shirt sucking

> Does anyone else have a cat that likes to suck on there shirt. whenever
> sadie comes up to be petted she lays on my chest and has to suck on whatever
> part of my shirt i'll let her. no matter how hard i try she doesn't stop.
>
> why does she do this???

Someone once told me that's a sign the cat was weaned too early. (And
that one reason Siamese tended to do it more than other cats was that
they need longer with their mothers than other breeds, and often don't
get it, if they don't come from a breeder.)

FWIW, be glad she chooses cloth, not your skin. I had one that sucked
on any exposed bit of flesh - you get the strangest looks when you
explain a hickey on your neck with "the cat did it"!

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lnsanecat - 17 Aug 2004 07:22 GMT

she was weaned to early at about 3 weeks

> > Does anyone else have a cat that likes to suck on there shirt. whenever
> > sadie comes up to be petted she lays on my chest and has to suck on whatever
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
> on any exposed bit of flesh - you get the strangest looks when you
> explain a hickey on your neck with "the cat did it"!

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---MIKE--- - 17 Aug 2004 12:48 GMT

Amber likes to jump on my bed early in the morning. When I pet her, she
purrs and sucks on the blanket. I don't know for sure how early she was
weaned.

---MIKE---

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> Does anyone else have a cat that likes to suck on there shirt.
> whenever sadie comes up to be petted she lays on my chest and has to
> suck on whatever part of my shirt i'll let her. no matter how hard i
> try she doesn't stop.
> why does she do this???

Oh sure. Chaos just loves to be held when I'm wearing flannel, Polarfleece
or such ... she'll knead my shoulder and wash/nibble/suck for a looonng
time.
I believe it's mostly cats who didn't get enough Mama-care when tiny who do
this the most - it's a sign of total contentment and security and love.

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Jo Firey - 17 Aug 2004 19:23 GMT

> > Does anyone else have a cat that likes to suck on there shirt.
> > whenever sadie comes up to be petted she lays on my chest and has to
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
> I believe it's mostly cats who didn't get enough Mama-care when tiny who do
> this the most - it's a sign of total contentment and security and love.

I've got another theory on why cats do this. Jake didn't when we got him.
Admittedly a little younger than ideal to leave his mum. He didn't do
anything like this for the first year. Then I bought a fuzzy sweater. I'm
fairly heavy so most of me is pretty soft. He started out by testing his
claws in the sweater. I didn't approve, so he tried again with his claws
tucked in. Only a little at first and only once in a while. Then I got a
plush robe for Christmas. Even better, and besides I tended to stay still
when I was wearing it. So the kneading got more frequent. Now he knows
there are certain things I wear he likes and he will come running if I sit
down or lie down. And he's gotten more into it, more obsessed with time.
Especially since we got Rosie. He does it partly to establish territory.
Kind of look what I can do and you don't. She gets jealous but doesn't
participate.

At first my DH Charlie really thought it was weird. Kind of like allowing a
dog to hump your leg, but after getting caught himself a few times in a
flannel shirt he can see its a whole other kind of obsession. The look on
Jakes face is far more bliss than excitement.

Jo

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>Does anyone else have a cat that likes to suck on there shirt. whenever
>sadie comes up to be petted she lays on my chest and has to suck on whatever
>part of my shirt i'll let her. no matter how hard i try she doesn't stop.
>
>why does she do this???

She's a smurgler! Some cats do that. She wuvs you. ;)

Theresa
Stinky Pictures: http://community.webshots.com/album/125591586JWEFwh
My Blog: http://www.humanitas.blogspot.com
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> Does anyone else have a cat that likes to suck on there shirt. whenever
> sadie comes up to be petted she lays on my chest and has to suck on whatever
> part of my shirt i'll let her. no matter how hard i try she doesn't stop.
>
> why does she do this???

hi, i had a cat that did this when he was younger,
you're mommy, you see...

suckling instinct combined with affection, i guess =)

makes yer clothes soggy, eh?

Morgan

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> Does anyone else have a cat that likes to suck on there shirt. whenever
> sadie comes up to be petted she lays on my chest and has to suck on whatever
> part of my shirt i'll let her. no matter how hard i try she doesn't stop.
>
> why does she do this???

