A Guide On Training An Aggressive Cat
Training an aggressive cat is essential for protecting yourself, family, and visitors from severe injuries. This is because, when cats do become aggressive, they can inflict swift and severe pain. If you’re dealing with an aggressive cat, you’ve come to the right place. I’ve done the research on this topic and will share effective training tactics for your aggressive cat.
An aggressive cat can be trained to remain calm by using distractions, creating safe environments, and using calming techniques. Training an aggressive cat requires understanding the cause of the aggression and providing consistent reinforcement where good behavior is rewarded.
Although cats are considered less dangerous than dogs, an aggressive cat can cause significant injuries with their claws and teeth. This guide will provide information on how you can train an aggressive cat, how to teach your cat to remain calm, and reasons why your cat may be acting aggressively.
Training Your Cat to Correct Common Aggressive Behaviors
There are a few common behaviors that are exhibited by cats who behave aggressively.
Some common behaviors that stem from aggression include:
- Scratching
- Biting
- Disobedience
How to Train an Aggressive Cat to Stop Scratching
Scratching is sometimes a learned behavior, which is usually associated with playtime. Although not a training technique, it would be recommended that you keep your cat’s claws trimmed to reduce any injuries related to scratching.
Keeping the claws trimmed will reduce any pain inflicted and will prevent you from reacting when scratched. It is essential to remain calm when you train your cat as startling the cat may only make the situation worse. Trimmed claws mean a lower possibility of getting scratched and better control with your tone and actions.
Correct Your Cat
Find a word that you use consistently to get your cat’s attention when you need them to stop a particular behavior. Some terms commonly used are “stop” or “no.” Once your cat attempts to scratch you, calmly and clearly say your corrective word.
When your cat looks at you once you have said “stop” or “no,” remove yourself from the cat’s contact.
Remove the Cat from the Area
If your cat is aggressively scratching at you and you cannot get its attention for the behavior to stop, you can move the cat away from the room or area of the incident. Hold the cat by its scruff like a mother cat would to its kittens and place it in another room.
Removing the cat from the room serves as a way to remove them from the situation and a way to break the behavior.
Distract Your Cat
A common technique in training a cat is to create a distraction. If your cat scratches you or someone else, you can distract the cat by using an object. Since scratching may be a sign of boredom, you can also lead your cat to its scratching post to release some energy.
Although you are creating a distraction, do not let the situation devolve into playing. If you continue playing with the cat, it may see scratching as a way to initiate playtime with you and may continue to scratch at you, therefore causing a learned behavior.
How to Stop an Aggressive Cat From Biting
Cats sometimes bite because they are playful. Other times, cats will bite because they feel threatened, want attention, or do not like what is being done to them.
Consistency is Key
When your cat bites, ensure that you are consistently discouraging the behavior. Try not to make it seem as if it’s funny or playful. Also, ensure that everyone in contact with the cat is also discouraging the biting behavior.
No Hands Play
When playing with your cat, ensure that they have a toy. Do not use your hands, legs, fingers, or toes as acceptable toys. Cats tend to nibble at toys sometimes and may view you as its toy.
If your cat is used to chewing on its toy and you scold your cat for chewing on you when you presented your hands during playtime, it may cause some confusion for your cat.
Stick to using toys with your cat so that it understands that nibbling on humans is not acceptable.
Redirect and Praise Good Behavior
If your cat is about to bite you, you can command it to do another action and praise it if the commanded action is completed. Reward your cat each time it does the commanded action. The cat will eventually learn the rewarded actions, as well as the actions that do not come with a reward.
An excellent way to reward your cat is to give it treats. It is essential to be consistent with the action and reward so your cat will be able to understand the process.
Get Your Aggressive Cat to Come and Go on Command
While dogs are trained with commands, cats are trained with signals. To begin training your cat to be obedient, you can use words or short phrases and follow them with an action.
Eventually, the verbal signal will be understood, and the action that follows will be anticipated. One way to enforce training is to encourage a specific behavior using a clicker in conjunction with treats.
