I was sleeping at my sister’s house the other night. Around 3 a.m. my sister’s cat named “Bella Luna” jumped up on the bed and started to eat my hair. Of course I wasn’t completely awake when she was doing this but every time I picked her up and put her down she would come right back. I don’t understand why cats would eat my hair??? I understand why they knead you and rub the side of their face up against you. The kneading is pratice of kittens in order to get milk out of their mothers and cats just never stop doing that. The face rubbing thing is to leave a scent that only cats can smell to mark you as their territory. But why would they eat my hair?
Maybe she liked the taste of your shampoo. Just a guess. I’ve never had a cat do that.
Maybe it’s something on your shampoo that attracts the cat’s attention. But cats DO eat their own fur when they clean themselves with their tongues. That’s why they’re always spitting up hairballs.
I don’t know why, but some cats do this. Be kind and gentle with the cat, BUT DO NOT let it eat your hair.
One of my cats would chew on my hair when he was a kitten. I thought it was cute until he chewed through a small lock of hair! It wasn’t enough to notice, but I didn’t let him chew on my hair anymore.
It may also have to do with some hair care product you are using. This same cat was crazy about my hairspray. When I was wearing it he would sniff it and lick my hair.
I’m sure you don’t like your sister’s cat doing this. Remember, it’s also not good for the cat. I suggest closing your door when you sleep.
My cat doesn’t eat my hair, but he likes to groom it. He’ll sit on my bed and I’ll wake up to the cat licking my head. It really doesn’t matter where on the head he is…he just licks it. He never chews it, so I just kind of laugh and move him to a different location. It’s pretty funny. I think he’s just trying to clean me. (not that I’m that dirty.) However, eating the hair is a different story…I wouldn’t like that.
Jman
My 6 year old daughter has beautiful, long hair hanging down to her hips. She just got a kitten and it loves to be with her so much that it was sleeping by making a nest in her hair. It was so bad I could hardly comb the knots out in the morning so I started having her go to sleep with her hair braided. Unfortunately, then the cat started chewing on her hair. Of course, she loves her kitty and wouldn’t dream of the little bugger being put out of her room at night. Now she sleeps with her hair in a braid and a stocking cap on her head and he leaves her hair alone, but he still sleeps on her pillow by her head. Anyway, he chewed so much of her hair I’m going to have to cut it to make it look nice again (sigh).
I think cats may chew hair for different reasons. I’ve used different shampoos on my daughter so I don’t think it was anything about hair-care products that prompted the chewing. Maybe he was just trying to get her hair out of the braid?
The hat was the only solution we could all live with, so a hat or scarf may work for you also.
My younger cat, Misty, just LOVES to chew on my hair! She grabs at it and bites at it and bats at the strands…
In fact, if I lean over to get a kiss from her (she loves to kiss), I have to hold my hair out of the way!
One of the reasons dogs and cats eat grass and other fiberous, indigestable stuff is to force intestinal worms out of their systems (it’s pretty shocking to actually see something writhing inside fluffy’s poops, let me tell 'ya).
Maybe this hair eating is some kind of weird offshoot of that instinct.
Geez, doesn’t anyone read Cecil anymore? Here’s what the Master has to say.
And just for everyone’s further enlightenment on the subject of hairballs: A couple of cat food companies make a special formula food that eliminates (or at least minimizes) the occurrence of hairballs. Thank God! I had the unfortunate habit of finding them with my bare feet.