Not to be confused with wool chewing, wool sucking is believed to be the result of abrupt or early weaning. This behavior is when a kitten continues her nursing behavior on clothing, shoelaces, shirt buttons, even her owner’s fingers or earlobes, etc. There are some cats that will even suck their own paws, the tips of their tails, or their own flanks.
Eventually most kittens will grow out of this behavior. Distracting them is the best way to get them to stop wool sucking. When the kitten begins to suckle, gently disengage her and then pet or play with her. If you keep this routine up, this unwanted behavior should disappear in time.
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Very nice blog! I really like your format and layout.
I’ve considered putting a blog together for my 20lb tabby! He’s a freak and does some really funny stuff!
http://www.theaquariumkit.com
http://thegamejunction.blogspot.com
I have a cat that does this. Interestingly, we adopted him when he was about 8 months old after he was picked up by animal control. We had had Eddie for over a year before he started this behavior. My mom made an afghan out of fuzzy yarn and Eddie immediately claimed it as his own and began sucking on it. He occasionally likes to suck on my scarf which is made of a very similar yarn.
I don’t mind the behavior at all and I actually think it’s kind of endearing, since he seems to enjoy it so much, so I don’t do anything to stop him.
I always thought it might be an early weaning issue, since we have no idea what he went through prior to being rescued from animal control by one of our local animal rescue organizations. Just thought it was odd that the behavior showed up over a year after he first came home with us.
Don’t tell my mom, but that afghan is designated as Eddie’s blankie
As a cat-owner, I know the importance of keeping my cat healthy and happy…..Now only I realized the cause for the wool sucking behavior in kitty. I’ll say No to early weaning. Thanks for the info!