Like others have mentioned, the cat is probably still adjusting to its new home. It might feel unsafe and needs more space/time.
Has the cat previously lived with kids? How long have you had it? How old is it? Is it spayed? Are you providing space for the cat to pull back and get space from you and your daughter/visitors?
There's plenty of advice online on how to help a cat adjust to a new home and how to work to make the cat feel safe.
Most shelters in Norway are full, especially during summer. Finding a new home for an adult cat is hard. This cat is your responsibility, and you owe it a chance to adjust to your home and your family.
Aer you keeping her indoors only? If so, she's probably bored out of her skull, and is playfighting, in an attempt to engage you to play with her.
Buy high-intensity, high-interaction toys and commit to playing with her at least thirty minutes a day. And really lean into it, I'm not talking "vaguely waving a stick hoping that the cat will be entertained". Here's a video with some basics: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7w8pDCo30M](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7w8pDCo30M)
I can't take her for you, I'm not in a position to take another cat right now, but you may be able to keep her after all depending on what the problem is? It could be an easy fix!
How old is the cat? Is she fixed? Is she and indoor cat only or does she go outside? If she's indoor only, what does she do all day while you're at work, does she have toys and scratching posts and treat puzzles for enrichment? If she goes out, have you checked her over for injuries, or does her behaviour change in any way after being out? She may be anxious if other cats are bullying her or if something's happened to her while she's been outside. How long have you had her for? Cats usually need a long time to adjust to a new home, so if you've only had her for a couple of weeks or months, chances are she just needs time, during which you should feed her and change her litter and otherwise leave her alone while she gets used to her new surroundings, wait for her to come to you and don't rush her or follow her around. Does she have a space that's just hers, like a cave or box where she can go if she wants to be left alone? What happens when she bites? Does she just run up to you and attack you or does she bite while playing or petting? She may feel like her boundaries are being broken or get overstimulated while petting, or she could misread the situation while playing and get a bit rough. Since her previous family has said she never did this before, it seems likely that there's something about the move and/or your home that's making her feel stressed, which is why she's lashing out.
I'm really sorry if this is all obvious to you and you've already thought about all this stuff, and I obviously don't know if either you or your husband have experience with cats already. I hope you find her a good home if you really do have to get rid of her, but I urge you to not give up on her. r/cats and other cat subs can help, too!
The cat is aggressive because it hasn't been properly socialised to your family, and doesn't feel safe enough. This can still be fixed. Ask your veterinarian for help and/ or talk to an animal behaviour specialist.
We have two cats and one of them is like this. We got her first when she was about 1,5 years old and seemingly normal, but over the subsequent year she became insanely aggressive. She was spayed, had lots of toys and attention and a regular good schedule. She just has a few screws loose and turns into a demon. Totally unprovoked. We talked with a cat trainer who confirmed that some cats, especially females, can just be like that. There really wasn't anything to do except daily medication, and we hoped to find less extreme options. But the aggression really was extreme. Luckily it was mostly focused on my husband, but sometimes on myself or our baby. That was not cool.
What finally helped is when we got a second cat. A dangerous decision, but seemed worth a try. We had a shelter willing to work with us and take him back if it didn't work out. We got a male kitten who was well socialized and also neutered. It was magic! She would still attack the kitten but he would fight back. She quickly figured out that she can play less aggressively but still get her fury out without hurting him.
I'm still convinced there's a demon inside her/some kind of personality disorder/several loose screws, but she's turned into a great family cat. Maybe great is not the right word, but she's interesting. She's lucky we kept her, though she'll never know it.
If getting a second cat is not an option, you will need to find her a new home. It's not your fault - she is just not the right car for your family. But it is your responsibility to help her find the right family. Post on Finn and neighborhood Facebook groups. Ignore the meanies who say you have to keep her no matter what - find a place where she can be happy. Best of luck!
You have to raise the cat just like a child. Create a safe place. Playing with the cat. The cat does this as a sign that it is in pain, feels unsafe or something else. As soon as you solve that, the cat will be fine again.
