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Jekyll/Hyde



 
 
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  #1  
Old November 21st 05, 07:43 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.health+behav
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Default Jekyll/Hyde

I recently took into foster care a half-Siamese female, declawed on
the front. She has a real Jekyll/Hyde personality. One minute she is
all cuddles and purring, then out of the blue she bites hard enough to
draw blood. Two minutes later she's back to cuddling and purring.

I've had fosters that bit out of shyness or fear, and even ones that
that were just generally aggressive, but this is the first with such a
two-faced personality.

I can't in good conscience offer her for adoption while she's like
this, Any suggestions?
  #2  
Old November 21st 05, 07:48 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.health+behav
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Default Jekyll/Hyde


"Richard Evans" wrote in message
...
I recently took into foster care a half-Siamese female, declawed on
the front. She has a real Jekyll/Hyde personality. One minute she is
all cuddles and purring, then out of the blue she bites hard enough to
draw blood. Two minutes later she's back to cuddling and purring.

I've had fosters that bit out of shyness or fear, and even ones that
that were just generally aggressive, but this is the first with such a
two-faced personality.


I assume you are familiar with the correlation between declawed
cats and biting, right? And this poor girl is part Siamese, too. They can
be really moody.

I can't in good conscience offer her for adoption while she's like
this, Any suggestions?


Many of us have had and loved psycho kitties for years. I had one
for 20 years. Do you plan on fostering her for long enough to
train her not to bite?


  #3  
Old November 21st 05, 09:02 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.health+behav
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Default Jekyll/Hyde

"cybercat" wrote:

I assume you are familiar with the correlation between declawed
cats and biting, right?


Anecdotally, yes.


Many of us have had and loved psycho kitties for years. I had one
for 20 years.


I've been fostering for about ten years and five of my six personal
cats were former fosters who were hard to place for one reason or
another. I simply can't absorb an unlimited number of difficult cases.
Every one I keep is one less I can foster.

Furthermore, though you and I may be able to tolerate eccentric
behavior, most potential adopters won't.

Do you plan on fostering her for long enough to
train her not to bite?


Yes, that's why I'm asking for advice on how to train her. Over the
years I've trained some real hard cases, but nothing like this one. I
have more scars from her in a month than from all previous fosters
combined.

  #4  
Old November 21st 05, 09:05 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.health+behav
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Default Jekyll/Hyde

Richard Evans wrote:

I recently took into foster care a half-Siamese female, declawed on
the front. She has a real Jekyll/Hyde personality. One minute she is
all cuddles and purring, then out of the blue she bites hard enough to
draw blood. Two minutes later she's back to cuddling and purring.

I've had fosters that bit out of shyness or fear, and even ones that
that were just generally aggressive, but this is the first with such a
two-faced personality.

I can't in good conscience offer her for adoption while she's like
this, Any suggestions?


Unfortunately you don't know her history; however, she has been
declawed... and declawed cats are more inclined to bite because they no
longer have claws as a defensive mechanism.
  #5  
Old November 21st 05, 09:24 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.health+behav
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Default Jekyll/Hyde


"Richard Evans" wrote in message
news
"cybercat" wrote:

Many of us have had and loved psycho kitties for years. I had one
for 20 years.


I've been fostering for about ten years and five of my six personal
cats were former fosters who were hard to place for one reason or
another. I simply can't absorb an unlimited number of difficult cases.

I did not mean to suggest that you should keep her. I just meant
that it is possible to keep and love these cats. I was not sure you
knew that.


Furthermore, though you and I may be able to tolerate eccentric
behavior, most potential adopters won't.


Very true. These cats need special people who are willing to work
with them.


Do you plan on fostering her for long enough to
train her not to bite?


Yes, that's why I'm asking for advice on how to train her. Over the
years I've trained some real hard cases, but nothing like this one. I
have more scars from her in a month than from all previous fosters
combined.


I cannot recommend my means of getting my cat to stop
biting me to the bone (literally) out of the blue, because I have
been told that it is abusive. But it really did work. She wound
up biting very gently and stopping that as soon as she heard
"OW." Then she would lick me like "oo, sorry, sorry ..."

I believe something similar is the old loud "OW" and withdrawal.
But I am not sure if she would have to be attached in order for
that to work.

(My allegedly abusive way was to swat her--very gently, like
a tap--in the side of the face and yell "OW." It did not hurt her
but it startled her enough that she stopped the dangerous biting.
I referred to this as a "slap" in other posts, and so it did sound
bad. She actually continued to bite, but just to the point before
it broke the skin. Then I'd say "OW, she would anticipate a
swat, and lick me instead. I think this is essentially what a mama
cat would do--swat, that is--if a baby got too rambunctious.
But I am not really sure now if I was being abusive or not,
since so many say I was.)


  #6  
Old November 21st 05, 10:11 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.health+behav
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Default Jekyll/Hyde

Joe Canuck wrote:

Unfortunately you don't know her history; however, she has been
declawed... and declawed cats are more inclined to bite because they no
longer have claws as a defensive mechanism.


