Why do my cats do this??

[imanaddict]

I have 2 cats already, an orange and white tabby cat named Jack who is almost 3, and a beautiful bengal named Fiona who is also almost 3. We had decided to adopt another to give Jack a playmate (Fiona won't give Jack the time of day STILL!) because he seems lonely. I had contacted an organization and decided to foster a cat first to make sure he or she would be a good match for all of us. I ended up bringing home 2 orange/white tabby 6 month old kittens and they stole all of our hearts immediately! I adopted both of them the very next week..LOL! Anyway, I have a question and hopefully someone out there will know the answer. Both of them do something really weird when they are "making biscuits." They both "make biscuits" and put their nose into a blanket, or robe, or pillow, etc and slobber. They only slobber when doing this and no other times. I had a cat many years ago that did the exact same thing and I always thought it was odd, but never knew why, or how to stop it, if possible. Any ideas??

[imanaddict]

LOL!! Cats certainly have personalities like no other! That is probably one (out of MANY) reasons I love them so much. The other cat I used to have (who did the slobering thing too) was adopted from the city pound. I had him for 5 years, and when he was 3, he was diagnosed with liver disease. I did not think he was going to pull through. I had to give him IV's, had to feed and give him water 3 times a day through a tube in his throat, and give him multiple medications (through the tube as well). I did that for 3 months! I would be right in the middle of trying to put the IV needle between his shoulders when all the sudden the light would go off. It was our other cat, Jack, and he would jump up and turn the light switch off! The little fart!! Anyhow, right before Christmas (2010) we had to bug bomb our house and my husband had to take the cats with him and get them out of the house. When it was time to come back, he came for Jack, then he came for Salem. Salem scratched the living heck out of my husband and jumped from his arms and we still haven't found him. I cried for weeks and weeks. I felt (and still do) so betrayed because I literally nursed him back to health and that is the thanks I get? I still get sad and miss him so much! I was basically the only person  he had anything to do with, so I took it personal.

Idk, I guess it's the whole 'independent" thing is the reason he never came back. I will continue to hope I come home one day and he's waiting for me to open the door. I can deal with 5 cats..LOL!

[29sillygirl]

Awww...you have very loving kits...that is all.  Why some do it and others don't is a mystery to me.  When I had a young (couple of months old) adopted cat, he would not leave me alone.

I got a daily bath ...he kneaded, but mainly hopped  on my chest and kinda scritched and drooled all over my face...my vet laughed it off...said his sister had an older cat who did same to one of her stuffed animals...never outgrew the habit.

In the case of my kit, he just took off one day.  I later discovered he'd moved in with a couple in next bldg who had a couple of older cats.  He was a character...in his case he clearly needed other cats to keep him company.

Lets hope he outgrows this affectionate but irritating habit.








  



Since there are other cats in household,

[imanaddict]

Aww, that makes me sad! And it makes total sense. I wonder if there is anything I can do to stop it? My poor 6 yr old daughter can't stand her pillow pet being slobbered on every day. LOL!!

[aligator79]

I have a cat that does the same thing.  She grabs whatever she is doing it on, usually a blanket or pair of socks.  She drools, kneads and sometimes she will even growl.  Nut....  She is 8 and still does it, even more now than she used to.  But she has become a cuddle bug.  If I sit somewhere, she is there with me, on me.  

[nancyjac]

What Jade said is right on.  It is usually when kittens have had to be forcefully weaned.  For instance if they are separated from the mama early on for whatever reasons.  This is often the case with shelter kittens who may have been found as strays with no mama or the offspring of feral cats.  Some cats do this even if they haven't been early weaned.  It is just a comfort thing, similar to babies and toddlers sucking on a pacifier.  They usually do grow out of it, though they may be a year or two old before they do.  I would just provide them with a blanket, pillow, toy, etc. for this purpose.  Odds are, if they have that available, they won't use other stuff to suck on.

[Jade59]

Margy, "making bicuits" is when the cat kneads the area they're about to lie on.  I didn't know this term either until one of the techs at our vet made mention of noticing Jade did this during her stay.  

Imanaddict..."why" they do this, I've heard it's because they've been taken from their mama too early.  If you think about it, that's what a kitten does while suckling.  Will knead around the nipple as the suck the milk.  Cats like Jade just do the kneading part while others, like yours, will go even further and drool and try to suck the blanket, robe, whatever fabric they are kneading.  

This is just what i've heard.  Maybe someone else knows for sure.  

[margypops]

LOL I am still trying to puzzle out what 'making biscuits'means can you enlighten me ?