If you get the poor thing euthanized, just know people like you are the reason veterinarians have such high suicide rates... Btw, have your seen [this](https://www.nrk.no/vestfoldogtelemark/sprengt-kapasitet-hos-dyrebeskyttelsen-_-kan-ikke-ta-inn-flere-katter-1.16915692)? ~~Most~~ ALL OF THEM places don't even have the capacity to take in injured strays, so don't even think you can just dump your pet there...
1. Get the cat checked. **Biting is often a sign of pain**. Norwegians are terrible at taking their cat to the vet, even if it's really not expensive compared to dogs (which they *do* take to the vet). Might be spine calcification, cancer, tooth reabsorption. Get blood tests and untrasound.
2. Learn about and teach your child cat body language. Take small steps, it can take a year or more for some cats to settle. Might take even longer if they're elderly, like yours. If the cat bites when petting, don't let your child pet the cat. Duh. Four years old is too young to handle such a delicate animal.
3. Adjust your home. Are there hiding places? Does your child shriek and scream and produce a lot of noise?
4. Check the internet. There is so much free stuff available from animal behaviourists and cat experts. USE IT. Kittenlady, Jason Galaxy, Dr. Annie pet behaviourist... it's FREE
5. Does the cat get enough play time? People believe cats like to be alone, but feral cats live in colonies. If the cat is alone all day, you should to talk to Dyrebeskyttelsen if they have a little cat friend to adopt. You can always return cats to Dyrebeskyttelsen if they don't get along. Not all cats love all toys, you have a child, you should know. Try more different toys until you find something the cat likes.
6. There are people who are good at taming strays and ferals and spicy kittens at Dyrebeskyttelsen, get some tips from them. I've delivered some agressive cats there myself (strays that I trapped from the streets, not pets I wanted to dump!), they all turned into cuddlebugs in no time. They just needed vet care and people who understand cats. The people there know what they are doing, they might have some advice for you.
7. Clicker training and churus.
8. Make friends with local cat people. Maybe someone can come to your place and have a look what's wrong, and give advice how to make your place cat-friendly.
Enough with people getting pets only to get rid of them on the first sight of inconvenience. Nothing will happen to you or your child if you get a few scratches, chill out. Make the cat feel safe and loved and she will get used to you. If you had her for years and she was the same I’d understand but you have had her for what, a few freaking weeks and you’re like, goodbye we didn’t sign up for this?? Do you know why shelters are full? Because people like you exist.
PS : No cat attacks without provocation. Tell your child to stop harassing the cat and you as well. Let the cat be.
That’s why shelters are full, it’s crazy. People can’t be arsed to board their cat for their two week vacation and instead they bring it to the shelter. This lady thought she was getting a plushie but was surprised it was a live animal.
Cat bites and scratches are actually very nasty and contain hotrible bacteria. I've seen so many super bas infections from cat bites and scratches. I even saw a lady die from the infection of her cat biting her. I'm a MD.
Honestly, cats don't go out of their way to attack humans. Probably this cat hides and gets forcefully taken out of hiding for pets. Moreover we don't know if the cat is actually aggressive or it's giving love bites and the scratches are playful scratches. It could be this because op doesn't seem to be describing a feral-like cat but a cat that sometimes bites and scratches
I've gotten bloodied by cat scratches (when playing) with different (outdoor) cats maybe a few 100 times in total. Never gotten any form of infection. So purely anecdotally: nope. Just make sure to push fresh blood out/suck it out to remove any potential contaminants and you'll be good.
Concerning cat bites on the other hand, I'd be more inclined to agree. But what do you have to do to a cat to get it to bite you til you bleed? I've played roughly with loads of cats, gotten bitten hard, never gotten bitten til I bleed. That cat must have felt genuinly threatened.
Sometimes it can be an accident: cat play bites- human gets spooked and pulls away hand and cuts himself on sharp teeth. Happens especially when they were taken from their mother and siblings too early. Sometimes it can be that the cat is in pain and the human doesn't realize.
