

When Kittens Bite and Scratch

When you look at my hands you will see scratches. Know that these scratches are from the kittens that I care for.   When the rescued or abandoned kittens get to be a certain age they tend to play a little roughly by scratching and biting. Their  sharp little teeth hurt and sometime the scratch or bite gets infected.

Generally this rough playing with the biting and scratching occurs when kittens are about 7 to 8 weeks old. One day your kitten is sweet and the next morning something is different because your adorable kitten has discovered that her teeth hurt and she wants to bite everything and she also discovered that she has claws.

Discourage your kitten from playing with your hands or feet. Instead buy dabird (bird with feather on a stick) and run the bird across the floor. Your kitten will chase after the bird and find this to be amusing. If there are no litter mates for kitten to play with then buy your kitten a stuffed toy. Spray the toy with catnip and now you have a toy that kitten can play with and you hands are not their source of entertainment. 

 In addition to the cat toys, now is the time to teach your baby cat to use a scratching post.  I recommend buying a medium sized cat tree that is covered with carpet.  This tree will provide your kitten with hours of entertainment plus the cat tree will be their place a safe area to scratch.

Note:

Sometimes those dagger claws will puncture the skin and let me tell you this darling kitten’s playful behavior is not fun at all. So clip those claws so that they will not scratch you.  

I recommend that before you handle any stray or feral kitten that you make sure that you have on protective clothing; arms and legs covered with long sleeve shirt and if possible a jacket plus leather gloves to protect your hands.  Helpful to be current with your tetanus shot. Other than than enjoy the kittens as they are babies for only a short time.