Cat Licks Vagina

Cat Licks Vagina

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When I adopted Bambu, my adorable orange kitty with arguably the world’s poofiest tail, I was immediately taken aback by the extent of her licking. I left all of our snuggle sessions with my hands, arms, and face covered in kitty saliva.
Like many other cat parents, I set out to understand why cats lick us. Here’s some insight on cat licking—whether it means that your cat likes you or there’s an issue that you need to get checked out.
Cats spend up to 8% of their waking time grooming (and 50% napping), so licking in general is a normal behavior for cats. 1
Anyone who has been tongue-bathed by a cat will agree that a cat’s tongue is less like a soft sponge and more like a sandpaper loofah. This is because your cat’s tongue is covered in hundreds of tiny, firm, backward-facing spines called papillae. These spines help remove dirt and loose fur from your cat’s hair coat and cover the fur in saliva to keep your cat cool. 2
Scientists have not fully figured out the reason why cats lick people, but here are several possible theories.
Your cat’s licking may be an affiliative behavior, which is a friendly, altruistic behavior. Mothers groom their kittens, and cats may groom one another, which is called allogrooming. This grooming strengthens their social bonds, so your cat may groom you to nurture your relationship.
Your cat may have learned very quickly that licking gets attention, as you have likely inadvertently rewarded your cat’s licking by talking to, petting, or in some way interacting with them when they lick you. Some cats even find negative attention, like being reprimanded or pushed away, to be better than no attention.
Cats communicate by marking objects and other animals with their scents, and one reason why mother cats lick their kittens may be to create a familiar group scent. Similarly, your cat may lick you as a way of identifying you.
Kittens knead and suckle when nursing. If your cat was weaned too early, they may have started licking you as a way to seek the comfort reminiscent of nursing. In this case, your cat may also knead and purr as they lick you.
Your cat may lick your skin or hair to investigate interesting scents or odors, like an appetizing lotion, shampoo, or other topical product. Human perspiration also contains sugar and salts that cats may find appealing.
Licking may represent a displacement behavior, which is a behavior that a cat performs to alleviate stress . Stress more commonly leads to excessive self-grooming , but the licking may be directed toward you, too.
Determine if there are any triggers for the licking, like visitors in your home or loud noises. If your cat’s anxiety is left untreated, the licking may progress to a compulsive behavior, at which point the licking takes over your cat’s life.
Your cat may lick you and/or objects in the environment due to a medical problem. Nausea, pain, or discomfort can lead to licking. In Bambu’s case, we discovered that inflammatory bowel disease was the cause of her licking. If your cat’s licking is excessive or just started recently, take them to be evaluated by your veterinarian.
Accepting a bath from your cat is usually safe, but there are some potential risks. Cats carry bacteria in their mouths, which can lead to local or systemic infection if a cat licks an open wound. Immunocompromised people are most at risk. Acquiring a disease from your cat is very rare, but to be safe, don’t let your cat lick your face or any cuts on your skin.
Some medical ointments may also be harmful to your cat when licked. If you apply any products to your skin or hair, inform your veterinarian to determine whether the product may be potentially dangerous to your feline.
Whatever the cause of your cat’s licking, you may find the licking uncomfortable or even annoying.
Never use punishment, including scolding, squirting water, shaking a jar of coins, or applying bitter-tasting spray. This may compromise your bond with your cat and may make your cat more anxious, which may exacerbate your cat’s licking.
Here are some tips to minimize the licking:
Cover your skin with long-sleeved clothing or a small towel when you interact with them, and provide a food puzzle or toy.
When your cat starts licking, get up and walk away. If your cat is licking for attention, ignoring the licking should cause the behavior to subside. Don’t ignore your cat completely, but only when they lick you. If it does not stop after a week, there is likely another motivation for the licking that needs to be addressed, and you should talk to your vet.
Try tossing a cat toy or treat away from you. When your cat follows the toy or food, then you can get up and walk away.
When your cat interacts with you without licking, reinforce the behavior by rewarding them with praise, petting, or play.
Give your cat plenty of environmental enrichment. There is never too much! Purchase a variety of toys, hide all but 5-6 toys, and rotate them every few days to create novelty. Provide vertical spaces such as cat trees and perches, along with other hiding places for your cat, and devote at least 15 minutes to interacting with your cat three times daily.
If your cat’s licking persists or is excessive, then they should be evaluated by your veterinarian to ensure there isn’t a medical or emotional disorder underlying it.
1. Eckstein RA and Hart BJ. (2000). The organization and control of grooming in cats. Applied Animal Behaviour Science. 68(2):131-140.
2. Noel AC and Hu DL. (2018). Cats use hollow papillae to wick saliva into fur. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, doi:10.1073/pnas.1809544115.
Featured Image: iStock.com/sdominick
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cat licking vagina
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licking vagina and white discharge

by: Anonymous

doctor ,
shes always licking and i discovered a white discharge oozing from her vagina
is it pyomerta ?!

