bizarre cat behavior

by Ilana
(Israel)

I adopted one of my cats before his eyes opened as he was left in a shoebox by the garbage. I bottle fed him and took care of him with my dog's help-she licked him and all. As an adult he has many weird behaviours and meows. One of the strangest is his sucking, kneading, trance walking one. He sits by me to suck his thumb, then after a few minutes he stands up, continues sucking at nothing-his tongue goes in and out fast (!) and he starts walking on me as though he is not quite getting the kneading thing. His best is to balance all 4 legs on my leg or arm and walk around in this way in an air sucking trance trying to balance on my leg or arm and his tail does little automatic flicks at the top. It is super strange. He can go on and on until I stop it. He is neutered BTW. What can this be?

Reply
Hi
Well I don’t think it is anything rally. It sounds to me just like a habit he has picked up which just makes him feel comforted. They say the kneading action has something to do with kneading their mothers tummy. As he didn’t really know his real mother you are the next best thing and so you simply bring the baby out in him.

Similarly the sucking is also baby related and is a sort of instinct. Because he had a rough start in life he has hung on to these baby instincts for longer than he should. But as long as they cause him no harm, i can’t see that it is a problem.

I wouldn’t worry about it, just except it as something he likes to do and love him for it. Cats can be the funniest creatures sometimes but i guess that’s what we love about them.

Best wishes Kate

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