Behavior of Kitten

Question
Hi Jessica:
It's me again and I have a couple of questions I need your help with regarding my male feral kitten.  He is now about 11-12  weeks old.  First of all his behavior at night is totally different that day.  He   is like psycho kiity at night.  Even to thge point his tail flairs occassionally and is more aggressive.  Is this normal?  One other thing once he calms down he wants to cuddle under my neck and do this kneading, sucking and bitting thing.  We did not take him from his mother until he was at least 7-8 weeks old.  Is this a bonding thing.  I thought it was cute at first but if I push him away he get real aggressive with ears back and wants to continue with the sucking, kneading thing where I have to put him out of my bedroom.  He still continues to play bite alot and I havge tried straws, timeouts etc.  Now when I put him on a timeout in the bathroom he destroys the toilet paper and kicks the kitty litter out of his potty.  Is thos over aggression?  He is otherwise great and will follow me everywhere and will not let me oput of his sight.  If he is sleep when I leave the room when he wakes up he will come find me and if my bedroom door is shut he will sleep outside or close by until I open the door.  Hopefully this is not too bad.  Thanks for anything you can help me with.

Answer
Hi, Diane!  Hope you are enjoying your little boy.  I'll list your questions, and then the answers.

Q:  First of all his behavior at night is totally different that day. He is like psycho kiity at night. Even to thge point his tail flairs occassionally and is more aggressive. Is this normal?

A:  Yes, this is totally normal.  Cats are nocturnal creatures and are most active at night.  Usually, the twilight hours (dawn and dusk) are when they are most active, but many stay awake for the entire night.  Kittens are also more active than adults, so you'll notice this behavior even more.

Play is a form of practice - hunting practice, self-defense practice.  So during play, you will notice many of the behaviors a cat will exhibit when he's hunting or threatened.  That includes puffing up his tail, standing his back hair up, ears back, even growling with his toys.  This is all normal.  It usually lessens as the cat reaches a year or two in age.

Q:  One other thing once he calms down he wants to cuddle under my neck and do this kneading, sucking and bitting thing. We did not take him from his mother until he was at least 7-8 weeks old. Is this a bonding thing. I thought it was cute at first but if I push him away he get real aggressive with ears back and wants to continue with the sucking, kneading thing where I have to put him out of my bedroom.

A:  This is another normal behavior, and yes, it has a lot to do with bonding.  Kittens aren't quite ready to be separated from their mothers until 12 weeks old.  They nurse up until then, not really for food, but for bonding.  Between 8 and 12 weeks old, the mother will wean them very gradually.  If they're allowed to nurse intermittently until 12 weeks, you will rarely see this problem.  But if they're taken away from mama at 8 weeks, the weaning is done too abruptly, and this is why they continue to have the suckle reflex.  

I know you had no choice with this one.  If you had let him stay with his mother until 12 weeks, he would've been wild.  So all you can do is to try to manage it.  I personally recommend to allow them to play out their desire to suckle.  I find that it resolves the behavior more quickly than if you stop them.  Ear lobes and necks are favorites, but I know how sensitive that is.  You might be able to train him onto a cotton t-shirt of yours.  Then when he starts wanting to suckle, drape the t-shirt over yourself and allow him to suckle there.  Make sure the t-shirt is 100% cotton.  Synthetic materials and wool can cause a blockage if he swallows fibers.

Since I deal with ferals who are taken away from their mothers for socialization, I see this behavior a lot.  When the kittens are able to suckle, the behavior usually resolves when they are several months old.  When they aren't allowed to suckle, I find it usually lasts for a couple of years.  I generally let them suckle on me as long as they want when they're very young, and then I taper it down until it's about 15 minutes, just at bedtime.

If you really don't want him to suckle at all, you have the right idea - put him out of your bedroom.  That may be the only way you can get a moment's peace.

Q:  He still continues to play bite alot and I havge tried straws, timeouts etc. Now when I put him on a timeout in the bathroom he destroys the toilet paper and kicks the kitty litter out of his potty. Is thos over aggression?

A:  No, it doesn't sound like an aggression problem at all.  It sounds like boredom.  Of course, this is the point you're trying to teach him.  Unfortunately, all you can really do is kitty-proof the bathroom when he goes in there.  Take the toilet paper out.  Or, put him in a cat carrier for his time-out.  If he's only going on 15 or 30-minute time-outs, he should be fine without a litter box.

It sounds like he really thinks of you as his mom!  Keep up the good work.  I know training a kitten is often frustrating.  But generally, they do come around as they start to mature.  I would be surprised if you're still having problems at 6 months of age.