Coping With Feline Aggression

I have a 3 and a half year old male cat. I adopted him and his sister from the humane society when they were 4 mths old. I had to put his sister down when she was 1 year and a half due to deteriorating health from cancer. She was always the affectionate one, not him.

For about the last year and a half, he every now and then just flies off the handle… I’ll be sitting at the computer desk and he’ll jump on my back or when I walk by him in a room, he’ll jump out at me. Of course this startles me and I yell! I know this probably is not a good thing to do, but when you are freaked out - you don’t think before you react! Then he gets his back up and is more aggressive than before!

Other times, he’s sweet as pie, but I don’t want to confuse him by giving him treats for the good behavior when he may think he’s getting it for bad behavior.

He also has a terrible, terrible habit of knocking things that aren’t bolted down off a counter, table, desk, etc. He pretty much prefers cups with liquid in it!! But every day I come home and there is something on the floor that shouldn’t be there.

I’m worried as I will be having children in the near future and really don’t want to have to get rid of him because of his aggression, but if it comes to my cat or my baby - cat goes!

Please help me!