kitten being irritating!!!

[briannas auntie]

I have had my kitten Angie since May of last year.  She was only 3 weeks old when I rescued her and had to bottle feed her, since she hadn't been weaned yet.  Well, she is perfectly fine and active and is a pleasure to have around.  Except for one problem......

Lately, I have had trouble with her jumping on my bed, nightstand, phone table, and knocking over my laundry basket in my bedroom at night.  I have tried closing the door, but she recently figured out how to open the doorknob by jumping and moving it until it opens the door.  Its really getting irritating when I wake up to her playing with some of my books, medical supplies, and anythign else that may be out.

Tonight, she was the worst!  She managed to get in my bedroom and jumped on my bed, got under the covers, and started to play under the covers.  As a result, she clawed up the air mattress pad I have for pressure sore prevention!  It won't hold any air anymore, despite me trying to fix it with duct tape and tacky glue.

Does anyone have any tricks I can use to keep her from doing this stuff?  I don't want to declaw her and I trim her nails every other week.  I have also been shaking a can full of pennies to get her down from the furniture.  She will get down, but a couple minutes later, she will be right back up there.

Jessie

[Otto]

In the short term, I recommend a doorstop, as well as plently of self-play toys. So long as she's been socialized well enough not to bite or scratch (or obsessively lick, given the bottle raising) people, this will pass.

[2xy]

Originally Posted by Otto 

In the short term, I recommend a doorstop, as well as plently of self-play toys. So long as she's been socialized well enough not to bite or scratch (or obsessively lick, given the bottle raising) people, this will pass.

This. I know it's annoying and irritating, but it WILL get better. My youngest cat is about 18mo, and when he was a kitten he loved wires. My DH and kids are tech junkies, and kitty ruined hundreds of dollars worth of computer speakers, video game chargers, phone chargers, etc. We haven't found any severed cords/wires in many months now. But he still does insist on being the first to wake us up in the morning.

Block the door from being able to be opened and invest in some earplugs. Pennies in a can can deter some cats; mine respect a squirt bottle much more.

[teaforever]

There are many quick things you can do. In short, your cat wants your attention, and in animal minds any attention is attention, so when you shoe it away, chase it away, put it down off the furniture, that is attention and getting exactly what it wants.

Remember, this faze of cats, typically between 6 months and 3 years, depends on the cat when they stop, but it does end and eventually and they then become sleeping blobs most of the time.

Felines are nocturnal by nature and most of this unnerving behavior sounds like is going on at night.

Now what to do, the door stop will work, for awhile until it figures it out then begins to scratch at the door, making another pricey fix. At the pet store there is a spray you can put on your furniture, it works for 3 out of my 4 cats, this reduces the scratching of stuff and from them wanting to sit on stuff. With your toys you choose, pick one that is active on its own with batteries, a mouse that runs a circular track can be a hit. If you can find one on a cat house tower, that would even be better. Put some catnip on the cat house and maybe a tee shirt to sleep on that is yours and smells like you (one with a hiding place and a ledge to sit on recommended). Other things to think of, near a window, since cats love to look out, get the cat fixed (mating season is close and they act even more annoying during it and of course if you haven't already). There are more if you want them, I know this is already getting long.

[briannas auntie]

Originally Posted by teaforever 

There are many quick things you can do. In short, your cat wants your attention, and in animal minds any attention is attention, so when you shoe it away, chase it away, put it down off the furniture, that is attention and getting exactly what it wants.

Remember, this faze of cats, typically between 6 months and 3 years, depends on the cat when they stop, but it does end and eventually and they then become sleeping blobs most of the time.

Felines are nocturnal by nature and most of this unnerving behavior sounds like is going on at night.

Now what to do, the door stop will work, for awhile until it figures it out then begins to scratch at the door, making another pricey fix. At the pet store there is a spray you can put on your furniture, it works for 3 out of my 4 cats, this reduces the scratching of stuff and from them wanting to sit on stuff. With your toys you choose, pick one that is active on its own with batteries, a mouse that runs a circular track can be a hit. If you can find one on a cat house tower, that would even be better. Put some catnip on the cat house and maybe a tee shirt to sleep on that is yours and smells like you (one with a hiding place and a ledge to sit on recommended). Other things to think of, near a window, since cats love to look out, get the cat fixed (mating season is close and they act even more annoying during it and of course if you haven't already). There are more if you want them, I know this is already getting long.

Angie is already fixed.  She is still acting like a brat, but I am starting to get used to it.

[Otto]

Originally Posted by teaforever 

Felines are nocturnal by nature and most of this unnerving behavior sounds like is going on at night.

Crepuscular, actually, although all bets may be off in the bonkers phase.

[catheleni]

Well, two things:  kittens who are bottle-fed often are a little off.  It has to do with the fact that they didn't have sibling to teach them how to be a cat, as well as the cat model of a mother cat.  I have a bottle-fed baby, and she fits this.  But that's okay, they also have great qualities when it comes to relationships with people, I think.

Also, yes, it's the age.  My rescue group actually doesn't adopt out single kittens because inevitably, their level of play and general pounciness just begs for feline companionship. Of course, if this isn't feasible, then I'd just do more scheduled play times for kitty to work with her nuttiness.  I'm happy to hear you wouldn't declaw: first, because it's just horrid for the cat, and second because she can be trained and will grow out of it!

Here's a link or two:

http://www.pawschicago.org/pet-resource-center/cat-care-information/why-young-cats-should-be-adopted-in-pairs/

http://www.pawschicago.org/pet-resource-center/cat-care-information/training-your-cat-to-scratch-appropriately/

[briannas auntie]

Well, I have been closing my bedroom door at night, because for 2 weeks, she would come in and play with the feeding bag attached to my feeding pump.  She jumped up on my bedside table and poked a hole in the feeding bag, causing water to leak everywhere!  Thankfully, I was able to get my college medical coding textbook to dry out that i had on the table. 

At 8am every morning, when I wake up, she is allowed back in there for the day.  I think she is getting used to this routine.  She has stoped scratching and crying at the bedroom door, and when i wake up in the middle of the night, she is asleep in my recliner with my older cat, Daisy.  I think also the new toys are helping too.  I got her a catnip cigar, a honesuckle cat toy, and this kitty play cube at a local feed store, which she loves.

Hopefully, doing this for a while will help and I can gradually let her back into the bedroom at night.  She loves sleeping on my bed at night, but when she wakes up, its all craziness for her. Right now, I thing she is content with sleeping with me when I take a nap. 

Jessie