My 4-month-old kitten won't stop suckling on himself. When he was just two months old, his mum went missing for three weeks (she's back now) and he's been doing it ever since. I'm not sure if I should let him carry on.
Thanks for your help.
Translated from French
The forum content is sometimes translated from another language, and posts may concern countries with different animal laws. Do your research before making any decisions.
Since the forum is translated by AI, the translations may contain errors.
Hi, I’m reviving this thread because a friend sent me a video of his cat (she’s over 3 years old) suckling herself. He’s had her for more than two years and apparently she’s always done it; she always sucks the same nipple to the point where the area is now almost hairless and quite swollen. Personally, I would’ve been worried a long time ago—since it doesn't seem normal—but because I tend to be a bit of an over-worrier, I don’t want to cause him unnecessary alarm... Is it serious? I should also mention that she’s kneading at the same time... Thanks in advance for your replies.
Hi, I’m reviving this thread because a friend sent me a video of his cat (she’s over 3 years old) suckling herself. He’s had her for more than two years and apparently she’s always done it; she always sucks the same nipple to the point where the area is now almost hairless and quite swollen. Personally, I would’ve been worried a long time ago—since it doesn't seem normal—but because I tend to be a bit of an over-worrier, I don’t want to cause him unnecessary alarm... Is it serious? I should also mention that she’s kneading at the same time... Thanks in advance for your replies.
Hi everyone, I’m reviving this thread as a friend sent me a video of her cat (who is over 3 years old) suckling herself. She’s had her for more than 2 years and apparently she’s always done it; because she’s always suckling the same teat, the area has become almost bald and quite swollen. Personally, I’d have been worried a long time ago – as it doesn’t seem right – but since I’m a bit of an over-anxious person anyway, I don’t want to worry her unnecessarily... Is it serious? I should add that she’s kneading at the same time too... Thanks in advance for any advice.
This is a time when he really needs to be reassured and have plenty of cuddles. You can place your hand over his belly to stop him from getting to his teats, and stroke or snuggle him to replace the suckling with human affection. Doing this helps him understand that he can find comfort with his human, who is now his new "mother figure", rather than pining for nursing and missing his mum.
Hi there, self-suckling is harmless; it’s just something he does for comfort. However, do keep an eye out if it turns into compulsive licking of a specific area that leads to significant hair loss.
Thanks for all your replies, it’s put my mind at rest. He started suckling himself when his mum left. I asked the vet if I should bottle-feed him, but he said that since he was starting to eat dry food, it wasn't necessary. For the first few days everything was fine, but then he started suckling himself.
His brother, who was with us at the time, was suckling too, but he wasn't doing it to himself; he was doing it to his brother.
Now his brother is at my sister's and he's stopped doing it.
Every time he wants to suckle, he comes over to me. Here is my little sweetie caught red-handed.
It’s actually quite common for kittens to suckle on things like their owner’s finger, their tail, clothing, or even their own teats... It’s usually because they haven’t quite got used to not nursing anymore, as the weaning process might not have been fully completed. Even if you kept the kitten with its mum, weaning doesn't always go perfectly, but you shouldn't blame yourself – you've done what you could.
It’s nothing to worry about and should happen less often and eventually stop as they get older. Don’t tell them off as long as it isn’t causing any issues, and don’t worry.
I totally get you regarding your "little slip-up"; my own blunder actually went down quite well. In a way, it was like the cat was celebrating the dog too... or at least his presence anyway! 😀😀
And the worst part is that I usually proofread my posts, but I suppose we only ever see what we want to see in the end.
