Cats usually turn aggressive because of fear or pain

Dear Cathy: Why is my cat so mean? I adopted him from a shelter when he was 6 weeks old. He was so cute as a kitten, but not too friendly.

He doesn’t sleep next to me or like to be held. He was never abused. I used a spray bottle and swatted him with a newspaper to correct him at times, but that made him more aggressive. He is 16 months old and has a skin problem, so I have to put salve in his ear every day, which isn’t fun for him or me. He attacks my feet, jumps on me when I answer the phone, and has a bad attitude.

He has never been out, as I live upstairs in a condo with just a few visitors. He is afraid of others. He was mean before his skin problem, but it seems to be worse now. He has cat toys galore and access to an enclosed patio where he can look out. What else can I do? — Phyllis, Las Vegas

Dear Phyllis: Aggression is usually the result of fear or pain, or because the cat may be slightly feral. The good news is there are ways to help your cat be less aggressive.

First, you say he was mean before the skin condition. But he probably had the skin condition long before the diagnosis, and pain can make animals act aggressively. I hope the medication works because that could reduce aggressive behavior.

Second, is he fixed? I assume he is fixed because you adopted him from a shelter, but if he is not, please get him fixed immediately. Sometimes, intact animals can get aggressive when focused on mating.

Third, fear can be triggered by many things, including strangers or negative corrections, like the spray bottle or newspaper swat, which can actually increase aggression. So give him a chance to escape to other rooms when your friends arrive, and don’t use negative corrections anymore.

Try plug-in pheromones for the home, a pheromone collar for him to wear or spray-on pheromones that you can use in specific rooms or even on people. These mimic the pheromones of a mother cat, which is comforting for many felines.

If you need to interrupt bad behavior, shake a can of coins instead. Noise is a great disrupter for cats as it relies on their instincts to run away from the noise and doesn’t involve any physical contact.

There’s an old saying that a tired dog is a good dog. The same goes for cats. He sounds like he has a lot of pent-up energy. Play with him several times a day for about five to 10 minutes each time.