My little kitten also would bite me when I play with her. But I would stop if I cannot bear the bites. And I do it again. I like to play with her. She's such a playful thing.

[shuranda]

I don't think that cat bites are very likely to cause an infection, but I think cat SCRATCHES will.

[barcelonababe22]

actually, leaving animals alone when they are eating promotes food aggression and guarding- so this advice is quite poor. You are encouraging the animal's belief that the food is THEIRS. The best way to approach this subject is to start putting your hands in the animal's food bowl when they are a puppy, and teach them that nothing bad happens, and that you are not taking anything away. If your animal is already food aggressive, then start by throwing treats into its food bowl from a distance, and then get closer and closer. That way the dog will associate your hand near the food bowl as a positive presence. The same works with cats.

[shuranda]

With my cats, they don't get into fights near the food bowl or litter box, but they do get annoyed. Their fighting happens when one is sleeping in another's favorite spot, or when they try and steal each other's catnip sprinkle on the floor, or when one is blocking their path into another room, or when they get into a frisky mood. I am surprised that more people that work with large cats don't get bitten like Chipperfield in St. Petersburg Florida or Roy Horn in Las Vegas. In both of those cases, the tiger was clearly not attacking the trainer (if they were, the trainer would be dead in a couple of seconds). Those two incidents involved the cats getting overly stimulated resulting in them playfully sinking their fangs into the skulls of their best friends. I am sure they meant no harm. Cats are inherently unpredictable.

Dogs are much more predictable, but also much more aggressive. Certainly some breeds are notorious for snapping - such as Dobermans and Pit Bulls. With dogs, I would highly discourage the idea of touching their food once it is given to them. I have seen even the sweetest dogs bite their owners when the owner tries to take it back. You can't expect a dog to behave in a way which contradicts their deepest instincts. I suspect that one reason children get attacked by dogs is that the children don't realize that they can't stare at a dog in the eyes without risking a viscious attack. Dogs are quite a bit more aware of what is going on than most people realize. One time, a german shepard I was familar with was laying down about 20 feet from me looking at me. I needed to pass by him to get to a car, and he started a low growl to warn me to keep my distance. I looked back at him and stuck my tongue out. Big Mistake!!! That dog instantly leaped towards me and lunged for my throat. I raised my arm up to block him and his fangs sunk deep into my wrist.
Dogs tend to warn by growling before an attack giving you a chance to back down. A cat can be completely unpredictable.

[barcelonababe22]

Originally Posted by shuranda

Dogs are much more predictable, but also much more aggressive. Certainly some breeds are notorious for snapping - such as Dobermans and Pit Bulls. With dogs, I would highly discourage the idea of touching their food once it is given to them. I have seen even the sweetest dogs bite their owners when the owner tries to take it back. You can't expect a dog to behave in a way which contradicts their deepest instincts. I suspect that one reason children get attacked by dogs is that the children don't realize that they can't stare at a dog in the eyes without risking a viscious attack. Dogs are quite a bit more aware of what is going on than most people realize. One time, a german shepard I was familar with was laying down about 20 feet from me looking at me. I needed to pass by him to get to a car, and he started a low growl to warn me to keep my distance. I looked back at him and stuck my tongue out. Big Mistake!!! That dog instantly leaped towards me and lunged for my throat. I raised my arm up to block him and his fangs sunk deep into my wrist.
Dogs tend to warn by growling before an attack giving you a chance to back down. A cat can be completely unpredictable.

Some breeds are definitely more notorious for snapping, but not because of the breeds themselves. These breeds have the capability to be aggressive, but that aggressiveness is brought out by the trainer, not by the dog itself. Dogs are extremely malleable creatures. Putting your hand near their food bowl while putting treats in the food bowl, as a training exercise is extremely advised, especially when they are puppies. I have a trained protection dog, and one of his obedience commands is to stare me in the eyes. He has never attacked me. Obviously you should heed the dog if it growls, especially if it is a dog you don't know- that is just common sense. But the more you back down the more you teach them that the behavior is ok. If you want a dog that walks all over you then by all means, let the dog growl over his/her food, and have his/her way. You will be creating a monster that is training you instead of the other way around.