When a cat adopts you you become her mommy. Some cats, especially
those who were weaned too early (but not always the case), like to
suckle on mommy. Sammy sucks on my arms, my neck, any bare skin she
can get to (you would think she would pick a hairy place like my head
since that would seem more like a real cat mommy, but she doesn't).
As someone else here said, you get the weirdest looks when you tell
someone the hickey on your neck is from your cat! ;>

Hugs,

CatNipped

CatMom to:
Bandit, (a.k.a. "Bitch Cat From Hell"), 14, DLH Tabby
Demi, (a.k.a. "Ghost Cat"), 5, DLH Pure White Beauty
Jessie, (a.k.a. "Jet Ski"), 4, DSH Tortoiseshell
Samantha / Sammy, (a.k.a. "Mini Me"), 4 months, DLH Tabby

http://www.gcmensa.org/Cats.html (Jessie, Demi, Bandit)
http://www.gcmensa.org/Sammy/ (Sammy and Bandit)
http://www.gcmensa.org/Sammy2/ (All my fur babies)
http://www.gcmensa.org/Sammy3/ (Sammy and Jessie)

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> Does anyone else have a cat that likes to suck on there shirt. whenever
> sadie comes up to be petted she lays on my chest and has to suck on whatever
> part of my shirt i'll let her. no matter how hard i try she doesn't stop.
>
> why does she do this???

When a cat adopts you you become her mommy. Some cats, especially
those who were weaned too early (but not always the case), like to
suckle on mommy. Sammy sucks on my arms, my neck, any bare skin she
can get to (you would think she would pick a hairy place like my head
since that would seem more like a real cat mommy, but she doesn't).
As someone else here said, you get the weirdest looks when you tell
someone the hickey on your neck is from your cat! ;>

Hugs,

CatNipped

CatMom to:
Bandit, (a.k.a. "Bitch Cat From Hell"), 14, DLH Tabby
Demi, (a.k.a. "Ghost Cat"), 5, DLH Pure White Beauty
Jessie, (a.k.a. "Jet Ski"), 4, DSH Tortoiseshell
Samantha / Sammy, (a.k.a. "Mini Me"), 4 months, DLH Tabby

http://www.gcmensa.org/Cats.html (Jessie, Demi, Bandit)
http://www.gcmensa.org/Sammy/ (Sammy and Bandit)
http://www.gcmensa.org/Sammy2/ (All my fur babies)
http://www.gcmensa.org/Sammy3/ (Sammy and Jessie)

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Howard Berkowitz - 19 Aug 2004 00:48 GMT

> > Does anyone else have a cat that likes to suck on there shirt.
> > whenever
[quoted text clipped - 12 lines]
> As someone else here said, you get the weirdest looks when you tell
> someone the hickey on your neck is from your cat! ;>

This also leads to especially martyred looks by Mr. Clark, about a
3-year-old former tomcat adopted with the kittens. Mr. Clark was
neutered as an adult, and has marks of catfights.

Nevertheless, he is very parental toward youngsters of two and four
legs. Only the kittens attempted to nurse on him, and he put up with it
with an indescribable expression.

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Christina Websell - 19 Aug 2004 00:59 GMT

> > > Does anyone else have a cat that likes to suck on there shirt.
> > > whenever
[quoted text clipped - 20 lines]
> legs. Only the kittens attempted to nurse on him, and he put up with it
> with an indescribable expression.

What a lovely lad he is!

Tweed

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Howard Berkowitz - 19 Aug 2004 05:01 GMT

> > > > Does anyone else have a cat that likes to suck on there shirt.
> > > > whenever
[quoted text clipped - 22 lines]
>
> What a lovely lad he is!

He seems convinced that all human babies that visit him are in need of a
bath. I'm puzzled, but none seem to object to the sandpaper tongue (his
tongue is the roughest of the three, all of whom are kissers. Dings' is
soft).

Should the infant want to share his or her bottle, or just spray milk
around, he certainly doesn't object.

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Marina - 19 Aug 2004 03:51 GMT

> This also leads to especially martyred looks by Mr. Clark, about a
> 3-year-old former tomcat adopted with the kittens. Mr. Clark was
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> legs. Only the kittens attempted to nurse on him, and he put up with it
> with an indescribable expression.

I know that expression well. Nikki used to nurse on Frank when I first
brought her home. The first time she did it, he looked at me with a "what's
going on here?" expression on his face, then he settled down to washing her
and generally being a good Mummy. Every now and then he would give me a
sidelong glance, as if to ask if this was really ok.

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Marina, Frank and Nikki
Email marina (dot) kurten (at) pp (dot) inet (dot) fi
Pics at http://uk.f1.pg.photos.yahoo.com/frankiennikki

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