How to stop my kitten from biting my older cat when I'm around?

First, make sure your older cat has places she can hide and get away from the kitten. High perches, a tunnel, a cat tower, make sure that there are plenty of places for both of the to scratch, climb and hide without interfering with the other. And makes sure you play with the kitten a lot, both to tire him out and give your older can some breathing room. A kitten's life is all about play, and play is all about prey. Every race down the hallway, every pounce from behind a door, every swat and nip is a display of a kitten's hunting skills, instincts that are just as strong in today’s housecat as they were in her ancestors thousands of years ago. To a kitten, everything in the house is potential prey, including you. A kitten's first playmates are his mother and littermates, and from them he learns how to inhibit his bite. A kitten separated from his family too soon may not have learned that lesson and doesn't know when to stop. Also, if people use their hands and/or feet instead of toys to play, the kitten may learn that rough play is okay. In most cases, it's not too difficult to teach your kitten or young adult cat that rough play isn't acceptable. Don't let your kitten play with your hands or feet (or any other body part). Use a toy when playing with him. Drag a toy, preferably a fishing pole-type toy that keeps your hands from kitty’s mouth and claws, along the floor to encourage your kitten to pounce on it, or throw a toy for him to chase. Some kittens will even bring the toy back to be thrown again. Give your kitten something to wrestle with, like a soft stuffed animal about his size, so he can grab it, bite it, and kick it with his back feet. This is one of the ways kittens play with each other, especially when they're young. It's also one of the ways they try to play with human feet and hands, so it's important to provide this type of alternative play target. Encourage play with a "wrestling toy" by rubbing it against your kitten's belly when he wants to play roughly—and be sure to get your hand out of the way as soon as he accepts the toy. Don't hit or yell at your kitten when she nips or pounces. This will only make her fearful of you and she may start to avoid you. The idea is to train her, not punish her. Equip yourself with the right training tools: toys, toys, toys, and a water pistol.

If the new cat isn’t neutered that needs to be done right away. If he’s neutered then I would use a pheromone diffuser like Feliway, and consider giving a calming supplement like Solliquin. If needed clap you hands and say No, or distract him with a treat, toy or laser pointer so he has another acceptable thing to do. Usually once the dominance issue is resolved this behavior will stop. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Zeplin.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Coco is adorable! Coco is just a kitten. Puppies and kittens sadly bite a lot. I would discourage play with your hands and only use toys. Also if she is sitting on your lap and you are petting her watch for signs that she is becoming annoyed with what you are doing (tail starts to flick, ears turning, turning her head towards your hand) and stop petting her. Most cats only like to be scratched or pet on their head and not past their shoulder blades. When she allows you to pet her without biting offer her treats. Refrain from chasing her, picking her up suddenly, rough housing with her as that can agitate cats then they become anticipatory for only negative interactions with you. When she is around you and not biting offer treats. Again she is very young and will likely grow out of a significant amount of this biting behavior. I wish you all the best!

The best thing to do is to allow the kittens to play together but when the play is begins to turn rough immediately separate them. This way your cat will begin to understand that this particular behavior (rough play) will result in a negative outcome (not getting to play). It will probably take several times of doing this for him to understand but he should get the hang of it soon enough. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.

Hi there and thank you for using pet coach. I would recommend giving them time to adjust to each other. This may be Cheech trying to establish dominance over the kitten. I would recommend gradually introducing them to each other over a period of 4 to 6 weeks. I would also recommend incorporating Feliway products to see if this helps. Feliway products can be found online quite easily or at your local pet store. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

Hello. This is just a way for your older cat to demonstrate dominance over the younger one. It is not sexual. As the kitten matures, this will put everyone on more equal ground & the behavior will stop. Just shoo the cats apart ( don't get loud or angry because you do not want to make either cat fearful of the other ), or distract them with a toy or treat, & eventually they will learn to live peacefully with one another. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Cats are notoriously apathetic to our wishes, aren't they? :) Young cats often have a ton of energy that can sometimes be displaced as aggression. Make sure there are lots of places/things for the cats to explore. Elevated areas like cat trees or cat shelves on the wall are great; window perches, scratching posts, toys, etc. Its also important to make sure that the cats aren't "competing" for resources-- make sure there are multiple food and water bowls and at least 3 litter boxes (if you have 2 cats.... the recommended number of litter boxes is the number of cats +1). Here is an article I think you will find helpful. The website this article is from is a great resource for cat behavior. Thank you for asking PetCoach! https://www.catbehaviorassociates.com/why-your-cats-may-not-be-getting-along/