If your cat keeps biting your ankles, when you wake up in the morning, this post will show you likely reasons why it has been doing it and what you can do about it.
So, why does my cat bite my ankles in the morning? Likely reasons why your cat bites your ankles in the morning are that it naturally has more energy in the morning or that it wants something from you such as food.
There are actually a number of possible reasons why your cat bites your ankles in the morning and it might be due to a combination of them. However, there are some things you can consider when figuring out the main cause and there are some things you can do about it.
Reasons why your cat bites your ankles in the morning
Below are likely causes and what would make them more likely.
Nature
In the wild, cats are often lively in the late evening and early morning. Even though your kitty might spend a lot of its time sleeping or lounging around during the day, its internal “clock” tells it when to be active, and the early morning is the prime time for it to be on the prowl.
The reason why your cat goes after your ankles in the morning is most likely to be that it naturally has a lot more energy at that time and naturally wants to hunt things. This would be more likely if your cat also does things such as run around a lot and play with things in the morning and if your cat chases your ankles when you are moving around.
It wants something from you
Another likely reason is that your cat wants something from you and your cat is trying to remind you to give it to it. Wanting something from you would be more likely if your cat tends to bite your ankles more before you have given it food it in the morning. It would also be more likely if it does it on weekends when you get up later than usual.
It is anxious
The cause might also be that something has been causing your cat to be anxious. This would be more likely if grabs your ankles it more when there are loud noises inside or other pets around that it does not like.
It wants attention
It could also be the case that your cat pounces on your ankles for attention and it has learned that the behavior results in you giving it attention. This would be more likely if your cat does not sleep in the same room as you and it tends to do it when it first sees you in the morning. It would also be more likely if you tend to give your cat more attention when it bites your ankles.
Things to consider
Below are a number of things to consider to help figure out the main cause.
If your cat has always bitten your ankles in the morning
If your cat did not always bite your ankles, it would help to consider what else happened when it first started doing it. If your cat started doing it suddenly, it could be due to things such as a change in the way you interact with it in the morning; which would be more likely if it does not only bite your ankles, a change in the time you feed it or a change in its environment.
What is different when your cat does not bite your ankles in the morning
If your cat tends to bite your ankles more at a certain time, in the morning, it would also help to consider what is different about the timing. For example, if your cat tends to bite them more on the weekend, the cause could be that it is expecting you to get up at the same time you do during the week.
What to do about your cat biting your ankles in the morning
Below are some things you can do to get your cat to stop biting your ankles in the morning.
Give it distractions
A partial solution would be to give your cat things to be distracted by such as toys. This would be more helpful if your cat tends to be very energetic in the morning and if your cat tends to do things such as chase your feet.
Feed it sooner and give it access to water
If it seems like your cat might be biting your ankles because it is trying to get you to get up and feed it, it would likely help to feed it and give it access to water as soon as you get up instead of making it wait.
Avoid encouraging it
It would also help to avoid giving your cat things such as extra attention when it does bite your ankles since your cat might have learned that the behavior is rewarded. Instead, it would help to move your cat somewhere else, when it bites your ankles, and to give it attention when it is behaving the way you want.