Unneutered male kitten becomes erect when washing self. Normal behaviour?

[scarlettleia]

Hi all! Just after a little advice. I'm sure I'm probably overthinking it and the answer is fairly obvious but for my own peace of mind, I wanted to check.

Percy is a 5 month old male, unneutered indoor kitten. He's very energetic, playful, seems to use the litterbox perfectly normally and generally is pretty good at cleaning himself. We noticed every now and again that he gets a little stinky around the tail end (It's happened maybe 4 times) and I've put it down to the possibility that he might be maturing and spraying (There're a few strays in our area that like to hover around our house).

Recently I noticed that when he's washing himself down below, his little lipstick pops up to say hello. It goes away as soon as he's done washing and doesn't look inflamed or anything.

He's eating and drinking perfectly normally, and I've noticed that on occasion he tries to bite at Elizabeth's neck (playfully, it seems, she's not bothered at all and just walks away or lets him get on with it)

Is it likely that this behaviour is due to sexual maturity? Will it settle down once he's neutered? Could he be sensing strays outside that could be in heat and reacting to it?

We recently lost Philip to a bladder blockage which is why I am probably overcautious about this behaviour.

 

[susanm9006]

It is related to sexual maturity somewhat but it may not go away when he is neutered. I wouldn’t worry about it, just give him his privacy when he is doing his “grooming”.

 

[scarlettleia]

It is related to sexual maturity somewhat but it may not go away when he is neutered. I wouldn’t worry about it, just give him his privacy when he is doing his “grooming”.

As long as its nothing to worry about then he can crack on with whatever pleases him then hahaha.

 

[fionasmom]

It did not go away with my GSD once he was neutered and he was neutered at a very young age in order for him to be released from the rescue who had him in MO. It continued for years, finally stopped in old age, never caused any medical issues for him, so we just let it be. I love the British royalty names; I do the same thing, oddly enough.

 

[scarlettleia]

It did not go away with my GSD once he was neutered and he was neutered at a very young age in order for him to be released from the rescue who had him in MO. It continued for years, finally stopped in old age, never caused any medical issues for him, so we just let it be. I love the British royalty names; I do the same thing, oddly enough.

Thankfully it doesn't bother us in the slightest. Boys will be boys, nature and all that, so long as it's not some sort of discomfort or anything then happy days!

Thank you! We toyed with Charles, Harry and William for Percy but none of them felt right when we said them to him, so he ended up being Percival, which I suppose still ties into the theme well enough! If we have another girl at any point, she'll be Victoria.

 

[Willowy]

They do have to get it clean, you know!

In dogs, when you see the "red rocket", that isn't necessarily an erection. It's just peeking out of the sheath. Apparently if you see a dog erection, you definitely know it. I don't know if it's the same with cats (since they don't swell/tie like dogs do) but I'm sure they don't always have to have an erection in order for it to come out of the sheath.

 

[fionasmom]

Orlando was much more than peeking out, but it still did not do any harm.

I have had William, Kate, Victoria, Camilla, Alice, Alix, and Clementine (flower girl to Princess Diana). Scottish cats Fiona and Jamie. Definitely a British Isles theme here.

 

[scarlettleia]

Orlando was much more than peeking out, but it still did not do any harm.

I have had William, Kate, Victoria, Camilla, Alice, Alix, and Clementine (flower girl to Princess Diana). Scottish cats Fiona and Jamie. Definitely a British Isles theme here.

They're all such beautiful names! Are you british yourself, or just a fan?

 

[fionasmom]

I have always been an Anglophile, even as a child....past life? My other go to names for animals are from literature and I spent most of Pangur Ban's life explaining who he was named after.

 

[scarlettleia]

I have always been an Anglophile, even as a child....past life? My other go to names for animals are from literature and I spent most of Pangur Ban's life explaining who he was named after.

I'm Irish and even I had to look that one up ;'DD