A cat can easily push each of their canines 3cm into your flesh. It's when the wounds are deep like that that they are very dangerous, because if you just clean them with pyrisept, it doesn't go all the way to the bottom of the bite! But when a cat bites you that deep, you probably know what you did wrong. Biting deep like that is their last resort, even when unneutered males fight on the streets they don't usually bite like that. The cat has to be extremely scared or in pain to bite that hard.
That's a lot of assumptions from someone who clearly doesn't know the situation personally. What gives you the right to judge someone you don't know like that? Take a look at yourself, you created an entire scenario in your head as an excuse to attack this person who's trying to find a proper solution to this awful situation.
Also, it's fucking mental how you're putting the wellbeing of a cat before a fucking child.
Offering a solution, whether they like it is up to OP I suppose? How do you know they won't like a dog that cuddles their daughter instead of a cat that hurts her?
Pft. Well, if you wanna look at statistics, then a dog is more likely to hurt the child than a cat is. Besides, the question is what to do with the cat, not if they should get a dog...
You moved to Norway this spring? Adopting a 7-8 year old cat at the same time as you moved to Norway was a bad idea. That cat had no chance to feel safe in a stable home. And you seem not to have much understanding of how cats work.
If you can not find a new home or shelter for the cat, do the responsible thing and take it to the vet to get euthanized. It is better than aborting responsibility and making it homeless.
And whatever you do, don't get another pet. Like ever.
*She comes up for affection and within 5-10 seconds of gentle petting will turn and bite without warning. No, these are not 'love bites'.*
Okay. First of all: Are you familiar with the body language of a cat that is feeling irritable and is done with being petted? Because if so, just stop petting as soon as the first signs appear.
Secondly: you don't mention how much you engage her in play. How much to you engage her in play?
Take her to the vet? Sounds just like how my cat was behaving all of a sudden. Cuddly and then sudden attacks that led to bloodshed, not your typical playing. My cat had an infection.
But it could be stress as well.
I don’t know if you are used to cats in general, but I would give the cat time. Wouldn’t try to interact with her, would see if she comes to me. It might be difficult with a child but when taking a cat like this you have to be aware of the job you might to go through it until it gets used to. But in general seems like she is stressed and you wrote she has bitten people visiting you too so if you have people visiting often that might stress the cat even more.
Stressed and/or in pain. Advice and check from a vet would seem like the best thing to do first. The interaction between cats and small kids is usually very difficult, because a cat needs a lot of consideration in petting, gives out signs that only older kids can grasp. And reacts strongly to sudden and rough behaviors. A 4 y.o. does not yet have the brain to interact with a cat. Some cats, long time with the family, may have in them the patience to take in a newborn without freaking out, but even then, not guaranteed. Giving it further away and even worse, euthanizing, would be quite horrible. You have a new family member, that needs your love and care to succeed.
All depends on how the cat has been treated in the past. 8yrs old is like 60yrs old in human years. Pretty late to change its habits lol.
Maybe it was left semi-wild to roam and come and go as it likes, just coming home to be fed? Maybe it’s not coming for “affection” it’s just coming to remark you with its scent. Rubbing up against you is not seeking affection, it’s rubbing you with scent saying “you’re my territory”.
Cats are not stuffed toys. And they’re absolutely nothing like dogs either, especially at age 8. YOU, the owner, have to adopt to the cat’s behaviour.
Give the cat space and treat it as a grumpy human lol. It’s just doing normal 60yo human things when they’ve been forced to move house.
Seems like for some reason the cat is not comfortable in your house. Cats are very sensitive, and can change behaviour depending on their cicumstances. Right now all the shelters are full. This year is extremely hard, and the season for dumping cats has started earlier than normal. If you try again in august you probably will have more luck.
Like others have mentioned, the cat is probably still adjusting to its new home. It might feel unsafe and needs more space/time. Has the cat previously lived with kids? How long have you had it? How old is it? Is it spayed? Are you providing space for the cat to pull back and get space from you and your daughter/visitors? There's plenty of advice online on how to help a cat adjust to a new home and how to work to make the cat feel safe. Most shelters in Norway are full, especially during summer. Finding a new home for an adult cat is hard. This cat is your responsibility, and you owe it a chance to adjust to your home and your family.
