Cat Behavioral Issues?

Question

I adopted two cats with my girlfriend last May. They are big males who get along great. They are young- around 2 or 3- and healthy. When we got them they were obese, but after a strict diet and exercise with the vet's guidance they are lean and fit. They are very energetic, but we play with them frequently and take them out into our apartment building so they can explore while supervised. Since we moved to our small studio apartment and I have been with them more often I have discovered some behavioral issues:

1. Annoying us for food
My girlfriend wakes up at 6:00 to commute to school, and feeds the cats after her shower. They are on a strict diet, less than they are used to at the shelter, and are very eager for feedings... so eager that they try to wake her as early as 4:00. One of them will walk all over her body, and meow, for hours. We live in a studio, so locking him out is not a possibility. 

2. Poop/pee outside litter pan
If waking her at 4:00 am fails, occasionally one of them will go into the bathroom and poop in the shower or pee on the bathmat. This had only happened twice, but all times it was on the weekend when they don't get fed until closer to 9:00, since we can sleep in. 

3. Pawing at doors/windows
One of our cats will paw at windows, doors, and walls. It is never with claws, but the noise becomes repetitive and annoying. It is not that he expect these things to be opened- we never open the window or the wardrobe for him, and he doesn't paw doors while we are on the other side. 

4. Chewing
The cat that tries to wake my girlfriend is very inquisitive and energetic, and one of the things he loves to do is chew things. It is usually wood, plastic, or metal that sticks up, like the lever on the recliner or the drawer handles under the bed, and done with great exuberance. He is very destructive. We provide chew toys for cats, but he gnaws through them, and still prefers other things. 

5. Jumping on counter
The cat that paws at walls and such also loves jumping onto the counter. Our kitchen space is limited, and he will sometimes try to go in the sink and eat food scraps or investigate the stove top. 

I would really like help solving one, some, or all of these issues. If you are familiar with any of them, please write in. A lot of these behaviors are damaging or endanger them (or our sanity). Let me know what you think.

Becky · Accepted Answer

1. You have trained the cats to eat at 6:00 - start feeding them consistently at a later time.  Keep a spray bottle near the bed for those 4:00 a.m. dance routines.  A sharp "NO" and a squirt will work.
2.  Hopefully if you work on #1 this will be less of an issue. Unfortunately, rubbing his nose in it will do no good.  You need to replace the bathmat - maybe use the old one as a litter catcher right outside of their box.
3.  The almighty spray bottle - "No" then a squirt - hopefully "No" will eventually be enough to curb the behavior.
4.  Sorry to laugh...but I've had the same issue - Assuming his teeth and gums are healthy, keep more chew toys (expensive) or objects he's allowed to chew on hand.  Will he chew on rawhide strips?  
5.  Spray bottle - sorry but it works for me - well, at least they don't jump on the counters in front of me anymore - though I do find the tell tale paw prints on the range....

Get a couple of spray bottles and keep them in handy places for correcting their behavior...Good luck!

Anonymous · Answer

4 - Could be a mouth issue. Only one of our cats chews, mainly cardboard and that's because it feels good on his gums. He has had some teeth pulled and has gum disease and I guess the hard cardboard feels good. This could be the case if your cat, have your vet check out his chompers.

5 - Put tape upside down (sticky side up) on the edge of your counters. When the cat jumps up there his paw will get stuck and after 3 or 4 times he won't get up there again. It doesn't hurt but they don't like things like that on their paws.

This is all I can help you with.

Lucy · Answer

Sounds like they are acting out because of the move.  They may be feeling boxed in because of the smaller apartment.  Take them out more and give them extra attention.  Sounds like you two do give them a lot of attention.  They are punishing you for changing their world and retraining you in the new home.  That is what cats do.  They will eventually settle down and hopefully stop torturing you.  

When we moved my cat would paw at my face and scream at me to wake up early in the morning.  If I ignored him he would climb on my face and suffocate me until I got up and fed him.  He trained me well.  I still wake up at about 3 or 4 am & get the fat brat food (I say this with love and devotion) - it has been 1 1/2 years since we moved here.  He won.

umscheid · Answer

Yes he'll however it is going to take slightly whilst for it to give up. I located a kitten within the woods and took him in. After he was once constant, it took a well 2 months for him to loosen up and give up that disgusting spraying.

Anonymous · Answer

i dont know anything about cats but i love how they have those little sandpaper tounges.

i also love when two little cats play with each other.

and some cats have a very regal presence.

while others simply do not.

hope i have been able to help.

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Cat Behavioral Issues?

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