How to make a kitten not be such a terror?
My husband and I got a kitten about a month ago. He is probably close to 3 months old. He hardly ever uses his litter box and when he does, he scratches majority of his litter out. We have a pug and an english bulldog in the house also. The cat plays with them, but when he has had enough he scratches up and down the furniture. He knocks stuff off our kitchen table and it seems like he is doing all of this because he knows it gets under our skins!! PLEASE HELP!!
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Yell no, and squirt him with water, and/or make a loud noise, like clapping so it startles him.
As for the litterbox, there’s a good litterbox I use called "clever cat" with a top entry, so it’s impossible for them to kick litter out.
Praise him when he does something right (like use his litterbox correctly) and reward him with treats.
Good luck!
i hear they pay a pretty penny for kittens down at the peeking dragon buffet.
I had the same issue with our 2 kittens, being crazy and knocking stuff off the counters and tearing up our couch, I asked the vet and she said to get a water bottle, the squirt kind, and when they are doing something they shouldn’t, ya just squirt them and they ll take off..after awhile of doing that they ll stop!!! But be constiant!! Remember they are kittens, so you can expect a certain amount of craziness from them! ha
You have to train the kitten to NOT do these bad things.
Try using a squirt bottle with water in it and ONLY squirt the kitten when it is doing something bad.
he doesn’t know he’s causing you guys trouble or he wouldn’t be doing it. its just his nature. everything he is doing is completely normal behavior for cats.try getting an enclosed litter box with a swing door it helps with the mess also when they are young sometimes you need two litter boxes in two different ends of the house. also make sure the dogs can’t mess with him when he is using it. as for the jumping on tables and scratching the furniture get a water gun and say no and squirt him with it when he does it.
There are litter boxes that have spill shields; they will track some, but don’t scatter litter out of the box. I have posted links to several examples.
But if it is not a medical reason for litter box avoidance, I have posted a link for common reasons for litter box avoidance. Most cats (and kittens) are very fastidious about litter boxes unless there is a reason.
Some of the other things you describe is typical of a kitten who comes turbocharged. A squirt bottle works well for training. Say NO! when you squirt him. Typically for a kitten, the first six months are the most energetic.
As far as scratching, you need to provide him with scratching areas, either cardboard scratchers or posts, and encourage him to use them. Often, that means moving his paws up and down the surface.
my kitten is less than 4 months old too and is always getting into all sorts of trouble. She knocks things over,crawls in counters,steals lollipops,knocks xmas trees over with her brother,pulls the toilet paper off the roll onto the floor and the other day she knocked my picture into the sink filled with water. Part of it is just being a Kitten and the other part is consistent correction and as the others said a spray bottle.
My kitten, Princess, also likes to jump on the hot stove and on the counter and drag raw chicken in her mouth. She is a sneaky one so i can understand your frustration. Your kitten will grow out of most of it too.
You might want to try the Feliway Diffuser. It has pheromones that affect a cat’s behavior and is specifically intended to help with problems like the ones you mention.
Otherwise you could do as I did and just give your kitty lots of love and attention in response to his bad behavior.
I am a true believer that love conquers all, and although it took a while, my once ultra devilish cat, is now a bundle of joy and happiness. He is still very dominant and has a strong personality, but when he wants to he is the most adorable being in the universe. I would never change him for any other cat. And all those years of torment, are well worth the love and utmost joy he gives me.
So behind that terrorific personality of that kitten of yours, lies a great, kind and appreciative being.
Good luck with your kitty!