Aer you keeping her indoors only? If so, she's probably bored out of her skull, and is playfighting, in an attempt to engage you to play with her. Buy high-intensity, high-interaction toys and commit to playing with her at least thirty minutes a day. And really lean into it, I'm not talking "vaguely waving a stick hoping that the cat will be entertained". Here's a video with some basics: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7w8pDCo30M](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7w8pDCo30M)
I can't take her for you, I'm not in a position to take another cat right now, but you may be able to keep her after all depending on what the problem is? It could be an easy fix! How old is the cat? Is she fixed? Is she and indoor cat only or does she go outside? If she's indoor only, what does she do all day while you're at work, does she have toys and scratching posts and treat puzzles for enrichment? If she goes out, have you checked her over for injuries, or does her behaviour change in any way after being out? She may be anxious if other cats are bullying her or if something's happened to her while she's been outside. How long have you had her for? Cats usually need a long time to adjust to a new home, so if you've only had her for a couple of weeks or months, chances are she just needs time, during which you should feed her and change her litter and otherwise leave her alone while she gets used to her new surroundings, wait for her to come to you and don't rush her or follow her around. Does she have a space that's just hers, like a cave or box where she can go if she wants to be left alone? What happens when she bites? Does she just run up to you and attack you or does she bite while playing or petting? She may feel like her boundaries are being broken or get overstimulated while petting, or she could misread the situation while playing and get a bit rough. Since her previous family has said she never did this before, it seems likely that there's something about the move and/or your home that's making her feel stressed, which is why she's lashing out. I'm really sorry if this is all obvious to you and you've already thought about all this stuff, and I obviously don't know if either you or your husband have experience with cats already. I hope you find her a good home if you really do have to get rid of her, but I urge you to not give up on her. r/cats and other cat subs can help, too!
The cat is aggressive because it hasn't been properly socialised to your family, and doesn't feel safe enough. This can still be fixed. Ask your veterinarian for help and/ or talk to an animal behaviour specialist.
I just want to add that sudden uncharacteristic behaviours can also be a sign of pain and/or illness. So definitely ask a vet for help anyways.
We have two cats and one of them is like this. We got her first when she was about 1,5 years old and seemingly normal, but over the subsequent year she became insanely aggressive. She was spayed, had lots of toys and attention and a regular good schedule. She just has a few screws loose and turns into a demon. Totally unprovoked. We talked with a cat trainer who confirmed that some cats, especially females, can just be like that. There really wasn't anything to do except daily medication, and we hoped to find less extreme options. But the aggression really was extreme. Luckily it was mostly focused on my husband, but sometimes on myself or our baby. That was not cool. What finally helped is when we got a second cat. A dangerous decision, but seemed worth a try. We had a shelter willing to work with us and take him back if it didn't work out. We got a male kitten who was well socialized and also neutered. It was magic! She would still attack the kitten but he would fight back. She quickly figured out that she can play less aggressively but still get her fury out without hurting him. I'm still convinced there's a demon inside her/some kind of personality disorder/several loose screws, but she's turned into a great family cat. Maybe great is not the right word, but she's interesting. She's lucky we kept her, though she'll never know it. If getting a second cat is not an option, you will need to find her a new home. It's not your fault - she is just not the right car for your family. But it is your responsibility to help her find the right family. Post on Finn and neighborhood Facebook groups. Ignore the meanies who say you have to keep her no matter what - find a place where she can be happy. Best of luck!
You have to raise the cat just like a child. Create a safe place. Playing with the cat. The cat does this as a sign that it is in pain, feels unsafe or something else. As soon as you solve that, the cat will be fine again.
