Even the sweetest, most docile cats can have their naughty moments. Here are some tips on what do when your good cat goes bad.

To live in harmony with your cat or kitten, it is essential to understand the organization of her territory, pace of life and basic preoccupations. Once her territory is defined, organized and marked out, your cat will spend most of the time sleeping. And when she’s not sleeping, her main occupations will be playing, hunting, eating and cuddling.

The cat organizes her life inside your home around four different areas. You must respect this organization, without ever disturbing it at the risk of causing certain behavioral problems:

1. Eating area: This must be distant from its toilet area (litter tray) and from your own eating area. Avoid your kitchen or your dining room so that your cat does not confuse your plate with its dish and therefore come and sample your meal. This could lead to a nutritional imbalance.
2. Rest area: This position will change in line with the sun and heat sources that are sought in priority by your cat (radiator, near the fireplace, sunny window, etc.). It is in one of these places that you should place her sleeping basket, knowing that it should not be too far from your living area, as being close to you is always important.
3. Toilet area: This must be a place that is always easily accessible by your cat, away from her dish and from your living area. A room used infrequently or a corner away from people passing will help you to avoid annoyances.
4. Play area: This is the biggest area and is the place for living and relaxing. It must be conducive to playing, to racing about, to climbing up high (tables, cupboards, shelves, back of furniture, etc.). Being at the same height as her owner's face or any other family member fills your kitten with joy. It can rub against you, as with an equal.

This is the number one complaint of cat owners, and a top reason why cats get surrendered to shelters or rescue groups. Unfortunately, you can’t make a cat use her litter box. To solve the problem, you have to first figure out what is the problem, and then make adjustments in your litter box management.

Litter box issue #1: Medical problems.
Cats with medical problems commonly begin eliminating outside of their litter box because they begin to associate the litter box with a painful symptom caused by the illness. So the first step is always a trip to the veterinarian to rule out any medical issues.

Litter box issue #2: She just doesn’t like it anymore.
For whatever reason, your cat may have decided her litter box is an unpleasant place to eliminate. Here’s what to do:

1. Keep the litter box extremely clean.
2. Scoop it at least once a day and change the litter completely every four to five days.
3. Add a new box in a different location, and use a different type of litter in the new box.
4. Make sure that the litter box isn't near a noisy appliance, or in an area of the home that your cat doesn't frequent.
5. If you have multiple cats, provide one litter box for each cat, plus one extra box in a different location.

Whether it’s to tell you to stop petting, start playing or just that they’re afraid, some cats use their teeth to do the talking. Feline aggression should be taken very seriously and, therefore, requires professional help – either through your veterinarian or a behaviorist.

It’s important not to punish the aggressive cat because punishment can make the problem worse, especially if the aggression is caused by fear.

By nature, cats need to scratch. It helps remove the dead outer layer of the claws and lets them mark their territory. Preventing your cat from scratching isn’t really an option, but redirecting their scratching to an appropriate object is.

Start by covering the inappropriate object with something unpleasant, such as duct tape sticky side out or the pointy side of a plastic carpet runner. Then place a more appropriate object right next to it. Choose a scratching post based on your cat’s scratching preferences, and encourage your cat to use it.

Once your cat has started using the appropriate post, you can move it gradually to your desired location. Only after your cat has successfully used the new scratching post for a length of time can you remove the coverings from the inappropriate object.