Why Do Cats Knead Their Paws Into You

Because the pads of your cat s paws contain scent glands her kneading emits her own distinctive scent discernable by other cats or pets but not by the human nose.

Why do cats knead their paws into you. They instinctively knead their mother s tummy as they suckle and this is thought to stimulate her milk flow. There are also theories that when all cats were wild they used kneading as a way to trample grass into a safe bed where they could sleep or give birth. Because kittens use this motion to satisfy a need they often associate the habit with a good thing and bring it into their adult cat life as well. A cat will usually knead by pushing their front paws into a soft object altering pressure between the paws.

Other theories on why cats knead similar to the theory about how dogs dig in their beds as a natural denning instinct it s believed that cats also might have used kneading in the wild to help soften dirt or pat down leaves for comfy sleeping quarters. Kneading can also signal a form of territorial marking. Kneading behavior begins when cats are newborns. Kneading is a natural part of cat behavior.

Your cat may also be trying to claim you as his or her territory with the scent glands on his or her paws. In adulthood a cat supposedly will knead when it s feeling happy or content because it associates. During nursing a kitten will knead the area around its mother s teat to promote the flow of milk. Kneading for possible mates.

Cats have scent glands in the soft pads on the bottoms of their paws. It could be a blanket a pillow or a part of your own body. The reason it s called kneading is that the motion is somewhat similar to the process of kneading dough. They knead on humans because they re used to kneading before naps and obviously when your cat starts kneading on you it s likely he or she is going to take a nap on you shortly after.

Cats are territorial creatures and one of the ways they safeguard their turf is to scent mark their belongings. When they knead they release some of their unique scent onto the kneaded surface. A possible answer to why do cats knead is that they re trying to mark their territory because there are scent glands that release pheromones in their paws. Your cat s kneading may be an instinct they picked up and never grew out of.

By pushing their paws in and out they activate these scent glands so they could be doing this on your lap to mark you as their own and warning other cats to back off. Unspayed female cats often knead just before going into heat as a sign of their eagerness to mate.