I need serious help!

[ILuvVille]

I own a 7 month old tabby cat named Ville. I love him to pieces but I am at the end of my rope. I need some advice as to what I should do. My cat can be a very loving little lap kitty, content to sit and purr for hours, however, he also can be extremely aggresive, and leaves bites and stratches from head to toe, literally. He will either attack me, or climb me by my clothes. He has climbed up my pants, up my t-shirt, and up my scalp, all while I'm trying not to cry from the pain of a ton of stratches and trying to not hurt him. I don't want to get him declawed, but I don't know what else to do, I have tried telling him no, squirting water, hissing at him, and scruffing him like a mother cat. He also vomits all over the carpet, at least once a week, sometimes stopping for a few weeks and starting again. WHAT CAN I DO?!?!?

[silverbook]

Has he been neutered? If not, having it done should reduce the aggressive behavior. It also reduces health problems and can prevent spraying.

Do not declaw him. There are other solutions in dealing with claw problems. Trimming and using nail caps can work wonders.

One of the best ways to discipline is to ignore him. Don't touch him or speak him.

Also when you play with him do not use your hands. Use a toy instead.

[ILuvVille]

yeah, supposedly he is fixed. We got him from Petsmart, and the shelter people said they don't put cats up for adoption that aren't fixed, the vet also said he is fixed. But, he is still aggressive. We also trim his nails regularly, we don't want to declaw him, we personally think it is wrong, but I am tired of having claw marks all over my body and having to wear pants and long sleeve tops to cover up, especially since I live in Fl. He also has a bad habit of climbing on the counters and tables to get human food, even though we don't let him eat it, and has even flipped our plates off the table in attempt to get into the food. We don't know what to do about his behavoiral issues. We'll try the ignoring him trick, but I'm not to sure it will work!

[silverbook]

Try nail caps. They do sell them in a kitten size. Some pet stores do sell them or you can try softpaws.com

As for counters many cats dislike aluminum foil so if you lay some out on the counters and tables, he may stop getting on them. Many cats also dislike the smell of citrus. So having that scent on areas that you don't want him on may help. Make sure whatever you get is something that that he cannot eat.

[Punkygirl0101]

Also, about the vomiting.. That could be you are not feeding a good quality food. Throwing up once in a while is not too much to worry about, but once a week..there is a problem.

[bubblz]

I had a cat that wouldn't respond to squirt bottles at all and my vet said to put a very small amount of vinagar in the bottle. Cat's are neat freaks and hate the smell on their coat. it helped.
also if the tin foil doesn't help cat's hate sticky stuff like tape loops on a paper in the area you don't want the cat to go.
Please don't declaw your cat. It can cause soooo many problems for the cat......You should totally read into it a lot further and I doubt you'll still consider it.
The nail caps work WONDERS. Personally I had they put on my cat by my vet the first time, then I found a groomer who did them cheaper.

[maherwoman]

Have you had him checked out in regards to the vomitting. Sometimes a change in behaviour can indicate a health problem. I would recommend taking him to the vet quite soon.

Let us know how it goes! :)