posted 12-11-2003 01:34 PM         

I talked to the vet about it a while back and she just told me to make sure he has plenty of toys that he's allowed to bite and encourage him to only bite those toys.

Since he seemed to bite things that he could really get his jaws around (like my wrists or table legs) I got him some fairly large toys, including a stuffed animal which he uses to practice his most savage bites and attacks. Also, the bigger toys are less likely to get stuck under the refrigerator! Look in both the dog and cat sections for a better toy variety.

I think the biting has reduced. But, I can't really tell if its helped, or if he is out growing his biting.

posted 12-12-2003 10:13 AM         

When Handsome (my cat) was younger he would bite a bit too hard on my hands/arms while he was playing. He would just get so into his playing that he would forget how hard he was biting or scratching me.

So, everytime he bit or scratched too hard I would blow air on his face (air from my mouth). Cats really do not like this at all and will stop what they are doing. I also would say "no,no,no." He knows this word well, as I used it every time he was doing something that was not allowed.

He learned how to play nicely %99 of the time using this technique. There are still 1% of the times when he gets really silly and forgets how rough he is being and I just blow the air and say "no, no, no" and he immediately stops. He usually ends up licking my hand, as to say he is sorry he was being so rough.