Kitten still suckeling

[luvlucky]

We adopted a 9 week old kitten and he is still suckling. He is now 12 weeks old and nothing is working on getting him to stop. We have tried distracting him, spraying him with water and just removing him from us when it starts and nothing seems to be working. Any advise? Will he eventually stop?

 

[p3 and the king]

It's probably more of a "security blanket" thing.  Like some kids suck their thumbs.  It won't cause him any harm.  What's he suckeling?  Himself?  Another cat?  I say if the other cat is letting him, just leave it be.  He may have been weaned too soon or he may have endured some trauma.  He'll probably grow out of it on his own.  Please don't discipline him or spray him with a spray bottle.  I don't like that method.  It is useless and doesn't help at all.  I know it's creepy but just leave him be and he'll probably get over it on his own soon enough.  12 weeks old is not that old.... King Arthur and Morgan La Fays mom let them "security nurse" until they were over 4 months old.

 

[luvlucky]

Thank you for the response, but He is suckling on me & my husband. We are the only things he wants to suck on. That is where our frustration is coming from I guess. If it were a toy or blanket I wouldn't mind but..

 

[p3 and the king]

Well, if it's that much of a bother, my advice is to just put him down and not make a big fuss about it.  No spray bottles because that will only further his confusion and security issues.  He may be trying to bond with you, too.  Did they give you any information on him when you adopted him?  Sounds like he was taken from mommy too soon. 

 

[missymotus]

Kittens should stay with their mum until at least 12 weeks of age, so he's comfort nursing on you instead. Please don't spray him with water, he's not doing anything wrong.

He will likely outgrow it, until then either let him go or move him away.

 

[violetxx]

Our 2 yr old suckles the blankets on our laps or on top of our stomachs either in the morning (like having an automatic cat alarm) or when she's feeling cuddly, she only suckles fabric that is squished into ripples or little mounds. I adore it, and if that's how she wants to show affection, I'm down as long as she doesn't start eating fabric, i.e. pica.

Its impossible for us to know the childhood of our cats, some believe suckling in adult cats is genetic (birmans and siamese are more prone to it) whereas others believe its from a traumatic upbringing and they suckle as a means of saying 'I feel safe and happy'.

We also have a cat who outgrew it, so it is possible that he may stop, and its also possible that he won't, but either way you shouldn't discipline a cat for showing affection, possibly the only way he knows how.. All cats are different and you should not try and change him because he does not fit your cookie cutter view of how cats should behave.  

 

[catnamedpanda]

Penelope sometimes wants to suck on my earlobe at bedtime. All I do is pull her down to my chest and give her a finger instead. She is happy and falls asleep pretty fast. Its just for comfort even if she doesn't out grow it, its not a habit that is hurting me or her. Delilah on rare occasions wants to suckle, and she is also happy just to have a finger.

 

[pugsanonymous]

My 7 year-old still tries to suckle on my right earlobe almost every morning and occasionally when we've been separated for many hours. I asked my vet and he said she's comforting herself, might think of me as her "mother" and as long as it doesn't bother *me* there isn't any harm. So.... I let her do it sometimes.

 

[thekittysaver]

I've seen many adult cats and kittens do this. The kitten I have now was maybe 4 weeks when we rescued her. She isn't doing it yet but I expect her too. My sisters adult cat suckles on whoever pets him. He had a traumatic exp when he was a baby and the mother left him. If a cat is going to do this, there may not be anything you can do to stop it. He may or may not grow out of it. Just hope for the best and love him the same if he doesn't grow out of it.