It looks quite weird when your kitty starts biting during any grooming session, but the good news is that this behavior of your kitty is absolutely natural. However, you can’t stop this habit on the spot; you need to adopt some prevention rules to discourage your cat from this behavior. But again, you must learn the major causes of why cats bite themselves when grooming.
All these key aspects will be discussed in this guide, and our expert vet will try to educate you about this self-grooming habit of your cat and how you can stop your kitty from excessive licking. So, stay tuned and keep reading!
A Quick Review of Cats Biting in Grooming
Some cats bite themselves or others due to some anxiety situations. There are also some grooming activities and skin diseases in which your kitty will frequently lick their coat. You should regularly visit the vet, try preventive medicines, or schedule some positive habits to prevent this abnormal behavior from your cats.
Always be gentle with your kitty friend on any abnormal habit! The same scenario is here; you can softly instruct your cat to leave this licking or biting habit.
Understanding Why Cats Bite Themselves and Others
The cats bite themselves or others in an anxious mood. You will notice your kitty licking or nibbling its body parts or fur during any grooming activity. May be your cat tries to groom itself or clean some of the ugly parts of its body. The irritation of various allergies also forces your kitty to do so. However, too many bites also lead to pain and skin damage.
If you can’t control this situation, there is a certain chance that your cat may go under extreme stress and you will suddenly notice some serious health issues. But then again, you shouldn’t worry much about this abnormal state of affairs because Groombrug’s team is also ready to help you. Let’s move on!
Why do Cats Bite Themselves When They Groom– 6 Major Reasons
Everyone knows that a cat bites itself while grooming, but most of you don’t know its exact causes. Even many cat owners don’t know why do cats bite themselves. Our experts will give you the right knowledge and reveal the major reasons for cat licking during cleaning.
As nobody knows this fact, let our vet reveal here why cats bite themselves when grooming. The following are the main causes of why cats bite themselves or others:
1. Try to Clean to Themselves
The main reason for this behavior in your kitty is they try to clean their topcoat. Most cats want to groom themselves and are also quite experts in this hobby as well. Some of them also clean the fur on their coats with their tongue. The long haired cat breeds mostly pick up their loose hair and remove some dirt particles themselves. In this situation, your cat may start biting or licking their topcoat.
Good news is that it works well in most cases. You don’t need to brush your kitty very often as they eliminate the excessive fur on their own with this biting habit.
2. Grooming is a Learned Behavior
Many cats learn grooming art at earlier ages. This behavior helps the kittens do self-grooming and clean some of their body parts with their tongue. Your cat may do some biting or licking of its fur in this learning process.
Besides this, they are flexible enough to approach all hard-to-access spots of their body and prevent tangled hairs on their own. If your kitten learns these grooming skills and successfully applies them to their coats, you just need to give your a quick bath to your furry friend. So, this licking and biting at an early stage helps you in many ways but here, make sure that your cat will not damage their skin.
3. Your Kitty Loves the Best Shape of their Coat
As you know, cats love self-grooming and always try to maintain their topcoat in the best shape. They try to lick their fur or throw away the dead hairs differently. There are so many advantages of this licking or nibbling habit. It will never tangle their hair and also discourage matted fur.
If your kitty licks this fur correctly, it will also maintain its sheen and circular the blood perfectly. So, this licking habit can improve the topcoat and fur of your cat.
4. Grooming is Soothing
A perfect grooming routine will give great comfort to your kitty. Once you have removed the excess fur and given your furry cat a short haircut, it is a peaceful act from your side.
Now, your cat may start thinking about giving this comfort, and you will notice excessive licking, biting, or hair chewing all the time. Moreover, if you can’t keep this situation under your control, then your cat may go into deeper stress and adopt this behavior permanently.
5. Licking is a Survival Instinct
Sometimes the cats lick their fur with their tongue and enjoy its taste. It doesn’t mean that your kitty wants to eat their hair; your furry friend has just eaten something, and the scent is still left in their fur, so your cat bites for eating purposes. Your kitten has a survival instinct which is going wild. There is a surprising chance that your cat is licking due to this reason.
6. Your Kitty Wants to Stay Cool
Your cat might lick their coat to control the temperature or stay cool. If you are residing in a humid area, you will surely notice the saliva evaporating from the topcoat and fur of your kitty. In this scenario, your cat will surely be licking their fur to keep it cool. This behavior of your cat will protect your cat’s coat from various allergies, so the owners shouldn’t worry about it.
Prevent your Cat from Biting – How to Help an Overgroomed Kitty?