[shuranda]

Originally Posted by barcelonababe22

If you want a dog that walks all over you then by all means, let the dog growl over his/her food, and have his/her way. You will be creating a monster that is training you instead of the other way around.

I don't disagree with you, but there are alway complications that make training a challenge. In my case with the 3 dogs I inherited, those dogs are roughly 10, 14, and 15 years old already. The person who previously took care of them was a monster herself - so its not surprising that the dogs are all mental. A short list of their behavior is fighting for no reason at all, the male dogs humping each other, the female dog humping the female cat, poo eating, peeing on everything indoors at every opportunity - yet refuse to defecate or pee when taken for walks outside, barking for several hours non-stop, clawing and leaping on doors to the point of destruction.
In the 5 months I have had semi-control of the dogs, I have managed to cease 95% of their barking, and they no longer pee in areas that I control. Unfortunately, I am only in charge of feeding and cleaning up the dogs - the "owner" of the dogs encourages the dogs to bark - thinking its funny, and keeps the dogs trapped in her room most of the day - forcing them to poo and pee all over the hallways when she lets them out while she takes her daily hour long shower. The girl was literally purchased for $25,000 from Peru as a baby because my dad's wife could not have children and the U.S. government would not allow them to adopt because they are considered unfit parents. My dad's wife died unexpectedly 5 months ago, which is why I am here. The girl is more or less a pet herself, who was badly "trained" by my dad's wife.

Anyway.. the way I got the dogs to stop peeing in the living room was fairly simple and rapid. I keep an old bottle of window cleaner that I filled with water in the living room. Whenever the dogs run over to a chair or box to pee on it, I give them a squirt from the bottle and that stops them in their tracks instantly. I'm actually suprised at how effective that spray bottle has been.

[shuranda]

My cats never go outside, so it's impossible for them to get rabies.

[shuranda]

Male cats are much more likely to bite, claw, and pee where they should not pee (due to a deep instint to mark their territory).

However, don't be surprised if even the most gentle, timid, cuddly female cat gets possessed by satan if you bring another female cat into its domain.

Cats are the only animal I can think of where the female makes a much better pet than the male. Probably rabbits too.. male rodents can be very viscious.

Originally Posted by ricky_ponting

nope my cat never bites anyone even while playing. she is usually very calm and hardly becomes agressive.
thanks

[JohnPhoenix]

I play with my cat and let her bite me all the time and even encourage it because it is good for the cat. I was concerned about this at first so I looked up Cat Psychology on the net. It turns out this is normal play for cats as long as they don't bite too hard. Cats play bite and rough house with each other all the time to keep their hunting skills sharp. What can happen over the course of play is the cat will get really excited and start biting harder. When this happens simply back off on the play until kitty calms down.

I know I can handle kitty's sharp teeth and claws because I am a healthy adult man and I know she is only playing. For older people who may bleed easily I do suggest discouraging this type of play for your sake. Your kitty simply does not know he/she is hurting you as this is natural behavior for her.

I am no expert but this is what I learned from the cat psychology websites. This information may not be 100% correct.

My cat has a habit of pouncing on my feet when I am barefoot. My feet are not as tough as my hands so I quickly move away.

[CamiDante]

Originally Posted by shuranda

Male cats are much more likely to bite, claw, and pee where they should not pee (due to a deep instint to mark their territory).

Actually, this is not true for many males, cat or dog. My male has never once peed where he shouldn't, or marked my house. I have a female cat inside as well, and there are many male ferals that come around my house. My male has never done anything to mark his territory.

Back to the post subject: My female cat only bites when you play with her too rough. It's her way of saying "back off, I DO NOT like that".
My male, on the other hand, bites quite a bit. He plays very rough, and bites very hard (he's drawn blood numerous times) but does know the meaning of "ouch!". He knows know that once I say "ouch" all play stops until he settles down.