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Obie has turned into a teenage demon kitten..help!!

12 replies

MedusaIsHavingaBadHairday · 06/11/2014 23:02

So my gorgeous Obie and Ophie are now 22 week old Maine Coon kittens. Neutered at 16 weks, chipped in perfect health and growing like weeds. They go out into our enclosed garden when we are home but haven't managed to go further yet.
Ophie is sweet, slightly timid, purry and no trouble at all. Obie on the other hand is...

a rapidly growing, ginger ninja bad ass! In the last week or so he has upped his general bad behaviour (compulsive knocker off of anything he can, cable chewer, sister beater-upper, food stealing even though he is VERY well fed) to attacking everything that moves.. mostly us! Night times are the worst.. he spends the night either attacking our toes, trying to get under the duvet or trying to open doors (which as our bedroom and DS2's are sliding with no locks.. is easy) He is affectionate and inquisitive and likes to be where the action is at all times, but his naughty biting is a real nuisance, and his poor sister is getting battered as he is much bigger.

If he hadn't been neutered I'd be assuming it was male dominat behaviour..but he has. Is it just his 'teenage' phase or do we need to step in?
If so can anyone give me suggestions? DS2 is a bit scared to go to the loo at night in case the ginger ninja pounces!!

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SecretNutellaFix · 06/11/2014 23:04

Could he be bored? Mine used to go into destructo kitten mode when bored or attention seeking. They still do sometimes, 11 years on.

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MedusaIsHavingaBadHairday · 06/11/2014 23:09

He is possibly THE most attention seeking cat I have had in my whole 46 years.. with the attention span of a gnat! I am unblocking the exit from our garden (into the next garden so away from the road) this weekend, but tbh he's not bothered about being outside much so I'm not holding out much hope. We have toys galore and they get a lot of attention, but I can't think how else I can entertain him! He seems to enjoy mischief!

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CattyCatCat · 07/11/2014 00:21

It takes about 6-8 weeks for hormones to wear off after neuturing so perhaps he will settle down a bit in time. Some cats are just total live wires though......
Can you keep them downstairs at night in order to be undisturbed. I've never had cats in the bedrooms at night for exactly the reasons you have mentioned. Kittens and duvets can be a pain inducing combination!

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Fluffycloudland77 · 07/11/2014 07:38

Welcome to my world. I feel for you.

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sashh · 07/11/2014 09:15

I don't think I can comment without pictures.

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Fluffycloudland77 · 07/11/2014 09:20

Temporary picture.

Obie has turned into a teenage demon kitten..help!!
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cozietoesie · 07/11/2014 10:27

Grin

(But how much attention is 'a lot' ? how long does somebody actually spend with him? It sounds to me, I fear, as if he's bored as bored and you're going to have to devote even more time to him for the interim - until this phase is over at least. You don't need any bad habits setting in and even if he gets out at the weekend properly, outside is starting to be pretty boring at this time of year. (Unless he discovers that it's fun to beat up next door's cats: Fluffy is the one to comment on that possibility, I think.))

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RubbishMantra · 07/11/2014 12:57

Your ginga ninja sounds like my Devon Rex teenager. As far as he is concerned, all food belongs to him, even if in your mouth. When I'm studying, he struts around the table, stealing my pens and eating my papers, and knocking anything else onto the floor. Toilet rolls get thrown down the stairs, then ragged around the house.

And he's so bloody FAST!

He loves his Flying Frenzy though, and it tires him out after a couple of hours of furious leaping and chasing.

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cozietoesie · 07/11/2014 13:04

I think they'll both calm down a bit - as has been said, they're rambunctious teenagers right now. It's just a question of ensuring that they're not 'soured' in some way so some extra time spent right now would be a good thing for the future.

That Flying Frenzy looks fun!

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MedusaIsHavingaBadHairday · 07/11/2014 16:03

Oh the flying frenzy looks good.. I'll get one (they have a lot of toys but more can't hurt) and I have just ordered a kickeroo too.

I'm out at work 8am-3.30 but they honestly have LOTS of attention at home .. evenings are spent waving peacock feathers at them :) Plus the living room is full of cardboard boxes to hide in, balls, toy mice etc. Ophie is FINE.. plays, snuggles and loves the garden. Obie just seems to enjoy being naughty, and having had a nice few weeks where our older cat Portia , finally felt comfortable with them, has started stalking her at every opportunity. I really feel he is going to be a massively dominant cat.. HUGE personality, and while I love that, I don't want him hurting the other two cats..or us! (He woke me this morning by sticking his claws in my nose!!!!)He is definitely having a big growth spurt too so do wonder if he is being very teenaged!

I'll take a pic of them later :) But any tips on how to handle the biting appreciated ..I want to calm him if possible:)

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Fluffycloudland77 · 07/11/2014 18:47

Try games that involve him running up and down the stairs. It's much better at tiring them out.

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cozietoesie · 07/11/2014 19:42

I'd try the old Exclusion discipline so that he comes to think Bad Behaviour = No Fun/No Love. (It also helps that you have two extra cats, I think: it should hit him harder. ) It's always worked for me.

Have you got a chill-out zone you can put him in for 20 minutes or half an hour?

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