After understanding the main reasons for this cat grooming behavior, you should also prevent this situation, especially when your cat keeps biting in every grooming activity. Most cats bite themselves and others when overgrooming or take excessive cleaning time.
Your kitty’s anxiety will increase over time and your cat keeps licking and biting for no reason, even if you are trying to stop this attitude. Actually, you can’t straightaway break the situation or break the habit on the spot. In fact, you must adopt some routine prevention rules to discourage this habit in your furry friend.
Now, let’s learn these important points here:
1. Regular Visits to the Vet
If you keep in touch with your cat’s vet and follow their instructions, you can easily control your kitten’s biting and licking behavior. The vet will check your cat’s skin condition, any wound pain in the coat, or allergies. It will reduce this licking habit to a greater extent. If you follow this routine at the earlier age of your kitten, then there is very little chance that your cat will hold this habit in older age.
2. Maintain the Right Routines to Decrease Stress
Most pet owners forget to maintain the daily routine of their cats due to other important commitments. This will build some serious stress in your kitty’s mind, and you will find they start licking or biting themselves and others as well.
It is better to make a proper schedule for your kitty as well and try to follow it. Your cat has a separate playtime, food routine, and walk schedule. In this way, you can keep an eye on your kitty, and your cat doesn’t get time to lick or bite anything.
3. Try Preventive Medicine
You can easily get preventive medicines specifically made for the licking problem of your older cat or new kitten from the local health store. A vaccination schedule for habitual kitties can be followed after discussing it with the vet. You can also give some feline nutrition to your cat suffering from various biting problems.
4. Calm your Cat with Positive Environment
As a cat owner, it’s your responsibility to provide a safe and secure environment for your pet. Suppose your cat feels positive atmosphere to express its emotional and physical imperatives. In that case, it will surely reduce the anxiety in your cat’s mind, and you will not see any more licking or biting issues in your kitty.
You can also add some entertainment to your cat’s living. You can also play a few minutes with cats or take them for a short walk session so that your pet will spend some entertaining hours in their daily routine. It will surely prevent this biting habit from your kitty.
5. Be Patient with your Cat
Here, let me introduce bonus prevention: nobody may tell you that you should never show aggression towards your furry cat and always be patient while talking to them. If you constantly stay gentle with your kitty friend, your cat will surely start trusting and following you. Further, you can softly instruct your cat not to bite or lick anyone. Over time, your cat will leave this abnormal habit.
Frequently Asked Questions about Cats Biting
What is cat anxiety?
Your furry cat might be stressed, and you may notice various reactions or surprising behavior of anxious cats. If you notice increased movement, biting their body parts, or hiding from strangers, your cat is in an anxious mood.
Do cats get embarrassed?
Your kitty will get embarrassed more quickly than other pets, and you will see very complex emotions in your cats in this mood. Although figuring out the exact reason for this embarrassment is tough, you can control their stress with more attention and care.
Why do cats bite their paws when grooming?
You may expect normal nail chewing activity of your cat while grooming. The excited cats mostly notice to lick their paws, which is a normal behavior of your pet. The cat owners shouldn’t worry much about it.
Why is my cat biting himself?
Your cat may bite or lick its body parts. This disorder conduct is due to anxiety or boredom in kitties. As a pet owner, it’s your responsibility to remove this stress and give a comfortable environment. However, if you see this behavior in your cats during a grooming session, then it’s a normal thing.
How do I stop my cat from biting himself?
Whenever the teeth of your kitty touch the human skin, your cat will stop biting himself quickly. So, it’s a great practice to offer to bite your body while playing with your cat to discourage cats from biting themselves.
Do cats bite themselves when stressed?
Most cats bite themselves during anxiety time or any other stress-related disorder. You can’t stop this behavior of your kitty in a single go; rather you should help your cat to calm down or give them a relaxing place to stop biting themselves.
Do cats bite themselves when they groom?
Most cats like to nibble, lick or even bite themselves during grooming. Even you notice abnormal activities while brushing your cats or finding the flea in their fur. However, you shouldn’t think much about it and carry on with your grooming process.
Is Cat Biting a Natural Behavior – The Bottom Line
Here, the good news is that cat biting is usually a normal behavior. You shouldn’t worry about any health or mental issue in your furry friend. Still, it is important to find out the major causes of why do cats bit themselves when grooming and how you can stop this habit of excessive cat bites in your kitty.
Make sure that you have adopted our key prevention rules in your daily routine because you can’t stop your cat from biting on the spot. The routine practices will surely help discourage this habit in your cat for life.