Why is My Cat Aggressive Towards Me? (How to Solve It)

hey cat lovers and welcome back to another video today we're going to talk about a serious topic cat aggression if your cat is biting or attacking you or other people figuring out how to stop the aggression can seem daunting there isn't a one-size-fits-all answer because there are many different reasons for cat aggression but the good news is that no matter the reason cat aggression is treatable the key is to find out what the underlying cause or trigger of the aggression is that's why we highly recommend consulting with a veterinarian or certified cat behaviorist however in the meantime there are ways to help the problem they just take time effort and patience by the way if you like learning about cats consider subscribing to the channel that way it's easier to find our content now in this video we're going to answer the question why is my cat aggressive towards me but first we'd like to thank this video's sponsor relivet if your cat suffers from aggression or anxiety then check out relivet which offers veterinarian approved cbd products for pets cbd can be an effective and natural solution to minimize anxiety in cats without harmful side effects we love really vet because they offer cbd treats and oils with 100 natural ingredients these products have no preservatives colors flavors gmos or anything artificial we'll have links to the cat products in the description box below if you use one of our links you can get 10 off if you use the code purring 10 at checkout now back to the show before solving any type of cat aggression you first need to know what aggression in a cat looks like when a cat is acting aggressive some common signs are hissing biting swatting growling open mouth exposed claws and a stiff stance an aggressive cat may also display flat ears tail twitching a puffed tail an arched back and flat whiskers if your cat shows any sign of aggression it's absolutely crucial for you to stay calm and collected if you become aggressive yourself with screaming or pushing you'll only escalate the situation instead slowly leave the room and wait for your cat to completely cool down and no matter what never punish your cat cats don't understand the concept of punishment making it completely ineffective in fact punishment would create more serious problems another important point is that you should never just put up with it and hope for the best for any behavioral problem it's always easiest to fix early on however before you can fix a problem you have to know the specifics of the problem now let's go over the types of cat aggression that you might find yourself caught in number one play aggression this is one of the most common if not the most common types of cat aggression keep in mind that vigorous play in cats is normal this is especially true in young cats who have a lot of rambunctious energy however play aggression is usually the result of human owners encouraging that behavior as kittens while it may be adorable to play roughhouse with a kitten their little fangs will eventually become adult one-inch fangs that can do a lot of damage to prevent play aggression never play rough with your cat this is not to say that you shouldn't play with your cat in fact quite the opposite often times the underlying problem in cats that like to play rough is excess energy or boredom the best way to burn off energy is playtime aka play therapy just keep it nice play number two fear aggression cats that display fear aggression do so when they feel threatened or trapped just as you do your cat has a fight or flight reflex once they encounter a scary situation if there's nowhere to run the only other option is to fight in this case your cat will show aggressive body language such as a lowered tail and body displayed teeth and hissing or growling usually cats with fear aggression do not approach the target but just like with any type of aggression you should calmly walk away to prevent this behavior jackson galaxy cat behaviorist recommends play therapy to help with the cat's overall level of anxiety it's also important to properly socialize your cat by exposing them to other humans and pets in the home with positive reinforcement while younger cats are easy to socialize older cats can be socialized too it might just take a little more time another preventative is to as always keep your cats safe from all inappropriate human cat interactions such as punishment number three redirected aggression this type of aggression can happen when an owner handles a cat that is excited or threatened by something unrelated to the owner for example while your cat is hanging out with you they may notice a stray through the window since your cat is unable to go after the real target they turn to the next handiest target often the innocent victim is you or another pet in the house the mere sight of the victim could trigger that upsetting memory in your cat all over again leading to another unprovoked attack the only way to prevent redirected aggression is to remove or avoid the cause so in this example possible solutions would be pulling the window shade down or using deterrence to keep stray cats away from the window if the issue is between two cats in the home you should completely separate them and work on gradual reintroduction as if the two had never met play therapy may also help your cat release their frustration number four petting induced aggression this type of aggression has one root cause over