Does your cat stalk you? Does she lurk behind corners just waiting to leap out at you and swat you as you walk by? This kind of behavior is normal for cats. They’re predators, and catering to your kitty’s predatory whims can be a lot of fun!

But sometimes things get out of hand. Play aggression can become a big cat behavior problem very quickly.

Cat play aggression is the most common form of aggression cats show towards their owners. If your cat is bored, underexercised, and lonely, she can become overstimulated when you play with her, and start biting and clawing you for real.

And of course, if your cat bites or scratches you when you play with her, you’re less likely to play with her again. It’s a vicious cycle; your kitty is play-aggressive because she’s not getting enough stimulating, interactive play time. Because she does this every time you play with her, you’re less likely to play with her. She gets more bored and has more pent-up energy, and…see where this is going?

How can you avoid this? And more to the point, how can you change it if your feline is already showing cat play aggression?

Understanding Cat Behavior

Cats have two ways of playing. Social (interactive) play is directed towards people and other cats. Solitary play is directed towards things like paper bags, wadded-up paper balls, and cat toys that move when she bats them.

Cat play aggression is often a part of both of these ways of playing, but it usually only becomes a problem when people are getting chewed on or scratched.

What Causes Cat Play Aggression?

Most kitties have way too much energy stored up, usually because your cat isn’t getting enough exercise to burn it off. Another reason is that mommy or daddy isn’t paying enough attention to his or her kitty-girl or boy. Too much energy leads to your feline getting a little too wild and crazy when you play with her.

Cats play by pretending to be a predator. Stalking, pouncing, biting and clawing are all parts of a cat’s predatory nature, and they do all these things when they play. However, if your cat is overstimulated, this normal predatory play is intensified. Instead of playfully mouthing your hand, she bites you - hard! When she swats at you, her claws are out instead of being sheathed. Ouch!

Feline Body Language Is A Tip-Off For Feline Aggression

Pay attention to your feline’s body language and facial expressions to monitor whether cat play aggression is about to happen.

Normal, non-aggressive feline play behavior includes the ‘play face’, with a half-open mouth and heavily lidded eyes; the sideways hop (often with arched back); and a lightly switching tail (it’s going from side to side, but slowly and gently.)

When your cat’s getting too revved-up, her feline body language will alter dramatically. Her ears will go back, her tail will start lashing violently from side to side, and her pupils will enlarge. Her movements will also become significantly more vigorous and energetic: there’ll be increased speed and force to her playing.

Tips For Dealing With An Out-Of-Control Cat

If you think your cat’s getting overexcited, the best thing you can do is to stand up and walk away – before she actually starts to become aggressive toward you! You can start playing with her again as soon as she’s calmed down a little; the idea is to intervene before she has the chance to vent her energy on you.

If it’s too late for this and she’s already started to bite or scratch at you, don’t reward her with attention – not even negative attention. Simply stand up and walk away. Leave the room, if necessary.

At this point, she will most likely try to initiate play with you again. When she does, don’t respond – play initiation is dominant behavior, and if you give in to her, she’ll learn that bothering you for attention results in her getting her own way.

If she’s particularly persistent, or the aggressive cat behavior is becoming hard to deal with, you can isolate her in a room by herself until she’s calm (which can take anywhere from five to twenty minutes.)

Cat Behavior Advice

Remember, your cat isn’t really trying to ‘attack’ you – cats just want to have fun, after all. She just has to learn that feline aggression isn’t going to result in a fun play session for her. Consistency is the key here. Don’t reward cat play aggression with attention sometimes, while ignoring this kinds of cat behavior at other times. You’ll only confuse your cat, and she won’t learn to curb her aggressive behavior.

Don’t ever use physical punishment to correct play aggression. There are two reasons for this:

1. If you actually hurt your cat, this will result in increased aggression on her behalf.
2. Even if it doesn’t hurt, it’s still going to scare her. This results in her avoiding you, which starts a general deterioration of your relationship.

Since play aggression is almost always due to boredom and too much energy, the best thing you can do is to provide lots of opportunities for stimulating, interactive play with your cat. Try to make it aerobic exercise: get her running around, chasing things, climbing, pouncing, and so on.

Make sure the play is on your terms. Don’t allow your cat to initiate play – this is habit-forming, and teaches her that you can be manipulated.

If you find it difficult to make the time to play with your cat, scheduling in a couple of set ten-minute playtimes each day might help. Pay attention to your cat’s circadian rhythms - watch to see when she’s the most active during the day or evening. Play with her when she’s wide-awake and raring to go. She’ll get more out of it.

Cats are predators. Their play is instinctively based around behaviors that will increase their ability to hunt. Because of this, cats prefer toys that resemble prey – that is, small, mobile objects that move.

Ping-pong balls, crumpled-up paper, cardboard boxes, and scratching posts are great for solitary play. For interactive play, a kitty fishing reel you can cast out for her, cat dancers (like a mobile which you dangle and jerk around for your cat to play with), wands, and anything that rolls are lots of fun for her. I knew someone who used to play with his cat with a retractable tape measure. The cat loved to chase it as it rolled itself back into the case.

Rig up an obstacle course for her, if possible. Climbing on branches, shelves, and other things is great exercise for her, plus it uses up some of that excess energy. Try hiding small treats in different places to encourage her to climb around if she’s not into exercise.

Feline aggression can become a big problem. But if you follow this cat behavior advice, you can change your aggressive cat into one you’ll enjoy playing with.