It is, without a doubt, a behavior that we do not fully understand, and it is that Who has not ever wondered why my cat bites my hair? Sometimes they not only bite, they can lick. It is very, very curious.
This way of acting can surprise us a lot, but in no case should it worry us since it does not do it to harm us (with exceptions, but in those cases there is always a call for attention from the furry that the human is not listening). Let's find out why it behaves like this.
Why is my cat biting my hair?
To find the reason why a furry behaves in this way towards us, we can look at what cats do in nature. Feline families are often seen licking each other in documentaries. We might think that they do it to clean up, since in the savannah or in the jungle there are many parasites and insects that can harm them, but this is not the only reason.
As we talked about in the article on feline marking, cats - regardless of whether they are domestic or not - are guided by pheromones. Each living being has its own body odor, and each family has its own too. For the furry, this smell is very, very important, as it will let you know with whom you can be calm and with whom you should be alert.
So ... why does it bite our hair? For two simple reasons:
- Loves us: for him, licking or biting his hair is a show of affection, so we can only relax and let him know that we love him too.
- Leaves us your body odor: this is a smell that our nose cannot perceive, but that any other cat can, and even dogs. By doing this, you are letting us know that you see us as part of your family.
The cat is an animal that we have not fully understood, but we hope that this article has helped you to solve one of the most frequent doubts about its behavior.
Why does my cat bite my hair when I sleep?
When we sleep we are very relaxed, and our dear feline companion loves that. So if we notice that it bites our hair while we are resting, what we will do is let it do it. In the event that he hurts us, or if he gets nervous and starts to bite harder and harder, what we will do is walk away from him calmly, without yelling at him.; we will just ignore it.
And nothing more. It is not necessary to give importance. If we start giving it, we will feel uncomfortable, the cat will notice it and we will see that it becomes a little more nervous. Nor do we have to give him treats or play with him right after these, let's call, nervous breakdowns, otherwise he could associate the prizes with them, so that he could routinely bite our hair just for the prizes.
Why does my cat scratch my hair?
When a cat scratches its hair, it is usually for the same reasons that we said above, but It could also be that it is like my cat Bug, who is a bit nervous and who usually alternates those little nibbles with soft scratches and licks. Does that mean that it is an aggressive cat and / or that it wants to hurt us?
No. The only thing that means is that he has not learned not to scratch (either because he was left without a mother too soon as was the case with Bicho, who was rescued from the street when he was barely a month old; because His family has always played with him in a rough way; and / or because he is an animal that lives in tension and as soon as he has a chance he discharges some of that energy that he accumulates), or because he has been taught incorrectly, with screaming, forcing him to do things he shouldn't, or etcetera.
Knowing this, What to do so that it does not scratch? The ideal is to anticipate ... and know that the more tired you are, the less likely it is to scratch (or scratch hard at least). Then what we will do is play with him for an hour divided into several short sessions throughout the day, for example with a ball made of aluminum foil or with a rope. It is very important to make subtle movements, as if the rope were real prey for the cat. When he begins to pant and / or lie down, we can end the game session.
Then, if it scratches our hair, we have to try to redirect it, with a cat treat and give it only when the scratching has stopped.
Why does my cat knead my hair?
It is a way that he has to show us his affection. The cat is born knowing how to knead, as this is an instinctive behavior that will help it suck all the milk from its mother that it wants. When he grows up and lives with humans, and also with humans who really love him and take good care of him, he continues to maintain that behavior.
Of course, this is not a problem or anything like it, if not quite the opposite 🙂.
Why is my cat eating my hair?
More than eating, what he does is chew it, and it's just a way to socialize with us. But if he also chews other things that are not to eat (plastics, cardboard, etc.) we must take him to the vet as he could have a disorder called PICA.
This is a relatively common disease in cats that were orphaned by their mothers at a very early age (days or weeks), and that have been raised alone (that is, without other cat companions), since they have not learned to be or to behave like a balanced cat.
Why do cats eat their hair?
If the cat eats its own hair it is because he has a health problem. Allergies, stress, parasites (fleas, ticks, mites, lice ...). A visit to the vet is mandatory to correct the cause of that discomfort that you may have as soon as possible.
I hope you have learned a lot from this article 🙂.
Just today, one of the little ones (3 months) I let him into the dining room (I let them in at times from the terrace, to try not to all coincide inside at the same time, because at least the little ones are still rowdy and I end up a little crazy haha), when he saw that he let him in, he started to purr, very loud, I would say that he even echoed in the dining room hehe.
I was very happy, well this one purrs very easily, it is very optimistic :-). I start to stroke him and he starts to purr louder, he starts to squirm with pleasure, I keep stroking him, I tickle him on the head, neck, ears, belly, back / tail, between the toes (that drives them crazy and since they can't stand the tickling they lick or nibble on me), the poor kitten no longer knew how to get on, wriggled, wallowed, and of course I was lying on the sofa, because when it came snaking up to my head, it nibbled my hair too For them it is a magnet, like a skein of wool, they like to sink their face into their mane and play with it.
The threads and the like attract them a lot, but you have to be careful because they eat them. One day I saw that a piece of rubber was hanging from one of his mouth, the one used to make necklaces, I took it quickly and began to stretch the rubber, which came up from his stomach because it was very long. After a while, she also vomited another rubber cord mess that she had swallowed earlier.
Yes, wires, cables, ... anything thin and long attracts them 🙁.
I'm glad nothing bad happened to the little guy.