Odd behavior

My cat, Bristol, has started doing something very odd. He rubs his nose and face along the bottom of my lampshades. The fabric on the shades is very rough so he has actually rubbed the skin off his nose in two places! The area right below his nose is getting very red and raw looking too. I'm at my wit's end. How can I stop this behavior?

I would recommend buying some Feliway. There's a "Behavior Modification Kit" that you can buy that has a few different options you can use to help in this. They have a spray that you can spray on the shade that repells kitties. It's completely safe, and I've heard loads of raves about the product (though I haven't used it myself, personally, I have heard so many absolute raves, I cannot deny that it works great). The spray will keep him from wanting to be so obsessed about the lampshade, and will save poor Bristol's nose!

Thank you so much, maherwoman. And Bristol thanks you too! I will definitely take your advice and, hopefully, it will save my little guy's beautiful nose. Thanks again.

He may have a slight allergy. Does the irritated area look to be a bit puffy or swollen? Or he could have been bit by a small house spider or insect of some kind. That maybe why he is rubbing it to the point of rubbing it raw. usually kitties scratch under the chin cause of an allergy caused by litter. This could be the same thing. You may want to call the vet for a suggestion, just to make sure he is okay. Cause if he can't sratch on the lamp shape, he might just find something else to scratch it on.

In fact, if he does continue to scratch on other things after spraying the feline repellant then you know for sure that he has an itch. But if he quits, I guess he just really likes the feel of your lamp shade.

Hope he stops rubbing himself raw!

Thanks for the advice, puppycat. To answer your question, the area under his nose is not swollen, just red and cracked, if you know what I mean. I have been putting some antiseptic cream on the area (medication that my vet previously prescribed for the problem) but he just licks it off as soon as I rub it on. I plan to get the Feliway this weekend and see if that solves the problem. I'll keep you are posted on the outcome. And, thanks again for your help and concern.

The behaviour's not odd, it's normal (except for the nose scraping part!) - he's just marking his territory and likes something rough to do it on.