Cat aggression can be scary to watch, as your sweet little kitty swiftly transforms into a snarling, scratching hellion. This article explores feline aggression's five most frequent causes. We also look at simple ways to reduce the damage caused by cat aggression and other cat behavior problems, and how to get rid of those problems.

The most common type of cat aggression is play aggression, which occurs when your kitty uses her claws or teeth to "play" so roughly that you might mistake it for aggression directed toward you. In fact, your cat is just confused, because she has mistaken your body for a toy. To deal with this type of aggression, always use a toy to play with your cat, not your hand or other body parts.

Over-stimulation is a similar problem, in which your car will start lashing out to you as a result of having become a bit too excited. This is a simple problem to deal with by simply leaving the room and letting the cat work off his excess energy by itself when it gets a bit too aggressive. The cat's behavior should quickly return to normal. This is one of the more easily treated cat behavior problems.

As a new cat begins feeling comfortable in your home, she naturally comes to see everything and everybody in the home as belonging to her. Territorial aggression towards new people or other animals entering the home is normal, but can become a problem. To lessen your cat's unease and aggressive tendencies, introduce new people and animals slowly through a "getting to know you" phase. Offering kitty treats during this time can also help.

One of the more unusual cat behavior problems is redirected aggression, in which a cat feels aggressive toward another animal and in turn directs this anger toward you. Often, this problem can happen when your cat sees other cats through the window, feels threatened, but cannot lash out at them so targets you instead. To deal with this problem, place shades on your windows so kitty cannot see outside.

Lastly, some cats become more aggressive due to health problems. Several conditions that cause pain to cats, such as abscesses, bladder infections, and stomach difficulties, make cats irritable. Since your cat cannot tell you what is wrong with him, he becomes more aggressive. Dealing with aggressive cats should therefore involve visiting a veterinarian before doing anything else to try to achieve cat control.

The phenomena of cat aggression can be very frightening. Cats' most frequent kind of aggression is playful aggression. Cat behavior problems can also be caused by your cat having too much excitement. Most cats exhibit at least some territorial aggression. Sometimes, your cat might turn his frustrated anger towards you even though you aren't really the target of his anger. Finally, we should mention that some cats can become aggressive due to health problems. If you are dealing with aggressive cats, pay a visit to your vet before trying behavior modification, and you might find a simple way to achieve cat control.