Why Do Cats Play Bite When You Pet Them

Engaging in play with your fur baby is a terrific bonding experience but if your cat s playfulness turns aggressive they ll bite you or perhaps use your entire arm as a chew toy.

Why do cats play bite when you pet them. It s a controversial topic in the feline behavior world but many believe it s simply due to overstimulation. Cats play in a way that involves typical predatory and play behaviors notes the aspca. So why do cats do this. Repetitive petting can cause your cat to become overly excited and trigger an arousal based bite.

If the petting continues despite the cat s efforts to signal that he or she is done with being petted the cat may escalate to a bite says dr. It is also possible if not likely that your cat bites or claws you when you pet them because you haven t accurately read their signs. When cats bite in this context it s not a sign of affection but rather a signal that the cat is done with the interaction. The term love bite is somewhat of a misnomer.

Typically a friendly cat seeks out human attention only to turn on his lavisher of attention once the affection seems to have gone on for too long. Stalking attacking clawing and biting their perceived opponent. There isn t much research on why cats engage in love biting. A cat love bite can.

Petting induced aggression and it s a poorly understood topic. Many pet owners call this common behavior love biting but feline behaviorists have given it a more formal name. These bites when we pet our cat is a small warning simply telling us that we don t want to be touched. The base of the tail is a sensory overload spot for cats and may quickly get you bitten should you pet that area.