Licking and Biting cat

Sometimes while my cat is licking me it will take a hold of my hand.At first we thought it was biting us but we couldn't tell why because it is always mixed in with the licking and it is usually purring on top of that. I have never scolded it for doing this but should I? We just got it from a shelter a couple of days ago but it seems very comfortable with us and is very confident when playing with us. The biting doesn't hurt much but if its trying to hurt us that not a good sign . Is the biting a sign of affection or a problem?

Answer by Kate
Hi
firstly you should never scold your cat, they won;t understand and they will just grow frightened of you. Instead cat discipline should be via the negative and positive behaviour method. described here

http://www.our-happy-cat.com/cat-discipline.html

Re the biting, this is a learned behaviour which has not been corrected. Basically your cat does not know the difference between play and biting, thinking they are the same. This is why it is recommend never to play with a cat using your hands, as they mistake the hands as a toy and think that biting is Ok. this may have been what happened in his life before you rehomed him.

Try the discipline method, as soon as he bites, put him on the floor in silence. Do this every time and he will soon realised that he gets a negative reaction when he bites and gets lots of attention when he does not.

Hope this helps

best wishes Kate

 

 

Copyright© 2007. WWW.OUR-HAPPY-CAT.COM