Why does my orphaned kitten constantly groom my ears and other cats'?

Your cat may be trying to bond with your younger cat, and this is normal and healthy. Make certain you don't see any signs of skin infection or ear mites or other physical issue going on, however, that would require veterinary attention. Sometimes ear infections will trigger excessive grooming among pets.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is normal cat behavior. Grooming each other is natural. As long as Mowgli isn't bothered by it and Lola isn't obsessive it is fine. I'm glad that they love each other so much! I hope this helps and I wish you all the best!

If only Tatzel could talk! I recommend to treat her for fleas to rule out parasites because they can often present like this. After the treatment, if the behavior occurs for another 2-4 weeks, then it's time to start looking for other causes of itching. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

What cute kitties! I would discourage this behavior by removing the kitten each time this occurs and trying to distract him with something else- a fun toy or treat. Also giving him some time alone so he develops some independent from his sibling can be helpful. A feliway pheromone diffuser may also be helpful if the suckling is a nervous response. You can also put a little shirt/sweater on the kitten getting suckled to make it tougher for the suckler to get to him!

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. It is more likely that the stress of the new kitten has caused the overgrooming to occur again, vs. a wax/wane situation. Try Feliway diffusers to decrease the stress in the house, and make sure you have enough litter boxes (# cats + 1 = number of litter boxes), and a place for Lucky to hide that is 'kitten free'. If the overgrooming continues you can talk to your vet about medications such as Cloicalm. Best of luck with Lucky!

It sounds like this may be a soothing technique that he continued from kitten hood. The comfort he obtains may be similar to nursing. If you don’t want this behavior to continue then every time he starts I would remove yourself from the situation. Overtime it will become less and less. Best of luck and thank you for using Pet Coach.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Nico. This can be a common behavior in cats. It can be related to dental pain. I recommend checking his mouth for any bad breath, tartar or gingivitis or a broken tooth. This can also happen when a patient is nauseous. Has he recently vomited, been drooling or experienced a lack of appetite? If not, his behavior likely not concerning. Many cats will do this as an extension of grooming. It can be a compulsive habit or just a random behavior the cat will display from time to time. Assess him for the problems that I have mentioned. However, if he is otherwise healthy, then it shouldn't be a problem for him. I hope this information helps!