Is it normal for 8 month old kitten to chew this?

[FindingTheBalance]

Following on from my last post, is it normal for an 8 month old kitten to chew on something like this?

No initial sniffing, just sees the item and starts chewing with her whole mouth around the top of it. Both our kittens do this to loads of objects, fabric, sponges, any kids toys, books.

I'm sort of at my wits end. I keep just shutting the cats out of rooms.

They have so, so many toys. And lots of playtime with us. But as soon as I sit down and try to relax or do something else, like cooking, they're off chewing stuff like crazy.

They have all of their adult teeth.

Oh no! They will grow out of it though, fairly soon. I had one that used to destroy kitchen sponges! Looked a picture of innocence surrounded by bits of yellow and green foam. Little blighter!

Just be careful they don’t get hold of anything they could swallow.Like the Lego.

Yes, mine love to steal bits of Lego sometimes to chew others to just carry about

None of my cats have ever been chewers - they do pinch things like hair ties, but only to carry around or bat about, so the kind of thing you describe seems quite unusual to me - and we’ve had six kittens over the years.

Do they go outside?

They've only just been allowed outside but haven't wanted to go out yet.

My problem is I'm struggling to restrict access to toys because my kids forget to put stuff away/close the door to their toy room.

One cat has already eaten a piece of Lego.

I'm at a loss how to have kids and cat proof against kittens that chew. Our last cat didn't.

Do they get treats etc. that they can chew on? Maybe it they’re redirected to something they can have, they’ll stop being so obsessed with what they can’t?

They do get treats but they're small and usually hidden in a puzzle toy.

They all have periodontal disease due to catching calcivirus when younger. I've been reading up on it this weekend and it does cause excessive chewing as they're trying to soothe their gums. They do have an antiseptic paste from the vets that I apply every 1-2 days.

I'm thinking more chew toys might help (maybe even flavoured dog ones according to one article) and moving them onto a dental kibble (although they all seem to be for adult cats, so not sure).

Also might attempt tooth brushing on days I don't apply the paste.

Try those long stick chews you can get, if they’re in pain and chewing to soothe then that kind of thing can help. My cats also love dried sprats occasionally - they require a good bit of chewing. You could also try cat grass.

Thank you for replying.

I'm not sure how to explain this succinctly but my husband and I had a long discussion this morning and the upshot is that we're giving the cats back to the rescue. We can't cat proof and the cats keep getting to stuff they can't have. One of them also appears to have fecal incontinence.

I feel really terrible. I wish I knew how people had kittens and children because then maybe we could make this work.

Thank you for the suggestions.

That's a shame. I've honestly never experienced anything like you describe and we've had multiple kittens.

We have two cats that are chewers so i know exactly where you are coming from and it’s so hard. They have decimated my yoga mat and every Halloween mask we have ever owned. One of them looove electrical cables. Especially the one on my iMac… They have not grown out of it, it was worse as kittens but still really bad, they are 6 years old now. Everything has to go behind closed doors.
I’m sorry you have to give them back, but I understand where you are coming from. I have in the past had two cats that never chewed on anything. Would you try again!? It is so lovely having cats! ❤️❤️❤️