Why Does My Cat Keep Biting Me?

Yes, cats have teeth and you better believe that they’ll use them for purposes other than eating their food from time to time. If you go to pet your cat and it bites you, it may be due to a number of reasons.

So, why does my cat keep biting me? For the most part, a cat biting you is nothing serious and they often won’t give it full power, but it can still be a bit annoying. Let’s take a closer look.

Overstimulation During Play

One of the most common reasons why your cat may bite you is due to overstimulation. This usually only happens when you are playing with the cat.

Typically, the cat will start with normal play, but if you play for a long time, and especially if you play aggressively and get the cat riled up, it may start to play more aggressively too. Simply put, cats get riled up and take things a little too far.

This has nothing to do with aggression or a lack of love for you. They’re just overstimulated. It’s a sign that you need to stop playing and take things back down to a calmer level.

Touching the Wrong Spot

This is really going to depend on the cat in question, as every cat is different. That being said, most cats have certain spots where they don’t like to be touched.

Some cats hate it when you rub their bellies and others may not like it when you touch their backs. If you notice that your cat keeps biting you when you touch it on a certain spot, it’s a clear signal that you should stop touching it in that spot and change your approach to handling it overall.

Cats need to tell you what they do and don’t like, which is sometimes done with the use of teeth.

Pure Instinct

House cats may be domesticated, but they did start off as wild animals, albeit thousands of years ago. The point here is that cats are cats, whether they are playing or hunting, biting is a natural thing for cats to do.

If your cat gives you a little bite on the hand, it might just be some of its underlying wildness popping through its otherwise domesticated exterior. Simply put, cats might bite you from time to time for no other reason than because they are cats.

It’s Angry

Just like human beings, cats can get ticked off. Maybe you forgot to feed them, maybe you aren’t giving them enough attention, maybe you haven’t cleaned out the litter box for some time, or maybe you keep picking the cat up when it doesn’t want to be picked up.

Whatever the case, cats can get angry. Therefore, try to take note of when the cat bites you and try to see if it might have something to do with the way you treat it and care for it. Cats have emotions and they will express them.

Biting Out of Fear

This is usually quite rare, especially with cats that raised from birth in good homes with caring owners. That said, some cats have issues with fear. Maybe you adopted a cat from a home where it was not treated right. Maybe the cat has had a traumatic experience. Maybe you just have a fearful cat.

The point is that biting is a natural defense mechanism for a cat. A cornered cat is a cat that will bite and scratch its way out of perceived danger. If you suspect this to be the case, try to be a bit gentler and more patient with the cat.

Love Bites

If your cat nips at your hands, it may be nothing more than a little love bite. No, of course aggression is not usually a sign of love. However, a cat that bites your hand gently is not being aggressive, just loving.

Your cat is just telling you “hey, I’m here, and I love you.” A strong bite that draws blood is not a love bite. You can easily tell for yourself what qualifies as a love bite.

Asserting Dominance

Cats are territorial creatures that like to be the dominant force in any household. If your cat bites you hard, especially during play, when you go to pick it up, or if you do something it does not appreciate, a bite may be a sign that your cat is trying to assert its dominance. This is natural and it’s something which most cats will do from time to time.

Conclusion

If you own a cat, chances are that you will get bit at one point or another, although, for the most part, cats won’t bite you that hard. If they do bite you hard enough to cause serious damage, you need to take care of the underlying issues.