Find A Signaling Device
You’ll need to determine if you want to use a clicker or another sound to signal that the cat will be rewarded. Some trainers use a clicker, a pen that clicks, or even their tongue to make a clicking sound.
What is the Reward?
Once you have your signaling device ready, you can determine the reward that will be given for each rewarded action. When choosing a reward, try to find one that is delightful to your cat. Choose the cat’s favorite treat.
Once you have the favorite treat, ensure that it is only given to the cat when you are rewarding an acceptable behavior. Only giving the treat when the good behavior is displayed will encourage your cat to continue the right action to claim the special treat.
Associate the Treat with the Sound
It is essential to help your cat recognize the sound and reward association before encouraging the desired actions. When training for the association of the sound and treat, keep the training short. Cats are not enthusiastic about staying focused for long periods.
For the training sessions, make the sound, and then reward the cat with a treat. Once you have completed a few sessions, it is time to move on to the behaviors that will be rewarded.
Identify and Train for Good Behavior
Identify the behavior you would like to train your cat to exhibit. Once you identify the action you would like to see, you can begin training for that behavior.
If you would like your cat to do an action, wait for the cat to do the action and then make the sound and give the cat the treat. This training has to be consistent and swift. A soon as the behavior or action is done, immediately make the sound and deliver a treat. Eventually, your cat will understand the behavior that gets him/her their favorite treats.
Training Methods to Avoid
There are many ways you can train your cat to be calmer; however, some automatic actions are not as beneficial. Here are a few training methods that should be avoided when training your aggressive cat.
Refrain From Physical Punishment
Physical punishment can lead to fear, anxiety, and aggression in your cat. Please do not resort to physical punishment as it may heighten your cat’s response and cause it to act out even more. Consider placing your cat in timeout rather than getting physical.
Placing your cat in a different location where it is quiet and alone can help calm your cat.
Engaging in Play as a Distraction
Although you may find it easy to play with your cat to defuse an aggressive encounter, the act of playing may encourage the behavior. Apart from promoting the behavior, playing with your aggressive cat may also lead to further agitation.
Sometimes a cat needs to be away from the action to allow it to calm down. Having the cat in a separate room and location helps the cat calm down; it also protects you and other people from potential harm.
Petting Your Aggressive Cat
Yes, you love your cat, and you would love to pet and cuddle it every moment you can. Although petting is a soothing action, it is not always advisable. Petting can sometimes be the source of the cat’s aggression or discomfort.
Have you ever petted your cat and they lash out at you? Sometimes a cat can be overstimulated and even provoked by constant petting. It is essential to watch your cat’s body language to see if they are becoming agitated with petting.
Apart from petting being a source of agitation for your cat, petting also places you in a dangerous position when your cat has become aggressive. If your cat is scared and is being aggressive, it may attack you if you try to touch it.
To reduce injury to yourself and to keep your cat from getting agitated, please ensure that you do not succumb to the desire to pet your cat.
How Do You Calm an Aggressive Cat?
You must know the reason why your cat is aggressive before making any attempts to calm the cat. Think of all the times your cat has become fierce.
Here are a few questions you should ask yourself before attempting to calm your cat:
- Is my cat having symptoms of a medical condition?
- Who was the cat’s aggression directed towards?
- What was the cat’s location when it became aggressive?
- Was my cat facing any stimuli?
- Is my cat’s aggression unexplainable and potentially idiopathic?
Although some medial and non-medical conditions may result in a cat acting aggressively, there are times when a cat’s aggression cannot be pinpointed or explained. This unexplained aggression is called idiopathic aggression and may not be treatable.
Ensure that your cat is examined and monitored by a veterinarian for any signs of idiopathic aggression. If your cat is diagnosed as having idiopathic aggression, you should seek professional assistance with calming your cat.
If you can determine that your cat is not facing a medical dilemma or that your cat is not displaying idiopathic tendencies, these are some tips that can help you to calm your cat.
Tips to Calm your Aggressive Cat
Although your first thought may be to pet your aggressive cat, it is not the most advisable. Here are a few tips on how to calm your aggressive cat.
Give Your Cat Space
Just like some humans need space and time to calm down, cats also need some time and space to recollect themselves. Allow your cat to have some time alone unbothered and unstimulated to calm down.
