Hacker News Reader

Comment by pcurve | Hacker News Reader

Article gives two reasons: " 1. in the presence of someone with whom they feel safe ... because they associate the behavior of treading their paws with the comfort they felt when they were nursing

2. It's possible kneading can be used to deposit scent... to mark territory."

Some dogs like to suckle on your arm (or small squishy) well into their adulthood, so I suppose #1 makes sense.

View on HN

The explanation I always heard was that they were removed from their mother too soon, and I stopped buying that explanation several years ago.

I don’t know about every cat I’ve ever had, but my youngest currently? I think there’s two reasons she does it: 1. To announce her presence on top of me and make it known she is pleased her bed is in bed and 2. To make the spot more comfortable, like how we fluff our pillows or smooth out our bedspreads or whatever. She’s making the spot hers.

I mean it is an action that can also deposit their scent, but uh, in my experience my cats have never respected that marker if they don’t want to.

> she is pleased her bed is in bed

ISWYDT

The explanation I always heard was that they were removed from their mother too soon, and I stopped buying that explanation several years ago.

Interesting. I've never heard that explanation. It doesn't line up with my experience either. In 2007 I took in a stray cat I found wandering in a parking lot. She was pregnant and gave birth to 5 kittens. She died a few years ago but I kept her with her offspring for her whole life. Her descendants knead as much as she did.

I have heard the same explanation. And first time I heard it was pre-internet era in non English speaking country, so it must be somewhat common believe.

I have 3 cats still living with their mother and they all do it. She had a strong maternal instinct, but lost it once they grew up, and now she hates all of them, which is apparently the expected behaviour.

Our cat was older and once the kittens got into a phase of "play hard, play always" I think it annoyed her to the point of madness :-)

I have an elderly cat that is fine with dogs, but can't stand the other 2 much younger and stronger cats.

I think some human mothers probably go through that.

Cats suckling on things (usually wool shirts or blankets) into adulthood is a sign they were removed from their mother too soon, but I've never heard that about kneading. I just assumed it was normal for a cat that's happy, safe, and comfortable.

I think your making the spot comfortable explanation is very compelling.

I notice that my cat really enjoys doing it. She gets into a euphoric/hypnotic state purring more loudly than she does when stroked. Just totally lost in bliss.

It may have a real function in other situations (milk production) but I believe the proximal cause for her nightly kneading is simply how good it feels which puts her straight to sleep afterwards. I expect it releases a lot of oxytocin/opoid type neurotransmitters. It makes me feel a little.... used. Not to mention the pain!

Yeah, sometimes I kind of think my cats are twerking. (And I apologize to HN readers for using that word).

We call that sprinkling. If it's a male cat that's not fixed, that's when they actually spray.

The biscuits/kneading usually come first, then the sprinkling starts when the back legs start coming up and the tail starts vibrating.

If it's something he likes, like the fridge, no biscuits get made, it's straight to sprinkling for a few seconds to just make sure it's still his.

Oh and the wiping of gums on literally everything, most importantly every cardboard box in the house.

It's definitely an arousal thing mixed in with territory marking.

They could also be referring to that wiggling they do before they pounce. Some cats do it quite fast. This is the first I thought of when I read that comment.

A family member has a cat like yours and introduced me to the regrettable phrase "sexual biscuit-making". As if it wasn't weird enough already.

I. love. this.

I will never look at my cat the same way again.

Just wait until you own a cat that goes into heat and sexually harasses you for two weeks straight. I can never un-know what a degenerate little pervert my cat is.

Thanks for the summary! It helped me scan through HN faster and get back to work ;) We all should try to do this more often.

What is a "small squishy"? Do I even want to know...?

Stuffed animal toy

Oh... lol. Thought the sentence was referring to a body part.

as humans are bilaterally symmetric to some tolerance, and there is a body part pair that is universally somewhat mismatched, but we repeatedly reassure and are reassured it's totally normal, I felt certain small squishy...

This cat thread got weirdly sexual especially with all the biscuit making

My dog loves licking me. Arms, hands/finger (especially when I've just washed them and they aren't dry yet), scalp.

He also will scratch the fake tile floor in certain corner spaces like next to my front door. I think I read a while back that the scratching helps release their scent so it's like they're reclaiming their territory too. (this is after he's gone out and done his business, not him telling me he needs to go out)

Plus #1 has a human analogue: Human's are known to thumb suck for comfort. Some continuing the behaviour into adulthood - perhaps even 1 in 10, but I don't really believe that.(1)

(1) https://www.sundaypost.com/fp/an-adults-habit-that-really-su...

I had a cousin who continued to suck her thumb when anxious into pre-puberty

For #2 this is not the reason. They don't deposit much scent through the paws, but mainly through the cheeks. This is why cats headbutt you.

I've known a female cat that would knead on your belly and nurse from your finger while doing so. #1 is definitely it.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com