Cats have won the popularity contest. More people now have cats in their homes as pets than any other pet. Cats are unique animals. They can be funny, mysterious and cuddly. They can also be perplexing. Accepting up front that you have a tiger in the house can go a long way toward understanding cat behavior problems.

While they have been domesticated for thousands of years, feline behavior is not really all that different than the behavior of a tiger or lion or other cat in the wild. Certain instinctive predator behavior still exists in our scaled down kitties, and many of what we see as cat behavior problems are really just how their brains are hard wired for a life the no longer lead.

If you have raised a kitten, or more than one kitten, you will undoubtedly notice that kittens become aggressive in their play when they are active. Doing this helps them learn skills that would help them catch prey in the wild to survive. With indoor cats, however, you should teach them to channel these aggressive instincts into acceptable forms, so they do not try to bite your fingers or toes!

Remember to provide appealing toys for your kitten, especially tools that are tempting to bite and chase. Kittens offend grasp a toy with their front paws and use their back legs to scratch the toy, which puts on an entertaining display for observers as well as gives the kitten vigorous exercise. Toy mice with a furry texture entice kittens to jump and chew them. Nearly grown kittens and adult cats may respond more actively to toys containing catnip; however, not all cats are affected by catnip and some kittens may require a few weeks of exposure to feel the effects.

When the cat is engaging in this play, you need to set limits and teach the cat not to bite, scratch or chew humans, or anything else that is off limits. Never hit a cat, as this will cause more cat behavior problems instead of stopping them. It destroys trust between you and the pet and may make the cat more aggressive and angry. A sharp "No!" followed by removing the cat from the situation or offering something appropriate is the way to go, and always reward obedience with "Good kitty!" and sometimes treats.

Cats naturally control the growth of their claws by scratching trees and other rough surfaces, another instinct behavior. To make sure they don't treat furniture or carpet as an indoor substitute, you need to provide cat scratchers for them to use instead. Catnip or catnip sprays can help lure the cat to use these at first, but many catch on easily. You can make your own from scrap wood and carpet scraps, or even strips of cardboard crammed sideways in a box, or buy them at any pet shop. Some types hang from doorknobs as well.