Letting your cat have some space will include you removing yourself or any other person or animal that may be in the presence of the cat. The lack of additional stimuli will allow your cat to calm down unprovoked.
Keep Your Tone Calm
Although yelling may be loud enough to alert other animals to stop, the same does not hold true for cats. Shouting at your cat may only make matters worse.
Remember that your cat is probably under some kind of stress, which is why it may be acting aggressively. Yelling at your cat will only cause additional stress. Try to speak calmly with your cat. That calmness you display may transfer to your cat and bring some calm to your cat as well.
Stop Fights Quickly
If you see that your cat is about to get in a fight with another pet, remove the other pet quickly to prevent an altercation. Do not attempt to touch your cat, as the aggression directed to the other pet may be redirected to you instead.
These pets can be separated by removing one pet or by blocking one from another with an object. Once they are separated, your cat will have an opportunity to calm down as the threat or source of discomfort would have been removed.
Present Yourself as Being Small
Some cats are aggressive when they want to exert their dominance to mark their territory. To calm your cat that is acting aggressively because it wants to appear dominant, you will have to make yourself small so that the cat does not feel threatened or challenged.
Another reason why a cat may be aggressive is that it is afraid. If you appear intimidating, the cat will believe that it is in danger and will be increasingly fearful. Therefore, making yourself small is not only for the dominant cat that wants to keep its territory; it is also to calm the scared cat that may be intimidated by your size.
You can make yourself appear smaller by stepping away from the cat and lying on the floor from a safe distance. You can also sit on a couch away from the cat to let them know that you are not a threat.
Once your cat is calm, they may approach you. When the cat approaches, ensure that you are calm. During the peaceful encounter, make your cat comfortable. You can even offer a treat at this point so that your cat is relaxed, satisfied, and happy.
Use Pheromone Sprays or Diffusers
Pheromones are created by cats and used for communication. Pheromones also create familiarity and comfort. There are a few calming sprays that are sold for cats.
Some of these sprays are substitutes for pheromones, which allow cats to feel safe. The Feliway Cat Calming Pheromone Spray is a popular and Vet recommended spray that can be used to calm your cat.
Since being safe reduces anxiety, and anxiety causes aggression, these sprays can ultimately minimize aggressive behavior.
Behavior Modification By Animal Behaviorist
Having an aggressive cat can be challenging to manage. As an owner, you want to cuddle your cat and give it the attention and love it needs, yet you are faced with the possibility that your cat may attack you and cause serious bodily harm.
Apart from the stress related to having an aggressive cat, not knowing the source of that aggression can be equally daunting. Sometimes as pet owners, we want to make everything right for our child pet; however, there will be times when you need to enlist the help of a trained professional.
If you find it increasingly difficult to keep your cat calm or feel like you can’t go it alone, you can seek the help and advice of an Animal Behaviorist. Animal Behaviorists use behavior modifying techniques to reinforce desirable behavior and alter undesirable behaviors.
How to Prevent Aggressive Behavior in Your Cat
Although some aggressive behaviors may need medical and professional intervention, other techniques can be used to encourage non-aggressive behavior. Here are a few ways to help your cat to be less aggressive.
Stay Away From Newborn Kittens
Like many other animals, cats that have just given birth to kittens have a keen sense of maternal instincts in protecting their young. To prevent your cat from acting out, try to stay away from handling or petting her kittens until she seems comfortable with the act of you holding the kittens.
It is best to keep cats that recently gave birth in a comfortable place and one free from other pets and hands. Providing this safe space will lead to less anxiety for your cat and will reduce the potential for an aggressive attack.
Encourage Soft Play
Acts of aggression, in any form, can be emulated by your cat. Ensure that when you are playing with your cat that you are not playing aggressively. Also, ensure that you are not allowing your cat to play aggressively with yourself, other members of your family, or other pets.
Engaging in rough play can lead your cat to act aggressively. Soft play can keep your cat calm when playing with you and others. If your cat is aggressive during playtime, try to introduce toys that can soften the play, such as stuffed animals.
