Why does my kitten knead and put her mouth to the blanket?

Question

Ok, i have a 5 month old female kitten. I've noticed something strange. I have a soft blanket which my friend usually sleeps under, and whenever she's sleeping under it, my kitten wanders onto a flat part (not on my friend) and sleeps/lays down. Just a little bit ago, i found her pawing at it, almost kneading it with her mouth to it. I couldn't tell if she was sucking on it or what. Is she looking for her momma's nipples? Or what? She was also just spayed a few days ago, if that has anything to do with it. Thanks!

Oh, and yes, i constantly show her love and such. I've turned her into quite the affection monger. And also, she was taken from her mother quite soon, her mother was abandoned and pregnant and the humane society took her in and that night she had her kittens, they weren't with her that long, I think. We got her at almost 8 weeks.

Answer 1

This is an old habbit from when your kitten nursed on her mother. Spaying her has nothing to do with it..

The reason why she does it to this blanket is because it is soft and reminds her of her mother's fur..

Also when a kitten kneads you it means that she thinks of you as her mother. When she licks you it means she is cleaning you and thinks of you as her companion..

This is a very normal behavior for cats. Two of my female cats do this as well..One will just knead a soft blanket or me..and the other has her own fake fur blanket that she suckles on and kneads and then falls right to sleep with a piece of the fur in her mouth.

I dont think this is how your kitten is marking its territory..Cats mark their territory by scent glands..They will rub their face or side of their mouth against you marking you as theirs..and when they rub their sides up against your legs this is also marking you as well...And of course there is spraying too *This is the main way they mark their territory and its usually to warn other cats.

Your kitten will more than likely do this for the rest of her life...She isn't too old to be doing this...And I dont think that it always means that they were taken from their mother too early because Miss Kitty had a liter of kittens..and two of them even when they stopped nursing still suckled on certain soft items and kneaded them..

This all basicaly means that she loves you and is very affectionate towards you and obviously recieves it back.

Answer 2

Why Does A Cat Knead

Answer 3

I hear this question a lot.

Yes your cat was kneading the soft blanket. Some cats do this. It's comforting for them bringing back the old days with mom. This is normal behavior.

My sisters cat does the same thing and he's 6 or7 years old. If there isn't a soft blanket around then my sister service's as a soft blanket. Gets to be a "picky" situation. Needless to say this doesn't last long if my sister is used as a soft blanket.

It's "I'm happy to be with you" and "I's comforting." So you must be doing everything right for you kitty.

Have fun with your friend and you kitty.

Answer 4

It is nursing behavior, but I'm not really sure why some cats do it or why other cats don't. My cat, who was abandoned on my friend's doorstep at about 6 months of age, has never acted that way and she's been with us for about 8 months. She doesn't knead at all or even like to cuddle, and only likes petting for brief amounts of time. She's just not into touching really (though she'll get into bed with me sometimes and sort of butt-up against me, but I wouldn't call that snuggling really).

On the other hand in my old neighborhood there was an outdoor cat, I don't even know for sure who it belonged to, who was very loving and just crazy about me for a few years (I have no idea how old it was, but I'm guessing under 2 years old). This was before we got our cat. I'd sometimes sit down on my front porch (where it would sit and wait for me) and it would climb into my lap and eventually settle down, knead my leg and try to "nurse" on my pants fabric...leaving little drool spots and everything. I don't know what this strange cat saw in me, but I found it very sweet.

Answer 5

This is very normal cat behavior. Some cats will even suck the blanket, too. One of my cats does this on a bathrobe of mine. My sister's cat is 11 years old and sucks on her hand while kneading on...her! (And he's comfortable enough with me to do it on me when I come to visit, even though he hasn't seen me in 2 years, as she lives out of state. This cat remembers me! Slurrrp Slurrrrp...Yike!) Some 'cat experts' will tell you that when a cat does this it's because they were taken away from their mother too young. I don't know if it's true, because my Sunni wasn't weaned too young, but she's still the worst kind of bathrobe offender. At any rate, I wouldn't worry about it. It's actually kind of cute. Just let her do her thing, and all will be well.

Answer 6

You already answered your own question.
The fact that she was taken from her mother to soon is why she does this.
There is nothing you can do to stop it. I have a cat that is 10 yrs old and she is still kneading on everything but the sucking stopped.
I also have a male cat 16 yrs old who does this but only on certain soft stuffed animals, I remove the items he does this on, because he eventually starts humping the animals!

Answer 7

Cats knead and scratch because they release pheremones from the pads on their paws, they are marking their territory. They put their mouths to it often because they simply like the feel against their noses, as cats noses are hyper sensitive. If the blanket has a certain smell she may be attracted to it though.

Answer 8

its a comfort thing
when a kitten is drinking from there mum they will knead at their mum tummy to stimulate the milk supply.
my cat is 6 yrs old and when shes feeling all cuddly and wants to be nursed and patted she does the same thing on my lap. this behavior is normal for kittens and affectionate cats

Answer 9

i am with Simmychick as I once had an ear sucking cat. never bit just kind of a gentle gnawing. if you were very tjcklish though she would stop as she knew it was a nuisance and would lay in your lapm asking for forgiveness. its just a thing some cats do.
remember the cartoon with the kitten that loked to do that to the big dog?

Answer 10

You got it exactly right. It's the nursing instinct. I doubt the spaying has anything to do with it. 5 months seems a little old for that behavior, though; it's the equivalent of sucking your thumb at 5 years. Is she getting enough love and attention?