Why Do Kittens Knead You

Cats start to knead as kittens while nursing from their mother.

Why do kittens knead you. Kneading on a blanket is comforting and anxiety reducing for a kitty again same as a human child sucking on his or her thumb. Kneading can also signal a form of territorial marking. The most oft repeated explanation states that kneading is a leftover behavior from kittenhood. Their ancestors did this with tall grass or leaves.

Kittens knead their mothers to stimulate milk production for nursing and as petmd explains even though kneading a soft surface doesn t yield milk adult cats forever associate the motion of kneading with the rewarding comfort of nursing. This can involve claws. Unspayed female cats often knead just before going into heat as a sign of their eagerness to mate. It s an ingrained habit from their childhood they would knead on a blanket in the same way a human child would suck on his or her thumb.

Cats begin kneading instinctually as kittens when they are nursing to help stimulate their mothers milk. Though your cat may be long past nursing age they might still enjoy the comforting sensation of being close to a protective figure they associate with kneading. One of the most widely held beliefs is that domesticated cats retain their kitten instincts. Because the pads of your cat s paws contain scent glands her kneading emits her own distinctive scent discernable by other cats or pets but not by the human nose.

One reason cats knead is to make a soft bed or clear a space to doze. Young kittens knead their mother s nipples to stimulate the let down reflex in her so that her milk flows for the kittens to suckle. They do it with your jeans. A nursing kitten instinctually kneads to help stimulate the mother s milk production.

Cats likely knead on blankets because. During nursing a kitten will knead the area around its mother s teat to promote the flow of milk. Sometimes it hurts. Other theories on why cats knead similar to the theory about how dogs dig in their beds as a natural denning instinct it s believed that cats also might have used kneading in the wild to help soften dirt or pat down leaves for comfy sleeping quarters.