stimulation like the name sounds petting induced aggression is when a cat suddenly becomes aggressive while being petted if your cat is experiencing this aggression their battery may have become overcharged from excessive stimulation however the cornell feline health center says that handling bathing grooming and nail trimming can also cause this type of aggression the trick to preventing this behavior is to stop petting your cat before it starts if you pay attention to your cat's body language their visual cues are often easy to spot usually the most notable sign is dilated pupils which is the widening or blackening of the eyes they may also display tail twitching and flat ears before becoming aggressive to prevent this behavior avoid petting your cat for excessive periods of time you should also avoid uninvited petting or handling instead have your cat be the one to initiate petting number five intact cat aggression in case you're unfamiliar with the term an intact cat is a cat that hasn't been spayed or neutered intact cat aggression is related to a few other cat aggressions for one an intact female might display maternal aggression which is a normal behavior that happens when a mother defends her kittens on the other hand an intact male might experience territorial tomcat aggression to establish and defend his territory intact males can also experience sexual aggression where they mount a person's arm or ankle grab their skin with their teeth and you can fill in the blank for the rest whether male or female intact cats tend to be more aggressive and very territorial as if the aggression isn't serious enough they are also more prone to spraying urine the only solution to these types of aggressions is to spay or neuter your cat because sexual hormones are the cause spaying and neutering is also important because it reduces the risk of certain diseases and prevents unwanted kittens if cost is a concern ask your local animal shelter if there are any low-cost spay or neuter clinics near you number six pain-induced aggression this form of aggression can be the response to a health problem cats are notorious for hiding pain which is why it's essential to schedule regular checkups with your vet after all veterinarians are trained to spot subtle signs of pain that most people wouldn't notice nonetheless chronic pain can increase irritability making the cat more aggressive for example if your cat suffers from arthritis they might experience pain if you pick them up causing them to lash out pain-induced aggression can also be a response to a painful procedure for example if your cat is recovering from surgery they may feel irritable until they're fully healed to solve this type of aggression avoid pain triggers and consult with your vet about pain relief options number seven noise induced aggression perhaps the lesser known type of cat aggression is noise induced aggression which is when a cat responds to certain sound frequencies with aggression for example the sound could be whistling a baby crying or another cat crying as odd as this reaction may sound to us humans note that cats have excellent hearing while humans can hear frequencies of up to 20 000 hertz cats can hear sounds up to 64 000 hertz that's about three times higher than humans to prevent noise-induced aggression avoid the trigger sounds whenever possible in cases where it's not possible to avoid the trigger you may need to try to desensitize your cat to the noise with this technique you play the sound at a very low volume and if the cat remains calm reward them with the treat over time slowly increase the volume and continue to reward your cat as long as they remain calm and relaxed during the sound after learning about these types of aggressions you may be wondering how you can prevent aggression before it starts even if your cat has never been aggressive you should still take steps to prevent aggression from happening in the future jackson galaxy explains that regular play therapy will prevent many behavior problems from developing in the first place this is because playtime allows cats to get out all of their pent up energy that's why you should establish regular play sessions as soon as your cat enters the household however it's never too late to start while younger cats tend to be more playful older cats also enjoy playing they might just need more motivation plus most cats need at least 30 minutes of exercise a day making playtime all the more necessary as you've learned by now since there are several types of cat aggression there are many reasons why your cat might be aggressive towards you sadly many owners are tempted to give up their cats if they experience behavioral problems but here at the prairie journal we firmly believe that adoption is for life that's why we can't stress enough how important it is to speak with your veterinarian if your cat becomes aggressive with time and patience you can learn how to solve this problem as always we would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below and if you found this video helpful please give it a thumbs up because it helps other cad lovers find our content thank you guys for watching and we'll see you next caturday for another video

Channel: The Purring Journal

Views: 58,963

Keywords: my cat from hell, angry cat, mad cat, hissing cat, cat behavior, aggressive cat, why is my cat aggressive, cat whisperer, cat behavior explained

Id: 6By8wzAz6fs

Length: 10min 26sec (626 seconds)

Published: Sat Mar 26 2022