Quiltwoman44

Help! we took in a kitten and she is about 10 months old now. neutered in May. She is still a terror, tearing up anything in her path. she has plenty of toys and I'm home to keep her company. Her last "thing" was to tear into the bottom of my sofa! Now that she has found that, there is no stopping her.
she is good and bad. at night we put her into her carrier. she sometimes sleeps in it during the day, she sleeps everywhere. stripped or striped tabby. gorgeous little ball of fire! Lucy (named for red headed Lucille Ball). sigh.
I was thinking of calming treats......?? anyone have ideas??

Three Dog Night

Instead of calming treats get feline cat pheromones calming diffusers. You can buy on Amazon, I use the Comfort Zone brand and have 2 set up one in the cat room and one in the living area. My other suggestion is she needs a friend as in another cat or kitten to keep her company. Probably didn't want to hear that last suggestion. You can also get repel spray to keep her from areas she is clawing her way through or make a mixture of white vinegar and water which when applied will deter them for awhile which is what I used so I didn't have to use chemicals. Good luck.

Onebyone

A kitten is a handful for sure. Unless supervised all the time a wild kitten will destroy fabric before you know he is doing it. I had a large sunroom with no fabric furniture so that is where my kitten lived until he calmed down. He had several different scratching posts so that is all he was use to and never bothered the furniture in the house. When he got older he usually stayed in the sunroom most of the day.

Scalloped

Get a couple cat trees.
Get scratching posts.
Two-sided tape for cats - it's 3" wide - to tape on any part of furniture sections to prevent scratching.
Several scratching posts of various materials (my cats don't like sisal rope - they prefer carpet covered posts) or the cardboard scratchers. Cardboard doesn't last as long and needs a bit more frequent replacements.
Put scratching post right up against the place on furniture that they are scratching, that you put two-sided tape on, so they scratch at post instead.
Like relocating a litterbox, you slowly move the scratching post, once they are using it regularly, away from couch spot a few inches a day towards whatever location you want it to be permanently. Or if it works for you, leave it up against the couch spot she's has been scratching.
Train by gentle running front paws down any and all of their new posts, regularly, often, many times a day.
If you catch her scratching something you don't want her to, take her to one of the scratching posts and gently run her paws down it multiple times. Put a scratching post up against anything she's going after.
Don't bring in another cat until you have this girl with better habits - they learn from each other and can pick up unwanted behaviors.
They aren't stupid. They can learn. Just takes consistency, repetition and patience.
Training a dog. Teaching a kid. Studying for a test. Repetition. Over and over and over again, until they learn the habit.
Enjoy your fur ball.

Quiltwoman44

I did the diffuser thing maybe not on this kitten though. She has a scratching post and uses it. She gets this crazy look and goes for things that come to mind to destroy. Earlier today she was inside the underside of my sofa where she tore a hole. She was asked to leave, ha, ha, and then put into her carrier. i put a stool on it's side and up in front of the carrier where she couldn't view me. five to ten minutes later she meowed to get out... for some reason, she's been much better since.
No miracles though.
I did stop by the Vet's when out today and he is to call me on Monday when back to work again. I don't want to give her too much medication so want to be sure if there is anything safe to give her regularly.
I had to unplug the floor lamp that has a glass shade. put covers on all outlets, etc. Things like that.
I have the five year old I took in staying in my bedroom. she is afraid of all things. Kittens included. I am letting her out when Lucy is in her carrier. She doesn't like to come out but it's her house and she should claim it back! Cats!
All my paintings are things she would love to take down, etc!

sewverybusy1

Don't forget to keep her claws trimmed!!!!
sewverybusy

tallchick

Are you sure she is overstressed? It sounds like she is just being a kitten;and just like humans, cats go through phases as they grow and they each have their own personalities. But the biggest question is, where are the pics of this littler terror, lol 😁.

Mkotch

She needs a buddy to be rough and tumble with. The cat tree idea is a good one, too. Some cats are climbers.

ptquilts

Not sure where you got her, but a lot of shelters won't adopt out a single kitten, has to be a pair. They keep each other company. There is something called Single Kitten Syndrome - "Single kitten syndrome is the idea that young kittens, when raised with other young kittens and cats and then adopted into a home by themselves, can become aggressive, anxious, stressed, and even develop behavioral issues like inappropriate chewing/scratching and inappropriately using the litterbox."

Quiltwoman44

yes, i gave many cardboard scratchers away. Had a mother and her two girls for long time.
Oh she is a kitten for sure. only about nine months. it's just a question which one of us will survive. She has mostly learned not to climb into the cabinet with their cat food every time I try to feed them. And better at not always dashing into the bedroom where Lady stays. Lucy (kitten in question) just needs to explore all rooms! She has destroyed so many things and i'm not used to that. But then I mainly had kittens with their mother to teach them. No huge problems ever with them.,
I will try for a photo. I took one this morning when she had her head in the water bowl, but of course she moved! She loves to dunk her toys in the water bowl and drop them in my lap!!! sigh.