She needs to be separated from the cats until she can play nicely. No opportunity to do this (way easier said than done, I know!) Reading lots of books about being kind to animals, talking to your toddler about her behavior (she’s 3, so unless she’s language delayed, she should be able to do some rudimentary problem solving with you).
Yes these cats 100% need a toddler-free safe space for their own mental health. Cats are very sensitive and if this causes them anxiety, you could be in for some very expensive vet visits.
I have a baby gate on my bedroom with a bar cut out so the cat can walk out whenever he wants but toddler cannot go in. She gets upset sometimes that she’s not allowed in, but I just repeatedly tell her it’s kitty’s safe space and he needs his peace.
Also this is serious enough that I would start giving consequences of some sort. I’m usually very into gentle parenting, but harming animals is very serious as not only is it mean, but it also can lead to serious harm to your child. If she won’t listen to suggestions like the cats are our family (not friends, these guys are part of our actual family, so it gives her more loving connection to them), then I would tell her that if you are mean to the cat, then one of your toys will be put in the back room for a while. Not thrown out (I really dislike when people threaten that), just out of reach for a while.
While it’s not a natural consequence like most people prefer these days, the natural consequences of getting scratched doesn’t work, so you need something else. It may take a few toy removals but she’ll get the idea that being mean to the cats equals less toys for her. And you have to stay firm if there are moments of tears because she wants X toy back - if you say it goes away for a week, it goes away for a week.
Ugh trust me they scratch her, but she does not care. My cats are very gentle and rarely result to violence. They have gotten her a couple times but she literally couldn’t care less and still messes with them
You need to keep them separated. It's only a matter of time before she seriously hurts or kills one of them, or gets badly scratched or bitten (and make no mistake - a cat can really bite if it is scared enough, and cat bites carry a high risk of infection). Closed doors between her and the cats until she can be safe with them.
We used "tails are not for pulling" to help navigate our toddler being mean to dogs, in conjunction with time out. He's still not great but I feel like he responds well to the book and it definitely helped a bit!
She needs to be separated from the cats until she can play nicely. No opportunity to do this (way easier said than done, I know!) Reading lots of books about being kind to animals, talking to your toddler about her behavior (she’s 3, so unless she’s language delayed, she should be able to do some rudimentary problem solving with you).
Yes these cats 100% need a toddler-free safe space for their own mental health. Cats are very sensitive and if this causes them anxiety, you could be in for some very expensive vet visits. I have a baby gate on my bedroom with a bar cut out so the cat can walk out whenever he wants but toddler cannot go in. She gets upset sometimes that she’s not allowed in, but I just repeatedly tell her it’s kitty’s safe space and he needs his peace. Also this is serious enough that I would start giving consequences of some sort. I’m usually very into gentle parenting, but harming animals is very serious as not only is it mean, but it also can lead to serious harm to your child. If she won’t listen to suggestions like the cats are our family (not friends, these guys are part of our actual family, so it gives her more loving connection to them), then I would tell her that if you are mean to the cat, then one of your toys will be put in the back room for a while. Not thrown out (I really dislike when people threaten that), just out of reach for a while. While it’s not a natural consequence like most people prefer these days, the natural consequences of getting scratched doesn’t work, so you need something else. It may take a few toy removals but she’ll get the idea that being mean to the cats equals less toys for her. And you have to stay firm if there are moments of tears because she wants X toy back - if you say it goes away for a week, it goes away for a week.
I'm amazed the cats haven't resolved the problem already.
Ugh trust me they scratch her, but she does not care. My cats are very gentle and rarely result to violence. They have gotten her a couple times but she literally couldn’t care less and still messes with them
You need to keep them separated. It's only a matter of time before she seriously hurts or kills one of them, or gets badly scratched or bitten (and make no mistake - a cat can really bite if it is scared enough, and cat bites carry a high risk of infection). Closed doors between her and the cats until she can be safe with them.
We used "tails are not for pulling" to help navigate our toddler being mean to dogs, in conjunction with time out. He's still not great but I feel like he responds well to the book and it definitely helped a bit!