Create Space to Release Energy
Everyone, including pets, needs an outlet for their energy and sometimes their aggression. Failure to have that outlet will lead to emotions spilling over in an undesirable outcome.
Some cats are said to display aggression because they are unable to release energy. A great way to channel your cat’s energy in the right direction is to introduce objects and activity centers such as climbing perches and scratching posts to allow your cat to play and release energy.
Allowing for exercise and expanding that energy will lead to a happier cat and a delighted owner.
Separate Cats and Other Pets
Although you would like all your pets to get along like one big happy family, there are still boundaries that need to be set to maintain harmony.
Cats tend to mark their territory and exhibit dominance to maintain that territory. Often, cats will act aggressively to prove that they are dominant and try to keep other cats outside their territory.
If you have multiple cats or pets, try to keep them separated and with their own feeding and sleeping spaces. This separation will reduce the aggression needed to defend each other’s territory.
Reduce Time Alone With Small Children
Small children can be curious and playful. While being playful and curious is an admired trait for children, this behavior does not work well with cats.
There are a few reasons why children should not be supervised while playing with a cat. Keeping small children away can reduce aggravating the cat and causing aggressive outbursts. Keeping children away can also prevent injury to the child.
Children are usually very quick to pull at a cat’s tail or ears. If the cat is provoked, it will likely to become aggressive and likely to scratch the child.
Types of Aggression
Many factors can contribute to a cat being aggressive. Although there are many factors to aggressive behavior, cats will display two main types of aggression.
The two types of aggressions displayed by cats are:
- Offensive Aggression
- Defensive Aggression
Both offensive and defensive aggressions are protection mechanisms for cats. Cats will protect themselves from danger, provocation, and unwanted stimuli.
Offensive Aggression
When a cat goes on the offensive, they try to create an image to intimidate the aggressor. Displaying offensive aggression has the cat looking directly at you with its back arched. The cat will also usually approach you and growl.
Characteristics of the offensive aggression give a clear indication that the cat is willing to and will strike if approached or provoked. The defensive, aggressive posture of a cat is usually displayed differently. Although different mannerisms may exist with defensive aggression, the same dangers of lashing out and causing harm are the same.
Defensive Aggression
The cat may not seem as assertive when displaying defensive aggression. Unlike offensive aggression, the cat will look away from you and crouch. When the cat is in this position, you may think it is safe to pet or console the cat.
Unfortunately, consoling a cat who is displaying defensive aggression may result in you getting hurt. Cats in an aggressive defensive posture may seem as though they are fearful and cowering; however, they will lash out quickly with a quick attack of the claws if touched.
What Causes Aggression in Cats
Understanding why your cat has become aggressive is an essential step in understanding how you can train your cat to keep calm. Cats, although affectionate at times, can have moments when they attack in aggression. Here are some factors that may be triggering your cat’s aggression.
Medical and Pain Fueled Aggression in Cats
Some medical conditions can affect your cat’s temperament and result in sudden behavioral changes. These medical conditions are usually a source of pain and discomfort. Having pain and discomfort is a sure way to alter your cat’s behavior and have your cat act aggressively. Please see a veterinarian if you suspect that your cat may have a medical condition.
Non-Medical Reasons for Aggression in Cats
There can be other triggers apart from medical issues that may make your cat uncomfortable and aggressive enough to strike. These are some non-medical reasons why your cat may be aggressive:
- Conflict with other cats
- Threat of safety
- Delayed provocation reaction
Gauging how your cat reacts and the events surrounding an aggressive attack are essential in understanding the treatment that should be given or sought to rectify the behavior.
Final Thoughts
Cats are often the most friendly and cuddly pets that you could ever want. However, cats can sometimes be aggressive. Having an aggressive cat does not mean that your cat is evil. Your cat could be aggressive due to pain and discomfort from medical conditions.
It is best for cats with medical conditions to have a veterinarian treat the cat for discomfort, thus reducing aggression. For other states that are non-medical, consider environmental and distraction techniques. Also, be sure to understand why your cat is aggressive and take preventative measures so your cat exhibits non-aggressive behavior in the future.
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