Cats are very playful animals, and you can never quite predict their personality or what they will do next. Maybe one second they are licking you asking for petting, and the next second they jump up to scratch and bite you. Being scratched or bitten by a cat is very common. Some cats bite without any restraint and can cause bleeding, so how should owners improve their cat’s biting behavior?

　　It is very normal for cats to bite. Cats’ nature is to hunt small animals, and kittens must develop their survival skills through play. If a kitten has no companions of its own kind, it will turn its play target to humans. People often tease kittens with their hands during play, which causes kittens to treat human hands as imaginary enemies. During play, kittens sometimes get carried away, resulting in sudden biting behavior.

　　Therefore, when playing with kittens, we must keep things moderate and not play too roughly. It is important to stop any rough actions in time and strictly scold them for bad behavior. Patient and long-term training can correct the kitten’s sudden biting behavior.

　　Methods to correct cats’ biting behavior:

　　1. Reduce stress

　　Stress may be the fundamental cause of many behavioral problems, including attacking the owner. When cats are in a tense state, almost all types of aggression may worsen. Stress comes from changes in the environment, causing cats to feel uneasy and nervous. Each cat reacts differently. Do not punish the cat for its aggressive behavior! Punishing the cat may increase stress and make it more aggressive.

　　2. Consult experts

　　Sometimes cats’ aggressive behavior is a very serious problem. If you feel that the situation is out of control, immediately contact a veterinarian and ask them to help consult a feline behavior expert.

　　3. Medication treatment

　　Your veterinarian or animal behavior expert may suggest medication to deal with an aggressive cat, especially when the aggression is not caused by illness. This is a common approach adopted by animal behavior specialists.

　　What to do if bitten by a cat?

　　1. First, assess the bite wound. If there is no bleeding and only superficial skin damage, just rinse it gently, clean it with Dettol or Walch hand sanitizer, and apply some Bepanthen or terramycin, erythromycin eye ointment on the wound.

　　2. If the bite causes bleeding, immediately rinse thoroughly with plenty of water while squeezing out the cat’s saliva from the wound. Repeatedly apply alkaline soap and rinse repeatedly until the wound turns white. Don’t be afraid of pain—the deeper and more thorough the cleaning, the better (about 20-30 minutes). Then apply iodine on the wound.

　　3. If you are definitely bitten by a rabid cat or stray cat, you must get vaccinated, including tetanus antitoxin injection. Generally, for cats kept at home long-term, if the wound is treated as in step 2, vaccinations are usually not necessary. However, if the bite is on the face, limbs close to the central nervous system, or particularly severe, vaccination is still recommended.