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More Boots News

I’m sorry to continue posting about this but I keep hoping something I say will cause someone to think of something I’m not thinking of.

Today he was upstairs almost all day. He was fine. When I leave the room, he follows me like he doesn’t want me out of his sight. I go in the kitchen, he sits at the gate. I go to the breakfast room, he goes to the other gate. I go to the bathroom, Boots goes with me.

It was about 5 p.m. He had been calm, had purred, had sat with me maybe 10 minutes. He was sleeping on the floor near my chair. He looked up at my feet. I saw his pupils go black. His ears went back. He tried to bite my feet. I pulled them up where he couldn’t reach them and was saying “NO!” He was trying to get in the chair to bite my feet. I ended up taking him downstairs.

Why? He was up here all day. He ate. He slept. He went downstairs to use the litter box. He seemed fine til he tried to bite me. I was cross stitching – not talking to him, not doing anything out of the ordinary.

Vince said he’s willing to wait and see how he reacts when Vince gets here but he said we’re not keeping him if he doesn’t stop the biting. I have to find a solution before we get to that point!

I’m sure I’ve told this story before. I did have a cat. I think I was 24. She was not friendly with strangers and I had a friend come over so I picked her up to put her in my bedroom and she attacked me. I have scars on both arms from stitches. Every time Boots tries to bite me, the thought goes through my mind . . what if I try to pick him up and he really attacks? I am a bit afraid of him but I have to figure this out before it gets to the point that I can’t keep him!!

That incident with my other cat . . at the ER, the doctor came in and he said “Is there any way you can find out who owns the cat and if it’s had its rabies vaccine?” I said “Yes, she’s been vaccinated!” He asked whose cat it as. Mine! He looked at me like I was crazy for having a mean cat. I don’t want to be crazy again but Boots has always been too sweet. I’m not giving up yet.

I did find the Feliway at Chewy and ordered more of that which should be here by the middle of next week.

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Comments

  1. I wonder if there’s something with some of the cross stitch material/floss, etc. I know you said he would nip when he thought you might have been in the sewing room in Texas while you were knitting.

    I don’t remember if you said he’d done/acted like this when you were knitting recently?!?!?

    • I don’t think so because that was here when he got here in November and it’s only been in the last two or three weeks he’s been doing this. I had floss in the sewing room. I don’t even have to be cross stitching. There are days when I don’t even get any of it out and he will still do it.

      I’m sure he has done while I was knitting but in Texas, a lot of time I’d be doing computer work or sometimes I’d just nap in the sewing room. The time I remember him being totally out of control, my neighbor, who Boots loved, was there and he was sitting between us on the sofa. He started biting. He bit me first and when she tried to grab him, he bit her. I only remember him biting when he had spent enough time with us and wanted his alone time back. That’s what I thought anyway.

  2. My sister adopted a cat that was fine in the beginning but then started attacking random people; biting and clawing at them! She figured out it was people who didn’t like cats or who owned dogs! She took Tim to the vet. The vet declawed him and removed two of his front fang teeth so he could not bite. The vet said it was extreme but she could not take the cat back to the shelter or give it away. The cat would have to be put down. Tim is now 16 and rarely ever attacks. Removing the teeth didn’t affect his eating or health in any way. Something to consider.

  3. Maybe it has something to do with the weather change. Has his behaviour changed in correlation with the cold weather or snow coming. Maybe it changes the air pressure. After living his whole life in Texas maybe he isn’t used to these new sensations yet.
    King regards
    Kellie

    • No. Tuesday will be three weeks since he started biting and it was short sleeve weather and sunny here til two weeks. In fact, I took him to the vet wearing a short sleeve shirt.

  4. Maybe try a behavioral vet? We had a cat that started to have episodes much like Boots. They put him on antipsychotic drugs for 4 days and it realigned him.

    • I doubt there’s one around here. We have about more on our plate with this move right now and a behavioral vet in another city probably isn’t going to happen.

  5. Does Boots know that it’s you spraying him when he does something bad??? Might want to keep the spray bottle with you when you are stitching so if he comes you can squirt him just before he bites. Also might the noise of the needle going through the fabric be bothering his ears??? Cats have very good hearing. And is he only biting when you are in the chair or other times??? Might be something making noise in the chair, might you want to try another one for a few days to see if it makes a difference??? It’s all I can think of now. But keep that spray bottle handy and spray him if he tries to bite so he knows it comes from the bottle and you won’t tolerate the biting.

    • I keep a spray bottle right by my chair so the minute I say NO, he looks to see if I’m reaching for the bottle and then he runs.

      He bites me even if I’m sitting on the sofa.

  6. I was going to mention keeping and using the spray water bottle when I read Roberta’s comment. Say “no” and spray when you notice he’s going into “bite mode”. Good luck, Judy, I understand this is difficult.

    • I’ve used a spray bottle with him since he was a kitten and he has a great respect for it but once he’s in a biting mood, he comes right back and bites again. I keep a spray bottle by my chair and he sees me reach for it and runs but comes right back and tries to bite.

  7. One of our local shelters offers feline behavioral counseling services (right now, phone and virtual sessions). Maybe there is something similar in your area?

  8. Is it time to start a journal of Boot’s behavior that is more specific than these posts in order to locate a pattern, if there is one? Note the date, time, location of you and Boots, weather conditions, was he looking in a particular direction, sleeping or fully awake, what reaction (hiss, back hair up, eyes, biting, movement towards or away), how long it takes to calm down, what was he doing before the reaction as well as what were you doing?

    I think this is the first time you mentioned that it was 5 pm (dusk, when other animals might be moving about), Boots had been ok upstairs with you, was below you and sleeping and looked up and started biting. Perhaps he woke up and saw your socks and reacted to the colors, patterns, and movement – thinking it was an animal to attack?

