# SPOILED kitten creating problems, help!



## Greyer (Aug 20, 2011)

Hi, so my little kitty Cricket is creating some problems in our home. Here's the spill-
I brought her home when she was 4 week old after rescuing her from a hoarders house, and I bottle fed her and I've gotten her healthly again. Now she is 2 days away from being 5 months old. She has all her shots and got fix about 3wks ago. And just to be clear she has tons of toys! And I would just like to say as a baby she was sooo sweet!! 
So, this whole time I've been taking care of her and yes she is super spoiled, I never could get her off the feeding times she got use to when I bottle fed her so I get up every morning at 5:45am to give her some wet food, then she walks around and meows for a bit before going back to sleep then gets back up at 7:00am for more food. This whole time she has hard food out. 
Well now I'm in a cast and on crutches so I can't get up with her as much and my mom and sister are having to take care of her, which makes her very angery;because they wont get up as much as I use to with her. So she walk around an YOWLS for hours, I try shutting my door so I can get sleep but she attacks it until the entire door frame rattles and she does this for hours! And when any of us tell her "no" she attacks us or will stalk us around the house, she has tripped me numerous times on my crutches!
What can I do because she cant stand my mom and the feeling is mutal and she only likes my sister sometimes and lately shes been quite ticked off at me. 
I want to adopt another cat or a puppy will this help the situation or make it worse?? 
PLEASE HELP ME!! ANY HELP WILL DO! THANKS!!


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## catloverami (Jul 5, 2010)

First of all many thanks for rescuing her from a hoarder's house, that's wonderful of you. For sure Cricket is spoiled, but it's not her fault, you trained her to be so. She's never had the lessons she should have learned from her momacat that biting is a no-no and when she is to not bite hard, and maybe she doesn't retract her claws either. 

Another kitty would certainly help, who has learned it's manners lessons and has been _with its momacat and littermates until 12 wks or older_ would be the sort of kitten I would look for. A neutered male with a calm temperament that's not too feisty and that is _at least her age or a month older_ would likely be ideal. 

In the meantime, you can stretch out her eating times by a hour each day until she's on 3-4 small meals a day. 

As for her bothering you at night I suggest she be confined to another room or area of the house. Make it a routine that her evening meal is fed in this room before you go to bed. She may fuss for a while, but at least she won't be rattling your door. You need your rest while you're recuperating. Ignore any yowling (I know easier said than done....put in ear plugs if you need to). As for biting a stern "No" and walk away. If she attacks, pick her up (throw a towel over her if you have to) and put her in another room for a "time-out" and let her cool down for a while. When she is behaving well, always reward her with treats or pets for being a good girl. Hope some of this helps, and hope you get well soon. All the best.


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## The Divine Miss M (Oct 4, 2011)

Sounds like time for Manners 101 - Boot Camp Edition.

1. Place baby gates or other obstructions at all doors. If she can't reach them, she can't try to break them down.
2. She's acting psycho. Everyone into their room. Doors closed. Gates in place. She gets no attention positive or negative whatsoever.
3. After a predetermined time be it 20 minutes or half an hour - whatever works for your family, she's still acting psycho, she get's put in time out in a nice dark, calming room with a litter box some dry food and water until she calms down. As mentioned if necessary throw a blanket over her to accomplish this mission.
4. Ready the squirt bottle and the penny can and for good measure the double sided tape. She's being a brat let her know squirt her and/or shake the can. I know a lot of people disagree with these methods, but desperate times call for desperate measures. Your mom doesn't like her. If she's the home owner, attacking the entire family when she doesn't get her way and knocking you off you're crutches could very well be the straw that breaks the camel's back and your mom could insist on rehoming. As for the double sided tape - place it on the baby gates and on the bottoms of your doors and their frames, but not on the carpet/floor. You want her to not want to put her paws on the doors or the gates, but you don't want her to form an association with the entryway to your room. It shouldn't take her long to realize that an open door means welcome and good things, a closed door means back off.

It's hard I know. When you get them young they are so helpless. You want nothing more than to take care of them, but they turn into brats real quick. The girls started grooming themselves. I stopped grooming them. It lasted a day before I realized that on top of keeping them clean it gave them a sense of I'm the mom. I'm back to grooming them on top of their own grooming. At least once a day and as soon as they start acting up. It calms them down and sends them into some zen little trance. I'm actually finding it to be both girls love language. Miss M likes for me to gently hold her scruff massaging it as I groom her face first and then her belly - she falls asleep and when I'm done crawls on to my lap to continue the nap. Miss O likes to gently be held down with me massaging her little arm pits as I groom her back and then her face and then the rest of her. Afterward she likes to crawl under my crossed leg and fall asleep suckling on my heel. Now that I've gone on a tangent, back to your issue. You've raised her. You love her. Give her some tough love. It's going to suck, but it'll suck more to have your mom say enough is enough.


