Help! My neutered cat is aggressive and won't get his nails trimmed.

Hi, sorry to hear of this problem. Yes, neutering will definitely help with unwanted behavior. The best thing way to get him to stop scratching is by getting scratching posts and encouraging the cat to use them. To make friends with the car, sit on the floor with your hand extended and treats in your hand. move slowly and speak softly. It will also be best if you are the one to feed the cat. This will help him gain your trust. When he is near you and responding well, you can pet him gently, scratching his head of behind his ears. Keep it short, do this multiple times a day and the cat should come around. Don't yell at him or make sudden movements. Yelling will not help him scratching things. You can remove him from the furniture and place him on the scratching post to direct his scratching there. Good luck I hope this helps!

The first thing I would suggest is to have Cleo checked out by your veterinarian. Certain medical conditions including hyperthyroidism can cause aggression of this nature. If a medical cause is ruled out and this is a behavioral issue, you can try to use a Feliway diffuser or collar to help keep Cleo calm when she is around you. You may also want to consider consulting with a veterinary behaviorist. You can find one in your area on www.dacvb.org

I'm glad to see that Pippin has been neutered because this eliminates that possibility of hormone-fueled behavioral changes and aggression. Behavioral changes in cats can occur at any point in time, and could be related to anxiety or stressful situations (even rearranging furniture or introducing new people to the home can be stressful to cats). Without a lot more information and observing Pippin's behaviors, I can't precisely tell you why these changes are occurring. It may be best to consult a veterinary behaviorist in your home so that they can observe everything firsthand. You can also try using calming pheromone collars or diffusers (Feliway is one example), and discussing the use of anxiety medication with Pippin's vet. I hope that all goes well!

Aggression is complicated and I recommend to have him neutered and to work with a behaviorist. If this appear more play related, sometimes this behavior can be related to boredom, anxiety or a desire to play roughly. There are a few things you can do which may help. Try enriching his environment. Here is a great article about cat's instinctual needs: https://www.petcoach.co/article/why-every-cat-needs-a-place-to-climb/ Use a Feliway diffuser, set aside 30 minutes a day for vigorous play and/or switch the food to Royal Canin Calm. During the play time, if he seems like he wants to play rough, try to encourage him to wrestle with a stuffed animal. You may also try feeding him from a food puzzle and/or hiding food around the house for him to find. Most cats response best to combination therapy. The veterinarian can also prescribe medications which can help with behavior. You may also try clicker training him for positive behavior. Here is a link about training cats: https://www.petcoach.co/article/can-i-train-my-cat/ I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Sorry to hear about Carlos. Sounds like you have tried a lot of things with no results. I think it's time to take Carlos to your veterinarian. They can collect a history, perform an examination and advise you on any diagnostics or treatment based on their findings. It's possible a medical problem is driving this aggression. Blood/urine/fecal tests and maybe some x-rays could help rule out a medical reason. If no medical problem is identified, a behavioral problem can be addressed. With cats, this will involve some form of medication and maybe some behavior modification. There are some medications we use for aggression in cats. Prozac, Buspar, Xanax, are among some of them. Again, I would advise taking Carlos to your vet to try to get a handle on this behavior. Good luck

That is unusual behavior so he may be irritable from being in pain. Outdoor unneutered male cats often fight and he may have an injury you can’t see which is painful. I recommend confining him to another room until he calms down so no one else gets injured, and see if he is eating normally. If this behavior continues please take him in for an exam to check for a wound or area of pain. In addition I would consider neutering him also. Neutered male cats seldom fight, they are more docile and less aggressive. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Timmy.

Sometimes cats and dogs can have personality changes like this especially if she had a bad experience with with restraint, pain or something else fearful happening while she had a nail trim (ie a car back firing while she had the nails cut). It is possible that she may have some pain in that foot that she did not show the veterinarian. Cats can get a epinephrine rush when they go to the vet and they may not show pain at that time. Watch her very closely for limping on that paw. You can try to create a positive association again by having her look at the trimmers and then get treats. Then have the trimmers touch her and get treats. Then cut one nail and get treats. Build up from there. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.