Kitties Marching On
Cats are often depicted marching their two front paws.
Many people also refer to this phenomenon kneading.
So why do they do it? And how come they always stick their claws into you while they are doing it? The answer to the first question is quite simple.
Have you ever seen a kitten kneading on their mother's belly to make the milk come out faster? Yep, this is the exact reason that kittens continue to march throughout their entire life.
Not all cats will continue until their late years, but the vast majority will.
Humans also have this tendency for suckling as an infant, but this instinct goes away for humans.
However, cats keep their instincts from when they were a kitten which is a really neat trait.
The second questions is a little more complicated, but not much.
Cats stick their claws out when they are marching because it is part of the motion of their paws while they are needing.
As they are relaxing and tensing the muscles in their paw the claws come out and then retract.
The really neat part is that cats only march when they are extremely happy.
So when they jump up on your lap and start marching on your leg with their claws out, do not smack them off of you; they are just happy.
Try putting a pillow or blanket underneath their claws where they are kneading and it will help so their claws do not go into your skin.
If you find that your cat's kneading is causing a problem with chopping up your legs or ruining your carpet, couch or bed then clip their claws and it will make a significant difference.
They make special tools to clip cat and dogs nails so go to your local pet store and they should have the tools you need.
It is not recommended that you use human nail clippers because they are not shaped the right way to clip a cat's claws.
A cats claws need to be significantly more rounded than a humans and there is way too much of a chance that you will clip part of the nerves if you do it wrong.
So the next time you see your kitty marching, realize that this is part of their natural instinct and is just one of the many ways they are saying thank you for taking care of me.
If they were an outdoor cat that never had human contact then kneading would not occur to the same degree it happens for domesticated cats so be happy that you saved your kitty from the trauma of being 100% feral.
Many people also refer to this phenomenon kneading.
So why do they do it? And how come they always stick their claws into you while they are doing it? The answer to the first question is quite simple.
Have you ever seen a kitten kneading on their mother's belly to make the milk come out faster? Yep, this is the exact reason that kittens continue to march throughout their entire life.
Not all cats will continue until their late years, but the vast majority will.
Humans also have this tendency for suckling as an infant, but this instinct goes away for humans.
However, cats keep their instincts from when they were a kitten which is a really neat trait.
The second questions is a little more complicated, but not much.
Cats stick their claws out when they are marching because it is part of the motion of their paws while they are needing.
As they are relaxing and tensing the muscles in their paw the claws come out and then retract.
The really neat part is that cats only march when they are extremely happy.
So when they jump up on your lap and start marching on your leg with their claws out, do not smack them off of you; they are just happy.
Try putting a pillow or blanket underneath their claws where they are kneading and it will help so their claws do not go into your skin.
If you find that your cat's kneading is causing a problem with chopping up your legs or ruining your carpet, couch or bed then clip their claws and it will make a significant difference.
They make special tools to clip cat and dogs nails so go to your local pet store and they should have the tools you need.
It is not recommended that you use human nail clippers because they are not shaped the right way to clip a cat's claws.
A cats claws need to be significantly more rounded than a humans and there is way too much of a chance that you will clip part of the nerves if you do it wrong.
So the next time you see your kitty marching, realize that this is part of their natural instinct and is just one of the many ways they are saying thank you for taking care of me.
If they were an outdoor cat that never had human contact then kneading would not occur to the same degree it happens for domesticated cats so be happy that you saved your kitty from the trauma of being 100% feral.