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## The Divine Miss M (Oct 4, 2011)

Forgot to add. Take advantage of Boot Camp to get her used to her new schedule. At 5 months old, she doesn't need to eating every two hours. She can either wait until 7:00am or if 5:45am is when the family is getting up for work learn to skip the 7:00am feeding. Have your mom and sister place the food down at the agreed upon times - make sure to pick times that work for the whole family so that if the regular feeder can't feed her she isn't sent back into a tizzy - regardless of her behavior. Calm, cool, and collected = meals at X, Y, and Z o'clock. Psycho kitty = meals at X, Y, and Z o'clock. It won't take her long to realize she can't make you feed her by going nuts so what's the point of wasting the energy to have the tantrum? Normally, I would second the suggestion to slowly prolong the intervals, but unfortunately due to your injury you aren't managing feedings and it doesn't sound like your family is willing to do so.


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## eckndu (Sep 20, 2011)

hello miss m, what do you do when you say you groom them while they fall asleep? (sorry dumb question)


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## The Divine Miss M (Oct 4, 2011)

Every day, at least once, I groom them either with a baby wipe or my wet fingers. It relaxes them to the point that they fall asleep.


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## lovetimesfour (Dec 1, 2010)

The kitten is not getting enough interactive play time. Kittens need a ton of attention to be properly socialized.

She needs structured play time, same times every day, at least a half hour at a time, four times a day. All the toys in the world will not make a bit of difference if she does not have anyone to play with her. Another kitten will help, but they _both_ will need interactive play time with humans every day.

Get a box of toys and keep them beside you. Toss them, one by one for her to chase them down. Toss them across the room and up on things so she has to climb and jump. Ask for help from other family members to gather them back up, for the next go round.

Get a long wand type string on a stick toy. You can stay put, and drag that thing around for her to chase and leap at. Ask someone to set up some newspaper on the floor for you to drag the string under, so she can stalk and pounce.

Get a laser pen. She can chase that red dot for half an hour every day to help wear her out.

Play with her play with her play with her. She will be happy and tired and will not cry so much, if at all.


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## Greyer (Aug 20, 2011)

lovetimesfour said:


> The kitten is not getting enough interactive play time. Kittens need a ton of attention to be properly socialized. She needs structured play time, same times every day, at least a half hour at a time, four times a day. All the toys in the world will not make a bit of difference if she does not have anyone to play with her. Another kitten will help, but they _both_ will need interactive play time with humans every day.


I play with her multiple time a day everyday as much as she will allow. I don't think that I said it before, this is _not _my first kitten, I've raised a lot of cats, kittens, dogs, puppies, horses, goats, chickens, oppossums, squirrels, rabbits, etc, I worked with the Humane Soceity and I used to volunteer at a vet. So I know animals what the problem is- is a have never had one act like her and I have done everything I know to do, so I'm turning to others to get advice. But I would appreciate it if you didn't make me feel bad about the way I've raised her. 
Thanks for all the advice, I can't thank you enough and I'm VERY open to hear more.


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## marie73 (Jul 12, 2006)

Nobody is trying to make you feel bad. You've never once mentioned playtime at all. Maybe when she's _stalking_ you, you could stop and play with her.


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## Greyer (Aug 20, 2011)

I figured I didnt need to mention it because it went without saying. I mean if she's spoiled then she's obviously loved therefore implying that she gets taken care of in every aspect.


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## Sinatra-Butters (Aug 9, 2010)

No one is trying to attack you, Greyer. We are all here to help and chat with other cat lovers. However, there are _a lot_ of people who say their cats are spoiled and they are often not spoiled at all by our general standards. So we usually take that statement with a grain of salt if it isn't elaborated on.


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## Greyer (Aug 20, 2011)

Sinatra-Butters said:


> However, there are _a lot_ of people who say their cats are spoiled and they are often not spoiled at all by our general standards. So we usually take that statement with a grain of salt if it isn't elaborated on.


to elaborate:

I have stage 4 endometriosis and on top of that a tumor so i most likely cant have kids. she is my baby. she gets whatever she wants, when she wants it. if i go out then she knows that when i come home i have something for her. she has a bed in my bed. when she got her shots and didnt feel good then i carried her from room to room depending on where i was on a pillow so she wouldnt be bothered. she prefers sponge baths to regular ones, and likes 1 part lactaid milk with 1 part condensed sweetend milk warmed up and beat until its frothy, she loves anything with cheese, fish or beef in it but isnt a fan of chicken or turkey unless its right off the bone. i carry her around and play with her as much as she'll allow me to. she loves to climb on me and cant go to sleep without a kiss on the nose and her back has to be rubbed in circles before she falls asleep at night.


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