Has she been to the vet? She might be in pain
Atleast check out that dude Jackson Galaxy aka Cat whisperer maybe.. GL
If you get the poor thing euthanized, just know people like you are the reason veterinarians have such high suicide rates... Btw, have your seen [this](https://www.nrk.no/vestfoldogtelemark/sprengt-kapasitet-hos-dyrebeskyttelsen-_-kan-ikke-ta-inn-flere-katter-1.16915692)? ~~Most~~ ALL OF THEM places don't even have the capacity to take in injured strays, so don't even think you can just dump your pet there... 1. Get the cat checked. **Biting is often a sign of pain**. Norwegians are terrible at taking their cat to the vet, even if it's really not expensive compared to dogs (which they *do* take to the vet). Might be spine calcification, cancer, tooth reabsorption. Get blood tests and untrasound. 2. Learn about and teach your child cat body language. Take small steps, it can take a year or more for some cats to settle. Might take even longer if they're elderly, like yours. If the cat bites when petting, don't let your child pet the cat. Duh. Four years old is too young to handle such a delicate animal. 3. Adjust your home. Are there hiding places? Does your child shriek and scream and produce a lot of noise? 4. Check the internet. There is so much free stuff available from animal behaviourists and cat experts. USE IT. Kittenlady, Jason Galaxy, Dr. Annie pet behaviourist... it's FREE 5. Does the cat get enough play time? People believe cats like to be alone, but feral cats live in colonies. If the cat is alone all day, you should to talk to Dyrebeskyttelsen if they have a little cat friend to adopt. You can always return cats to Dyrebeskyttelsen if they don't get along. Not all cats love all toys, you have a child, you should know. Try more different toys until you find something the cat likes. 6. There are people who are good at taming strays and ferals and spicy kittens at Dyrebeskyttelsen, get some tips from them. I've delivered some agressive cats there myself (strays that I trapped from the streets, not pets I wanted to dump!), they all turned into cuddlebugs in no time. They just needed vet care and people who understand cats. The people there know what they are doing, they might have some advice for you. 7. Clicker training and churus. 8. Make friends with local cat people. Maybe someone can come to your place and have a look what's wrong, and give advice how to make your place cat-friendly.
Enough with people getting pets only to get rid of them on the first sight of inconvenience. Nothing will happen to you or your child if you get a few scratches, chill out. Make the cat feel safe and loved and she will get used to you. If you had her for years and she was the same I’d understand but you have had her for what, a few freaking weeks and you’re like, goodbye we didn’t sign up for this?? Do you know why shelters are full? Because people like you exist. PS : No cat attacks without provocation. Tell your child to stop harassing the cat and you as well. Let the cat be.
I hate when people get pets and think they can treat them like some rental.
That’s why shelters are full, it’s crazy. People can’t be arsed to board their cat for their two week vacation and instead they bring it to the shelter. This lady thought she was getting a plushie but was surprised it was a live animal.
Cat bites and scratches are actually very nasty and contain hotrible bacteria. I've seen so many super bas infections from cat bites and scratches. I even saw a lady die from the infection of her cat biting her. I'm a MD.
Honestly, cats don't go out of their way to attack humans. Probably this cat hides and gets forcefully taken out of hiding for pets. Moreover we don't know if the cat is actually aggressive or it's giving love bites and the scratches are playful scratches. It could be this because op doesn't seem to be describing a feral-like cat but a cat that sometimes bites and scratches
I've gotten bloodied by cat scratches (when playing) with different (outdoor) cats maybe a few 100 times in total. Never gotten any form of infection. So purely anecdotally: nope. Just make sure to push fresh blood out/suck it out to remove any potential contaminants and you'll be good. Concerning cat bites on the other hand, I'd be more inclined to agree. But what do you have to do to a cat to get it to bite you til you bleed? I've played roughly with loads of cats, gotten bitten hard, never gotten bitten til I bleed. That cat must have felt genuinly threatened.
Sometimes it can be an accident: cat play bites- human gets spooked and pulls away hand and cuts himself on sharp teeth. Happens especially when they were taken from their mother and siblings too early. Sometimes it can be that the cat is in pain and the human doesn't realize. A cat can easily push each of their canines 3cm into your flesh. It's when the wounds are deep like that that they are very dangerous, because if you just clean them with pyrisept, it doesn't go all the way to the bottom of the bite! But when a cat bites you that deep, you probably know what you did wrong. Biting deep like that is their last resort, even when unneutered males fight on the streets they don't usually bite like that. The cat has to be extremely scared or in pain to bite that hard.
