kitten won't take no for an answer

[chockbic]

Please help!

As much as I love him, he won't stop attacking furniture, my hands, my arms.

Whatever is worth a pounce, gets the pounce.

One tired kitten mother...

Thanks for the suggestions, will try a slightly different tack.

Or DH will

I'd agree on the tone of voice being effective. My mother used to say No to Seniorboy in an indulgent 'Who's Mummy's coochy coo darling then?' sort of voice - and naturally he took no notice.

None of my cats would carry on if they got my 'ER .... EXCUSE ME?'

(I sound like a real martinet, don't I? Rest assured that the cats here have very few rules. (I don't think they're good with too many.) Just a few - three to be precise - that I'm unmoveable on and the rest of the time they do pretty well as they please. They're happy animals, I think.)

I can assure you there's been no coochy coo at salients moments.

My hands look like a relief map!

Salient.

I never disciplined fluff cat & he's still a pouncer, all 14lb of him.

Blimey am glad Spoons is tiny.

I suspect anyone's work would be cut out with Fluffycat though.

Awwwww. Can we have a picture?

I've got 5. I find scrunched up newspaper, lolly sticks, socks and watching the ipad. They are completely mad at the moment.

We've always used a hissing noise as a clear 'no' or 'go away' with our kittens/cats (probably very much the same noise that shakeyourtailfeathers's air can makes). It's MiLs trick, she has hundreds of cats (well, not quite literally), and it seems to work with all of them, I guess it's kind of the noise a pissed off adult cat makes

Yes, a staring competition, with out stretched palm, and most importantly mimicking their mothers' "stop that at once" sing song growl, with a firm human 'no' at the end is essential. He needs to know you're in charge (i.e. that you're mummy)

Do tell him to be gentle if he's play fighting too much, and remove yourself from the game if he's getting too excited.
if you're happy to play fight with him, get a large oven glove, or robust hand puppet and only let him kick and play fight with you when this is on.

He needs more games with you by the sound of it, a wand type toy with feathers will tire him out nicely, and get him 'done' ASAP - the testosterone is making him wilder.

Maybe trim his claws when he's asleep. And if he's scratching hell out of your sofa, he needs a scratch post or board nearby.

Please post a photo I do love a kitten! Lol

I would always save the hiss as a very last resort. I think it's a sort of extreme warning from a mother cat and certainly the one time I used it on Oneago, I practically had to scrape him off the hall ceiling. It wouldn't be a commonplace for me but only used in situations of the very greatest urgency.

He's got a feather toy and is actually scared of it.

I'm going to bring it out when he's naughty

I've just hissed at the cat, very effective. I'll be using that again.

Throwing toys up and down stairs tires them out.

Think he would probably need sedating for a claw trim!

He likes to pad his ball around/ also has a scratch tower but that's not forbidden

He might well permit it after a bit of 'acclimitization'. Seniorboy had only had it done once in his life when he came to me (on the one occasion he'd gone to the vet) but he'll let me nip his claw tips now. It's not his favourite thing but we manage it.

Maybe try to play with his feet a bit (on occasion) to accustom him to the feel of it in a non-confrontational way - sort of splay his toes a little with your fingers.

PS - best done when he's sleep. (If that in-between stage ever happens - kittens can often be either switched on full or switched off completely.)

*sleepy. Aargh.

Are there any recommendations for a toy that has lots of movement?

He watches everything, the slightest twitch or light and he's there.

Ah no, I bet he will love that.

He's such a bright little thing.

Thanks.

Largeish cardboard boxes laid so that he can get in in some way will provide hours of fun - don't ask me why. (Just watch out for/remove any of those large copper staples which are loose.)

Scrunched up small balls of paper as well. They're light, flickable with a paw, and not too predictable in their movement. Basically, anything which can be biffed and will skitter across the floor.

We have to let go of rhyme or reason with cats, don't we?

He likes a cardboard roll so progression to a box could easily work.

I can tell you he will be up for biffing, no danger.