What is wrong with/what do I do about my cat?

In My Humble Opinion
1

I have a cat who is biting EVERYTHING in my house and is driving me absolutely crazy. I’ve had him for about 3 1/2 years and he’s always been aggressive when he plays, and sometimes he and my older cat fight. But the past few weeks he has been gnawing on everything and his teeth marks are on everything, and he’s ruining good pieces of furniture.

A little over a week ago my ex and I split up and he moved out. Could this really be spurring his psychotic must-bite-everything rampage? Is there something I can do to get him to stop? He’s waking me up at 4am meowing and acting like he just wants me to pet him, but then bites me and runs away. Before I take a trip to the vet, I thought I would put it out there and see if anyone has any advice or opinions about what’s wrong with him and what I can do about it.

2

I’m not a cat expert or anything, but my cat suddenly developed a bad habit of biting me when giving kitty kisses. This cat was never aggressive, so when he sunk his teeth into my cheek it was quite a shock. I dealt with it by saying “No!” very sharply and tapping his nose with my finger. I also gave him more toys to play with and more individual play time with me so he would burn up more energy. It took over a week for him to stop with the biting, but he did stop.

Maybe he is just stressed by the new living situation and needs some more attention. I would say if he doesn’t improve after a week of TLC, take him to the vet and see if there is a medical issue.

3

I’m calling a bad combo of too much energy, inappropriate coping methods, and now stressed.

Easiest thing to try (aka, what I would do, in order): Handle the stress, handle the energy, handle the boredom.

Stress: First, intro some cat soothing pheromones around the house, and go buy some cat grass (catnip). Put some catnip rubbed on favorite toys, find a place where you don’t mind him rubbing and gnawing on, and rub catnip on it too. Refresh the catnip on the gnaw spot and the toys every day, and play with him when you do it. Leave that going for a few days.

Energy: After about 3-5 days with the catnip and the pheromones, start to tackle the too much energy part. Wear him out. Lots of kitty play sessions with laser pointers or cat toys. Try to run him ragged at least twice a day. Don’t stop til he starts breathing with his mouth open, or he stops chasing the toys. If he seems the type to like playing chase, then chase him around the house yourself. If not, tie a string to one of your shoes, or dangle it behind you, and see if you can get him to chase you around the house. * If he tries to nip you while playing, then drop the string/toy/pointer and walk away and ignore him completely for at least 5 minutes. *

Coping: Hopefully he’s gotten attached to his nice catnip smelling new gnaw spot. If you can find more than one place for him to gnaw on, that’s good too. Set them up the same way with catnip on them. Get a cheap-o spray bottle, fill with water, and keep an eye on him when you’re home. If he nips something or gnaws on something he isn’t supposed to - spray him! If he nips you, say OW, then disengage as quickly as possible and ignore him for 5 minutes. If he nips a guest, spray him!

I had a stress-biter who stalked people’s ankles, and managed to get her back on even keel after about 3 weeks. This does take time, but it does work. Remember to keep up with the catnip and pheromones and playtime even when you start punishing him for the bad behavior, so he doesn’t get all stressed and sulky on you again.