Abandoned Cat sucking own nipples.

by Elisha
(Georgia)

I adpoted an abandoned kitten at an animal shelter. Now several months later she has started to suck on her own nipples. IS this normal for a kitten who has lost her mother at a young age or could there be something else wrong? PLEASE HELP

Answer by Kate
Any sort of behabvior like this ie chewing own fur, over grooming etc can be a sign of stress or upset in a cat.
Or course the first thing to check is that she doesn't have a skin problem which is causing her some irritation in that area.
If all is physically ok then try and distract her when she does it by playing games etc. A bored cat is a un happy cat so make sure her home environement is rich in activity. See my pages here about cat toys, cat trees etc

If the stress has been caused bevause she lost her mother too soon then again distraction and enrichment tactics will also help her.

best wishes kate