Reply
Hi
If she is always doing this then you really only have one option and that is to take her to see a vet a soon as you can. The only way to tell if this is something serious or in need of treatment is for the vet to examine her and for blood work to be done if needed.

there is no way to second guess this, tests will need to be done first before a diagnosis can be given.

Hope the vet is bale to put your ct back on the road to recovery soon.
Kate

Then

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2 thoughts on “What Does It Mean When A Cat Licks You?”

Some experts out there say that a cat licks you because they love you, they feel ownership over you or they are grooming and cleaning you. They’re marking you as one of them, you’re now family.
Let’s set the scene, because I think it’s all about the love.
Your cat blinks at you lazily, winding his way across the room toward you.
He rubs against your ankles and loops his tail around them – you have to sit still or you’ll trip.
You can feel the rumble of his contented purring, and then you’re blessed with the heavy thud of his paws landing in your lap.
“Creative Commons 16 August ” by Carolyn Williams is licensed under CC BY 2.0
Your aloof cat has deigned to show you affection and you couldn’t be more pleased until he starts… licking you?
Don’t freak out, your cat isn’t any weirder than the rest of the world’s felines.
Cats may seem aloof, but they are social-grooming animals and do know how to show interest and affection.
Cats will spend hours sitting around bathing themselves and their buddies, and if they like you maybe they’ll do the same to you.
Treating you like his mother treated him shows that he trusts you and sees you as part of his family group.
In a cat “family” there is usually one who grooms all of the rest like it’s their job, so your cat feels affectionately responsible for you – he thinks you’re his pet, rather than the other way around.
Cleaning/licking can be a sign that your cat is lonely or missing you – it may just be your cat’s way of biding for your attention.
You can tell if this is the case if your cat licks you less when you begin to play with them more.
Setting out fun toys , cat trees and/or spending quality time with your cat every day to help them feel bonded to you.
Similar to the way they would lick their litter-mates when they were kittens, it could be that your cat is just looking for some sign that you love them.
Cats are very curious by nature – we all know the famous saying – and they will often lick and taste things for the sensory experience and educating themselves about their surroundings.
Your cat may smell or taste something interesting on you, be it soap, perfume, a food spill, blood from a forgotten cut or scratch, or stray hair from a strange animal or person.
Maybe you just have a super distinct smell that marks you as his own special human – or he enjoys the taste of plain old salt on your skin.
If you have any experience with anxiety, you can understand and relate to finding a little ritual or repeated action that distracts you from your cares.
While for us humans that might look like biting our nails, tapping our toes, or twirling our hair, for our furry friends it could mean an oral fixation that involves licking excessively.
Feline anxiety is often discovered when the cat starts shredding things or comforting themselves by sucking on fabric objects.
If your cat is fearful, anxious, or was separated early from his mother, he could be manifesting his feelings through licking you, his human companion.
One way to treat this anxiety in your feline friend is by using a pheromone-based calming spray in your home.
While we may find the idea of being covered in our cat’s saliva to be a less than ideal way to shower ourselves, your cat doesn’t agree.
While cats aren’t generally pack-mentality animals, when they are surrounded by their young and/or other cats they consider part of their “group”, cleaning another cat is a symbol of compassion and care.
So – it’s not that your cat thinks you’re dirty…they just consider you part of their group.
Cats who lick and then bite their owners consider this as a form of affectionate play-fighting (similar to the way your brothers put each other in a headlock).
This is likely due to them leaving their litter (and their mother) a little too soon.
Because the mom and rest of their litter would squeal and stop playing with them once they got too rough, staying with their family for longer usually means a kitten will know not to play too rough.
If your adult cat is biting and licking too much, usually taking your attention away from them completely will teach them that he needs to be more gentle.
They have so much of their own fur, why are they licking yours?
While it’s kind of funny to see your cat struggle with your hair, which is perhaps quite a bit longer than the hair they are used to cleaning on their own body – it’s quite an interesting behavior.
This video by eHow explains it best:
A common time your cat could lick you is right after you’ve been gone for a while (or if they have been outside, right after they come back inside to be with you.)
Another common reason cats lick their humans is to share their scent and/or mark their territory.
