hates his own tail

by Judy
(Chandler, Arizona)

Riley is 2 years old, he was an orphan kitten at 2 weeks and I bottle fed him and has never changed homes since. He tends to hate his own tail, it get so bad, it sounds like a major cat fight, but it is only him fighting with his tail. It usually starts that he growls at it, the madder he gets the more it flops, the more it flops the madder he gets until he actually fights with it.. Lately he has gone through periods of over aggression, he attacks my legs and my hands and doesn't stop. I have 2 other cats that are older than him, so they have been around since I got him. He did go through one loss, but he was not even a year old. Dizzy was an older cat that kind of took him under his wing for the first few months and taught him the basics. I am at my wits end. He doesn't like me messing with his feet or touch his tail, I am unable to clip his claws so he can do some damage. Then he can be the sweetest guy, usually sleeps with me and will crawl in my lap when he wants some love, but when he doesn't want it, you aren't allowed.

To me it seems like obsessive compulsive, not sure what remedy would work best.

Any advice? Thank you.

RESPONSE:

The first thing you need to do if you haven't already is to see the vet and make sure there aren't any physical/skin issues. Just the fact that his tail is bothering him and he can't get relief is enough to make him get a bit aggressive toward you. He is trying to get rid of stress.
If he checks out fine physically, you may be dealing with what we call the "bottle fed baby cat blues"! We have noticed that kittens that lose their mother and have to be bottle fed tend to have more emotional issues than kittens that are weaned naturally from their mothers. You might want to try Crab Apple Bach Flower Essence or Obsession Remedy from Spirit Essence to help calm his urges. (Click the links on the left to learn more and to order) If things get really bad, you may need to give him some St. John's Wort, 100mg twice daily to calm him. (You can get this in liquid form which makes it easier to measure the correct does. Find it through the link "Cats House Store" on the left under natural remedies.) All of these remedies are effective to help calm anxiety and are safe for cats. Also, increase his play time and try to use distraction techniques such as a string toy when he starts going after his tail or starts becoming aggressive toward you. We keep things stashed all over the house just for this purpose! And if we have a cat with a particularly tough problem, we carry ping-pong balls, crinkle balls, etc around in our pockets to distract the cat while we race for a string toy! If nothing works and/or the behavior worsens, you may have to resort to medication. If medication becomes necessary, it may be worth your while to contact a cat behaviorist to assess the problem more in depth. In the meantime, take him to the vet, try the remedies, increase his playtime and see what happens.
Good luck and please let us know how it goes!

House Full Cats Mom