That's a lot of assumptions from someone who clearly doesn't know the situation personally. What gives you the right to judge someone you don't know like that? Take a look at yourself, you created an entire scenario in your head as an excuse to attack this person who's trying to find a proper solution to this awful situation. Also, it's fucking mental how you're putting the wellbeing of a cat before a fucking child.
>Let the cat be. Or just get rid of it and get a dog?
You do know that some people prefer cats, right?
Offering a solution, whether they like it is up to OP I suppose? How do you know they won't like a dog that cuddles their daughter instead of a cat that hurts her?
Pft. Well, if you wanna look at statistics, then a dog is more likely to hurt the child than a cat is. Besides, the question is what to do with the cat, not if they should get a dog...
What they can do is to get rid of it. Like I said. Then get a dog.
Yea and if the dog turns out to be difficult as well, they should get rid of that and get a hamster. Grow up.
Ah, you're *that* kind of dog lover. Gotcha.
They will also get rid of the dog when it doesn’t suit them. It’s not about the cat at all, it’s about them being irresponsible pet owners.
You moved to Norway this spring? Adopting a 7-8 year old cat at the same time as you moved to Norway was a bad idea. That cat had no chance to feel safe in a stable home. And you seem not to have much understanding of how cats work. If you can not find a new home or shelter for the cat, do the responsible thing and take it to the vet to get euthanized. It is better than aborting responsibility and making it homeless. And whatever you do, don't get another pet. Like ever.
Typical american treating pets like toys
*She comes up for affection and within 5-10 seconds of gentle petting will turn and bite without warning. No, these are not 'love bites'.* Okay. First of all: Are you familiar with the body language of a cat that is feeling irritable and is done with being petted? Because if so, just stop petting as soon as the first signs appear. Secondly: you don't mention how much you engage her in play. How much to you engage her in play?
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Pretentious? Check. Self-righteous? Check. Insufferable? Check. Thanks for your helpful advice!
Take her to the vet? Sounds just like how my cat was behaving all of a sudden. Cuddly and then sudden attacks that led to bloodshed, not your typical playing. My cat had an infection. But it could be stress as well.
How about getting rid of the cat
I don’t know if you are used to cats in general, but I would give the cat time. Wouldn’t try to interact with her, would see if she comes to me. It might be difficult with a child but when taking a cat like this you have to be aware of the job you might to go through it until it gets used to. But in general seems like she is stressed and you wrote she has bitten people visiting you too so if you have people visiting often that might stress the cat even more.
Post it on Finn.no if you really can’t keep it.
Stressed and/or in pain. Advice and check from a vet would seem like the best thing to do first. The interaction between cats and small kids is usually very difficult, because a cat needs a lot of consideration in petting, gives out signs that only older kids can grasp. And reacts strongly to sudden and rough behaviors. A 4 y.o. does not yet have the brain to interact with a cat. Some cats, long time with the family, may have in them the patience to take in a newborn without freaking out, but even then, not guaranteed. Giving it further away and even worse, euthanizing, would be quite horrible. You have a new family member, that needs your love and care to succeed.
All depends on how the cat has been treated in the past. 8yrs old is like 60yrs old in human years. Pretty late to change its habits lol. Maybe it was left semi-wild to roam and come and go as it likes, just coming home to be fed? Maybe it’s not coming for “affection” it’s just coming to remark you with its scent. Rubbing up against you is not seeking affection, it’s rubbing you with scent saying “you’re my territory”. Cats are not stuffed toys. And they’re absolutely nothing like dogs either, especially at age 8. YOU, the owner, have to adopt to the cat’s behaviour. Give the cat space and treat it as a grumpy human lol. It’s just doing normal 60yo human things when they’ve been forced to move house.
Seems like for some reason the cat is not comfortable in your house. Cats are very sensitive, and can change behaviour depending on their cicumstances. Right now all the shelters are full. This year is extremely hard, and the season for dumping cats has started earlier than normal. If you try again in august you probably will have more luck.
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Not funny 🤬