    Is Boots ever “wild” without biting? You have sprayed him with water, or taken him downstairs, but have you ever just left the area without Boots? Does he follow you and what is his behavior – biting or calming down? Does he stay behind and when you return after so many minutes, is he back to normal or still wild? I think some have mentioned a protection mode that their cats went into, so if you left the threat area, does he calm down?

    Are there any outside lights that might be going on at this time or have the drapes already been drawn? Some street and security lights flicker and hum when warming up – nothing that you would notice, but Boots might be sensitive. Also, could you put up some motion sensitive lights in the areas when you saw the animal prints to scare them away.

    Good luck – hope you are getting some new ideas to check out.

  9. My thought is that it might be neurological. Maybe aging and dementia/alzheimer type brain problems? I am not a cat person, but have gone through similar experiences with aging relatives. Not the biting, but the anger towards others for no apparent reason. Benadryl sounds like a harmless solution to try. people can develop anxiety issues for no apparent reason at any stage of life, so maybe cats can too. Plus all the other things that others have already mentioned. Good luck. Maybe arthritis? Our dog became “touchy” as he aged and developed arthritis and cancer…..On another note the tips you gave on the fridge in the garage happen to our fridge in our kitchen. I did notice that it always happened with outdoor temperature changes. Now I can tell my hubby so he will stop suggesting we get a new fridge. LOL. LOVE your blog. I learn so much, and laugh so much. I read so much from your blog to my husband and he gets a kick out of it. Especially the funny stuff.
    Continued good health and happiness wished for you and your husband.

  10. We have a cat that has been acting a lot like your Boots for more than 12 years. We adopted him when he was about 9 months old without knowing much of his background–just that he had been with a family with 10-13 year old boys, and due to the parents divorce he had have a new home. A friend of a friend of theirs was temporarily sheltering him. Our cat is handsome and can be charming and loving, purring, cuddling and the next second bite and draw blood. We have always kept him as an indoor kitty since the city we lived in had leash laws for cats and it was impossible to put a harness or collar on him.( We use a lot of soap and water and antibiotic ointment and bandages on our wounds.) He is happy and then suddenly his eyes get big and he is a terrorist. He does not appreciate having to be indoors all the time. Sometimes when I have gone outside, he will attack me when I come inside, looking at me as if to say “I didn’t give you permission to go outside”. I do believe his natural born hunting and territorial instincts are part of what drives this behavior. I don’t have any wonderful advice for you, or particular wisdom. We keep him because my husband insists we do. I think he would be a happier cat if we lived on a farm and he could be outdoors when he wanted and indoors when he wanted, but who really knows? He is a cat. Cats are cats, and cats are NOT all alike. I love cats, really love cats, but this one is difficult, very difficult, but also very loving. He will probably outlive me. Kathy

    • You about described Boots exactly with the big eyes and the terrorist attitude. If Boots had been outside any at all in Texas, I would think having to stay inside is the problem but he was never outside there either. In fact, the few times he did escape, he ran back in as soon as he saw that it was a scary place out there but you’re right . . who knows what they’re thinking.

      I’m so hoping he’ll stop this before Vince gets here.

      • I’m not certain I remember right, but if Boots was a stray cat he probably was acquainted with the territory around your Texas house and knew it was a scary place. Our cat started having more frequent episodes after we moved to a place where the neighbor cats would come and sit on the steps and look in through the door glass. That is hard for the natural territorial instinct cats have.

        While bird and chipmunk and squirrel etc. watching is fun for cats it also brings out their natural hunting instinct which is undoubtedly frustrated when there is glass between them and the prey. Some cats deal with it in more socially acceptable ways than others.

        I have appreciated reading your blog for years Judy, and I wish the very best for you and Boots and Vince. You are remarkably kind and take exceedingly good care of your pets. Kathy

        • I don’t think I’d really call Boots a stray cat, though he was. He showed up and the vet figured he was about 10 – 12 week old and since then, he’s always been an inside cat. He has the same window setup that he had in Texas though the windows there were higher and he was looking down everything . . from a safe distance but here, he’s eyeball to eyeball with them.

  11. Has Boots had a vaccination lately? I read something on another blog where a dog started having behavorial problems after having a rabies vaccination.

  12. I know you aren’t a tv watcher but the show My Cat From Hell would be worth checking out.. The guy fixes cats with behavorial problems and Boots definately qualifies.. There are some episodes on YouTube that may give you a clue as to why Boots is attacking..

  13. Could it be he just wants more attention. that he has sat down at your feet and you don’t pet him you do you cross stitch. Maybe he needs some prozac. My daughter has a cat that they have to give him that to keep him clamed down and leave other cats alone and not pick at them all the time. I just can’t image why he is doing this all of sudden unless he really misses Vince now or he being shut up sewing room making him feel safer Cats!!!!!!!!!!!..

    • No. Sometimes he’s been on my lap for an hour and I’ve petted him and all of a sudden, he’ll reach up and bite me. Once he decides he’s ready to bite, he really goes after me. Today he was more aggressive than he’s been before and he’s starting to scare me.

  14. I wonder if it’s a vision problem? When you described how he looked and reacted to your feet, it made me think that perhaps he “saw” your feet as a threat? I don’t know…just throwing things out there.

    • He also can be sitting on my lap and in the middle of me talking to him, he reaches over and bites me.

  15. I had always heard when cats bite at your hands it meant they “loved” you. I would say that Boots really, really loves you! lol

    • I’ve heard that too but he’s angry when he’s doing it. His ears are back, his tail is flashing and his pupils are huge.

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