suckling on toys

my 4 month old kitten angus has started to show some very odd behaviour...

he has a couple of favourite toys.
just lately he has been bringing them to me at night time.

the other morning i woke up and he was pawing my arm and purring so intensly, i looked closer and he was suckling on his toy which was rested against my arm.he was in a state of sheer bliss, and as i stroked him and asked him what he was doing he barely noticed the world around him.he carried on in this happy trance for 15 minutes.

He's since done the same to my sister the other night, and again last night when he came to bed, but this time he was suckling on a piece of my duvet cover at my shoulder.it goes on for 15-20 mins at a time, and the duvet cover/toy comes out drenched!!!!

He's obviously doing what he would have done with his mum when suckling on her, but im worried why he's suddenly doing it now, when he's obviously getting no milk.

Is he unhappy and trying to comfort himself??
or is he just showing he loves us???
it seems odd to me this behaviour has started at 4 months..he's never done it before.

im just worried mayby he was taken away too early from his mum, i bought him at 8 weeks and he was a healthy weight but im now suspicous.

has this happened to anybody else?

do u have any explanations?

many thanks

fay and angus x

8 weeks may have been a little early for him to be taken away from mom. 12 weeks is ideal. Some cats continue suckling into adulthood though, it shouldn't be a problem.

Two of my cats kneed their paws on me...I think it's because they love me and maybe they think I'm their momma. One was from the shelter and one was a stray so I don't know how old they were when they were taken from their mom.

I am currently having the same problem with our newest addition Turbo, he is now 5 months old and has been nursing on my neck since we first got him. I have managed tostop him from nursing on me, but now he has turned to suckling on the nipples of both Dusty and Squeeker. Dusty is such a laid back guy, who LOVES babies that he lets him get away with it and Squeeker suffers from severe seizures and most of the time his medicines make him a little dopey so he could care less as well. I am just annoyed by the behavior and feel bad for both Dusty and Squeeker. I have tried everything I can think of but no such luck yet-but if I run across a breakthrough idea I will definitly let you know!

When kitties suckle on other cats, it should be discouraged. Someone will end up getting fed up. Take a little cloth sack (as hissy says, the size a spool could fit in), soak it in water that has just a touch of sugar added, and give that to kitty to suckle on instead of another kitty.

If kitty is suckling on a toy, that's just fine. If you want to discourage the behavior, however, push his forehead with your finger. That's how mom cat would discourage him from suckling on her.

As to the kneading - that's very normal. When we pet our cats, they knead. All of ours do it. It just means they're blissing out.

Laurie