Kado keeps H****ing

[kado]

Didnt want to put it in the title. Kado who we cant believe is 5 and a half and he was neutered at 6 months. He has started to hump my dressing gown. If i take it off he is there humping it and its pink. My friend gave me it about 2 yrs ago and i though it was because he could smell there cats even though it was washed. I didnt think cats when they had been neuterd had the urge. We tell him too stop it but he looks at us and carries on. Is this normal for a neutered male.

[dandysmom]

I've never had that with any of the 3 neutered males I've had, but I believe it's not uncommon. Darky posted a few days about his Honey doing it. Found this on line, might be helpful:

I have a 10 y/o neutered male short hair cat who has recently begun humping everything! He drags my clothes out of the laundry basket and humps them, as well as his cat toys, pillows, blankets, etc. Seems to be anything soft and/or furry. This is an actual humping action, not just kneading. He makes odd crying sounds and just humps away. It's not only strange, but it is very irritating as he does this in the middle of the night and wakes us up.

After searching the internet and finding many stories about similar behaviors and nothing about any real solutions... I called the University of California at Davis - Small Animal Hospital of Behavior Science. I had a 10 minute consultation with a graduate student who specializes in feline behavior problems. He said that it's a common occurance in neutered male cats, that likely happens when the cat is seeking attention. This behavior can be brought on by a traumatic experience like an injury or surgery, or when a new cat or human is brought into the household. The cat that's humping is manifesting it's need for affection/attention through it's humping behavior. The humping behavior is not neccessarily a sexual behavior, it's just a physical reaction to their feelings of neediness.

The solution is to give the cat extra attention, especially when it starts with the humping behavior. Pick the cat up, talk to the cat, pet the cat, etc. In extreme situations, an anti-depressant can be prescribed for the cat (I do not support this idea), which will not only improve the cat's state of happiness but also will decrease it's sex drive (as it does in humans).

[angieh]

That's interesting Eileen - I wonder if Kado's behaviour has anything to do with the new(ish) kittens at Jane's? I am sure he is not being ignored, but perhaps he feels he is no longer the centre of attention.

[dandysmom]

That had occurred to me also, Angie. Cats psychology is really complicated ......

[kado]

He started doing it about 2 years ago when the kittens where not around only dug out the dressing gown recently. I did try to stop him today and talked to him but he carried on. Good iticle though.