Why Do Cats Knead Your Face

Why do cats knead us.

Why do cats knead your face. Multiple theories exist that explain why cats knead. They may purr stretch and knead the air while lying on their side to tell male cats that they can approach for possible mating. Female cats have an additional reason for kneading. Their ancestors did this with tall grass or leaves.

Kneading may have an origin going back to cats wild ancestors who had to tread down grass or foliage to make a temporary nest in which to rest. This is another wild instinct that domesticated cats retain giving them the important skill of creating a cozy safe space in which to get some rest or give birth while hidden away from the dangers of predators. However if they are immediately ready to mate they will not knead their paws and will instead raise their pelvis with the tail to one side. Cats begin kneading instinctually as kittens when they are nursing to help stimulate their mothers milk.

Kneading is sometimes colloquially referred to as making biscuits because the motion resembles a baker kneading dough. This can involve claws. Cats will sometimes knead on soft surfaces like blankets or their preferred napping location to get into a comfortable position. Cats knead on beds on soft blankets and sometimes they knead their humans.

They do it with your jeans. Sometimes it hurts. 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. Before we answer why do cats knead let s look at how they knead.

When a cat kneads your body or the surface of a bed it s a behavior that s meant for its mother s belly a message to keep milk flowing. It is a positive sign and indicates a healthy bond between human and cat. One reason cats knead is to make a soft bed or clear a space to doze. In their adult stage it is believed this behavior is continued because it generates pleasure and a state of well being.

Rubbing up against a human leg or hand is a way of treating you as another cat the clearest way cats show their affection for us bradshaw explains. Kneading is when your cat alternates their front paws in a rhythmic fashion on a soft squishy surface. Leaving dead rats around the house isn t a way of feeding their owners but rather the.