Her history is that she was a house pet who was given into foster care
because of this biting behavior.

I can understand why a declawed cat would resort to biting in a
threatening situation where clawing would otherwise be an option, but
I don't understand biting in nonthreatening situations that the cat
herself initiated.

  #7  
Old November 21st 05, 10:17 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.health+behav
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Default Jekyll/Hyde

"cybercat" wrote:


I cannot recommend my means of getting my cat to stopbiting me to the bone (literally) out of the blue, because I have
been told that it is abusive. But it really did work. She wound
up biting very gently and stopping that as soon as she heard
"OW." Then she would lick me like "oo, sorry, sorry ..."


Abuse is relative and I have no qualms about swatting her. I have
another decalw here who was given to mild biting when I got her and
she finally got over it by plying her with Pounce treats and
encouraging her to associate treats with touching. The process was
slow but painless, This latest one is anything but painless and I'm
not sure how much blood I'm willing to donate to the cause. (She
doesn't care for treats, so I have nothing to bribe her with.)


  #8  
Old November 21st 05, 10:18 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.health+behav
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Default Jekyll/Hyde

Richard Evans wrote:

Joe Canuck wrote:


Unfortunately you don't know her history; however, she has been
declawed... and declawed cats are more inclined to bite because they no
longer have claws as a defensive mechanism.



Her history is that she was a house pet who was given into foster care
because of this biting behavior.

I can understand why a declawed cat would resort to biting in a
threatening situation where clawing would otherwise be an option, but
I don't understand biting in nonthreatening situations that the cat
herself initiated.


Overstimulated?
  #9  
Old November 21st 05, 10:26 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.health+behav
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Default Jekyll/Hyde

Suddenly, without warning, cybercat exclaimed (21-Nov-05 8:24 PM):
"Richard Evans" wrote in message
news
"cybercat" wrote:


Many of us have had and loved psycho kitties for years. I had one
for 20 years.


I've been fostering for about ten years and five of my six personal
cats were former fosters who were hard to place for one reason or
another. I simply can't absorb an unlimited number of difficult cases.



I did not mean to suggest that you should keep her. I just meant
that it is possible to keep and love these cats. I was not sure you
knew that.


Furthermore, though you and I may be able to tolerate eccentric
behavior, most potential adopters won't.



Very true. These cats need special people who are willing to work
with them.


Do you plan on fostering her for long enough to
train her not to bite?


Yes, that's why I'm asking for advice on how to train her. Over the
years I've trained some real hard cases, but nothing like this one. I
have more scars from her in a month than from all previous fosters
combined.



I cannot recommend my means of getting my cat to stop
biting me to the bone (literally) out of the blue, because I have
been told that it is abusive. But it really did work. She wound
up biting very gently and stopping that as soon as she heard
"OW." Then she would lick me like "oo, sorry, sorry ..."

I believe something similar is the old loud "OW" and withdrawal.
But I am not sure if she would have to be attached in order for
that to work.

(My allegedly abusive way was to swat her--very gently, like
a tap--in the side of the face and yell "OW." It did not hurt her
but it startled her enough that she stopped the dangerous biting.
I referred to this as a "slap" in other posts, and so it did sound
bad. She actually continued to bite, but just to the point before
it broke the skin. Then I'd say "OW, she would anticipate a
swat, and lick me instead. I think this is essentially what a mama
cat would do--swat, that is--if a baby got too rambunctious.
But I am not really sure now if I was being abusive or not,
since so many say I was.)


I wouldn't say this is abusive, if it was light enough to only startle
her. If she ran off frightened, then obviously it'd be too strong a
'swat'. I used to do something similar - a strong tap with two fingers
- when Meep was a kitten. It worked very well without frightening her,
and she hasn't seriously threatened to bite me in years. She's very
cute, because if she does think of biting me - a quick head motion is my
only clue - she starts madly licking me instead.

jmc
  #10  
Old November 21st 05, 10:38 PM posted to rec.pets.cats.health+behav
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Default Jekyll/Hyde

That sounds a LOT like Gaya (my female Tortie)

unfortunately I never could "reform" her.. she just trained me to live with
it..

Hope you figure it out though.. it's hard enough to adopt out cats that
don't have bad habits.. (

--
Will~

"... so that's how liberty ends, in a round of applause."

Queen Amidala, The revenge of the Syth.


"Richard Evans" wrote in message
...
I recently took into foster care a half-Siamese female, declawed on
the front. She has a real Jekyll/Hyde personality. One minute she is
all cuddles and purring, then out of the blue she bites hard enough to
draw blood. Two minutes later she's back to cuddling and purring.

I've had fosters that bit out of shyness or fear, and even ones that
that were just generally aggressive, but this is the first with such a
two-faced personality.

I can't in good conscience offer her for adoption while she's like
this, Any suggestions?



 




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