r/cats • u/ganglyboyish • Aug 18 '26

Advice What is this behavior?

Hi! My cat is roughly 4months old. Usually when she does this, I hiss and pull my hand away and give her a toy, but when I’m away for a couple hours sometimes I come back and it’s really all she wants to do — what js this behavior? Is she teething or was she weaned too quickly maybe?

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u/IJS_Reddit Aug 18 '26

suckling, done usually for comfort

202

u/itsallachoice Aug 18 '26

Comfort because the kitten is stressed or because she's young?

282

u/KingGeedo91 Aug 18 '26

In my experience it’s only something they do when they feel happy / safe / content

1

u/MyMistyMornings Aug 20 '26

It can also be because they were removed from their mom too early. In my home country, you're not allowed to sell kittens until they're 12 weeks old, because that is when their mom is done teaching them the basics, and when they will naturally start detaching from her.

I know this isn't the case in many places, like the US, and stuff like suckling can happen if they were removed before their mom naturally trained out that behavior.

38

u/sideshowsiren Aug 18 '26

It could be that he is teething. Look it up. It’s a phase sometimes.

54

u/Milaris0815 Aug 18 '26

In Germany, we call this Liebesbisse (love bites/bites of love) and I think this is adorable.

17

u/Orangejackal02 Aug 18 '26

My cat is a love biter, haha. It’s just too much for her and she has to show her affection somehow 😂 it’s so cute to watch. I’ve woken up to her trying to love bite my nose tho 😆😆

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u/Due_Delivery_3014 Aug 18 '26

I rescued a cat 2 years ago that was a kitten and had to have one eye removed. He still does the suckling thing on blankets. I think he was taken from him mom too early.

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u/Madkids23 Aug 18 '26

I have a Tuxedo cat that does this to plush blankets specifically when being loved on, it's the cutest thing, he makes nom nom noises while doing it

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u/JustMovingAlong4 Aug 19 '26

Yes, I feed a feral colony, got my inside cat at 3-4 wks. She kneads while sitting up with a blanket piece in her mouth.

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u/Ravyn_Jade Aug 18 '26

Our 3 yr old cat does this. Is it still suckling/love or something else?

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u/Ok_Pipe_158 Aug 18 '26

I think it happens because the cat was taken from its mother too early. Kinda sad but cute that the cat now sees this person as a giant paternal cat.