Cats Grooming And/or Petting Their Humans

[golondrina]

I am not always sure whether Sombra is grooming me or showing her affection.

Although she doesn't appreciate her daily brushing she will BOTH try to bite the brush AND lick my hands while trying to get away.

When I pick her up to stop her from doing something naughty although she will wriggle to get down she will lick my hands during the whole process. She is not a real lap cat but she will sit on my lap with her paws on my chest for short periods licking my face and throat and occasionally lifting a paw to caress my cheek. In all these occasions licking would seem to express her affection.

Now then. Sombra sleeps with me all night long without disturbing me in any way. But when I sit up in the morning to get out of bed she seems to think it is her duty to groom me. My hands, arms, shoulders, throat, face, even the back of my neck is taken care of when I bend down to pick up my slippers. She jumps from one place to the next at full speed doing her job. When I finally get my slippers on and try to walk away she will try to hold me back holding on to my nightgown.

In short, licking has a double role in a cat's life, grooming and showing affection.Right?

So far as Sombra is concerned it seems to me that she enjoys petting better than being petted. And any "excuse" is good enough for a good licking.

Sorry I have not managed to take pics of these situations but I'll keep trying.

Are your cats licking enthusiasts?

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

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golondrina - No.

 

[GreyLady]

Both Honey and Greycat like to lick my fingers sometimes when Im petting them. If my hand ends up in front of their mouth they think that I am asking for grooming, I think.

I wish I could catch it but its the kind of thing that if I took the time to go get my phone they wouldnt be doing it anymore.

 

[Tobermory]

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golondrina - No.

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Moo Shu looks as if she’s deciding whether she might have found a new source of protein.

None of mine ever lick me. Drool on me, yes. All three of them. And Mocha nibbles gently on my arm.

 

[golondrina]

My angel Cucumella was veryy affectionate and had many ways of showing how much she cared but she was not a licking cat. Sombra's licking is a permanent reaction. She will lick my hand when I rub her belly, when I brush her, when I scratch her chin and so on. Some times when she sits next to the computer she will lick my hand on the mouse. I don't know how to interpret her constant need to lick.

 

[MoochNNoodles]

One of my mother's cats has ALWAYS loved to groom everyone else; people, dogs, other cats! We know he was born a bit premature and he was tiny and sickly when he was adopted. Three days later my mother adopted a 2 year old cat we'd fallen in love with while meeting him at the shelter. She acted like his surrogate mother. He was only about 1 pound at the time. She would bathe him and play with him; teaching him manners.

It wasn't long before he started grooming one of the dogs. She would sit for it. The other dog didn't like it so much. Then he started grooming people. He will be 15 next month. Mostly he sticks to grooming fingers now. Both dogs have crossed the bridge now and the only remaining cat doesn't like it. My kids think it's funny so they don't mind.

 

[FaBEAR]

I don't have decent photos but Tiger likes to:
Lick my face (ouch)
Knead my hair (does NOT have a talent for hairdressing)
Nibbles my chin (ouch)
Paw my face and head (so cute)
Butt his head & cheek off my face (usually when I'm not giving him 100% focus)
Pat and stroke my whole face (claws in thankfully)

All of the above are done ONLY when he's feeling affectionate - the rest of the time he's hunting me down and trying to kill and eat me.

 

[Etarre]

Juniper is happy to lick my fingers...if they're covered with tuna, ice cream, or Portuguese cream tart. Otherwise, she's not a groomer. I do think that it's a sign of affection.

I did see an episode of Jackson Galaxy where a cat needed to lick *all the time* and his owners were trying to train him to stop. But I'd take it as a sign that she's trying to take good care of you!

 

[KarenKat]

Olive grooms herself a lot. Sometimes while sitting on my chest. If she gets really into it she includes me by licking my face or hair. It’s funny because she will get a long strand of hair and kind of get stuck licking the whole length, and she doesn’t love it. Usually one hair lick will do. She recently started headbutts.

Trin love-chomps - hard - and I think he realized recently that petting stops or slows to prevent it. So now he started gently licking once in a while instead.

Gohan suckles the BF in the crook of his elbow. We assume he is after that sweet sweet elbow milk, and one day it will flow ...

 

[MoochNNoodles]

We assume he is after that sweet sweet elbow milk, and one day it will flow ...

Wish Gohan luck.

 

[susanm9006]

After I shower Willow insists on licking one arm dry. Not sure if this is affection grooming or if she simply likes the taste of shower water. Otherwise she does not groom me or even head butt me.

 

[DreamerRose]

My angel Cucumella was veryy affectionate and had many ways of showing how much she cared but she was not a licking cat. Sombra's licking is a permanent reaction. She will lick my hand when I rub her belly, when I brush her, when I scratch her chin and so on. Some times when she sits next to the computer she will lick my hand on the mouse. I don't know how to interpret her constant need to lick.

She's being affectionate. Both Mingo and Lily lick me in a loving way. Lily will reach out and pull my hand back if I move it away. Mingo loves to climb in my arms while I'm on the computer, and he will rub his head up and down my arm while I hold him. I love these displays of affection.

 

[Sonatine]

Amelia loves to groom me. To her, my lap is as good a place as any for a bath, and she'll always alternate between licking herself and my arms/legs/hands. Occasionally she goes for my face, if she can reach it. Sometimes there'll be gentle love bites in there too (I spend a lot of time being grateful for her mother and siblings, because her bite/scratch inhibition is very good, and she never hurts me).

 

[RajaNMizu]

Raja's the family groomer. First herself and then she'll groom Mizu if she's nearby. If you pet her while she's grooming she'll oblige and start licking our hands as well.