While I am sure you would rather take this marking of territory behavior over your cat spraying you, it’s still strange how your cat needs to coat your hands with their saliva when you return to them.
By marking you with their scent, they are reassuring themselves that although you may have different smells attached to you (maybe even smells from different animals, depending on where you have been that day) – you’re still safe for them to be around because you smell like they do.
Okay, so even if you consider this a form of flattery, you don’t mind the licking and/or you’re convinced your cat has accepted you into their sacred pack… sometimes licking can get out of control.
If your cat’s licking begins to get excessive or they are suckling on your clothing or fingers – this is a behavioral change you need to take notice of.
Suckling and/or excessive licking (whether it’s you or themselves) can be a sign of distress or illness.
This is when you should consult a veterinarian to have your cat checked for medical issues.
Below Dr. Becker Discusses Excessive Grooming in Cats: Mercola Healthy Pets
If your vet has checked your feline friend and there are no signs of medical illness, the excessive licking could be due to boredom, separation anxiety while you’re gone and/or common cat problems like fleas/ticks.
I personally love when my cat gives me those little cat-kisses and maybe you do too, but even for the humans who like this show of affection… it can become a little too much and we want to find a way to encourage our cat to tone it down a little.
After all, a cat’s tongue is rough and covered with little barbs – a lot of licking could be painful!
In getting your cat to tone down the licking, you need to be careful in how you redirect them because you don’t want them to think they have done something wrong.
Some ideas like putting a bad tasting lotion (or something) on your skin, or spraying your cat with water spray can have quite the opposite effect, to an extent you won’t like…
Your cat could potentially associate YOU with these punishments and start avoiding you completely.
The best way to get your cat to stop licking you is to offer a distraction (such as a treat, giving them a friendly pet or a getting out a rattling toy to play with.)
Gentle massage, brushing , and cuddling can also help relieve your cat’s stress and discourage licking.
If all else fails, ask your veterinarian if they can recommend an animal behaviorist who may be able to help you and your cat work through the deeper issues.
Some cats just don’t lick their humans, it’s nothing you have done right or wrong in this case.
It could be that they weren’t groomed much by their own mother as a kitten or simply that they like to show their affection in other ways.
If you’re worried that your cat is unhappy with you due to their lack of this behavior, don’t be – every cat is different!
Here is a great video on how to decode your cat’s strange behavior (including licking or lack thereof);
Whether you love or hate your cat’s declaration of love through licking your skin or clothes, now you know the reasons behind it and can feel assured that your pet feels safe and calm around you!
Ahhh, this helps explain so much about Pye! She is a handful.
I had to train Pye to lick me when she wants petting. This works well, as long as I don’t stop too many times. If she feels she has to lick me one too many times to get me to resume petting her, I get a nip on the hand. It is clear by her demeanor she is not interested in playing, but rather uses the nip as a form of discipline – “How dare you stop petting me, human slave!”
She tends to rub on me only when it’s about an hour before feeding time. This behavior continues for about 30 minutes, at which time she decides I am not “getting the message” that she is hungry NOW and doe does not care to wait until dinner time. At this point, my hair will be eaten if it’s within reach, or she will begin pushing things off my desk, one by one.
Ahh, that’s my little four-legged darling!
Thank you for all the great cat info!!
Oh it’s so interesting how their behaviour progresses as they get hungrier, right? ?
I find it really interesting that you were able to train her to lick you when she needs attention! Did you use any kind of method to do this?
One of my cats tends to lick me out of sheer boredom, and I’d love to redirect that to only when she needs something from me. I don’t mind it so much (I actually think it’s cute when cats lick you) but she may start doing it to my son soon and he’ll react less positively (because he’s 1 and not as gentle as I am)! ?
I’d love to know more on that – do you have a post on it or any tips on training them to lick only at certain times?
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I’m Toki, I’m the owner/editor of Cat Veteran. My wife and I have been blessed with 4 purrfect cats (2 brothers seen above with my daughter) and we all live, pounce, and play in the Massachusetts wilderness. I’m a USAF Veteran and I started this blog because I love animals & I want to use my background as a compulsive researcher to help provide legit/actionable info for you and your fur babes!

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