My cat does not clean itself - Causes and what to do

Author: Peter Berry
Date Of Creation: 16 February 2021
Update Date: 13 November 2024
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We all know that cats spend a good part of their day licking themselves for hygiene reasons, it's the famous cat bath. It is estimated that they spend about 30% washing yourself. Cats learn this behavior from an early age, being with their mother, and they will not stop doing it throughout their lives. However, there are cats that do not wash themselves, either because they have not learned or have an innate behavior or because they suffer from diseases or disorders that lead to a lack of cleaning.

In this article by PeritoAnimal, we will address the causes that may explain why a cat doesn't wash and what to do in each case.

Why do cats lick themselves?

Cat licking is not pure hobby or boredom, but responds to survival instincts. It's a custom they learn from the time they're with their mother, when she licks them and they see how it's done.


Cats wash themselves, in addition to maintaining hygiene and the good condition of their fur, for the following reasons:

1. Thermoregulation

Cats sweat for their pillows, not their body surface, as they lack sweat glands there. For this reason, the lick refresh the cats when temperatures are high, maintaining your body temperature and preventing heat stroke.

2. Protection against external agents

The tongue of cats has small spines or spikes that are very useful for trapping dirt, parasites and germs that can cause harm or disease.

Performing this behavior every day, they prevent a series of dermatological and systemic conditions, while stimulating blood flow and, with it, the strength and shine of your coat. However, with this they also hold a lot of loose hair which, if it is abundant or has diseases that predispose the accumulation of hair in the digestive tract, can form fur balls which in some cases end up in obstructions that require surgery to be removed.


3. Maintains a neutral body odor

When cats wash, in addition to removing the aforementioned remains, eliminate more personal, intense or different odors that can be detected by possible predators. This is carried in the genes by descending from the wild desert cat, which lived in complete freedom, was a predator and prey to other animals.

4. Tranquility

When cats start cleaning themselves somewhere, it indicates that they feel comfortable and at peace, so they perform this behavior to relax. It is a clear sign that they are doing it for tranquility, but also to indicate that another animal or person they are "ignoring" or "surrendering".

5. Affection

If two cats get along, it's not uncommon to see them licking each other. It is a sign of love and affection that they perform among welcome individuals of the species to strengthen bonds and to demonstrate affection. They can also do the same to humans.


Why doesn't my cat clean up?

The reasons mentioned above are the ones that lead us to understand the behavior of a cat licking itself. However, the problem that concerns us here is just the opposite: why doesn't a cat clean itself or stop doing it? When a kitten a few months old, separated from its mother and recently adopted, never cleans itself, it is something strange and disconcerting for this species. In these cases, you might think he did not learn the behavior from his mother for the following reasons:

  • mother's death: if the mother dies during childbirth or after a few days, the cats will be raised without a figure to teach them this and other behaviors typical of the species.
  • rejection by mother: if the mother is alive but rejects them, they will also have to be bottle-fed and will not learn the behavior.
  • early separation from the mother: if they are separated a few days or weeks after birth, they will not have time to learn the behavior. In this other article, we'll talk about when kittens can be separated from their mother.
  • mother who doesn't lick herself: sometimes, the cat can have puppies just at a time when she is developing some disease that makes her not want to lick herself. Therefore, kittens, who will not see her example, will not learn to lick themselves clean.

Why doesn't my adult cat lick itself?

When a caregiver notices the disappearance of the cat's licking behavior, when he has always done so and asks himself, "Why doesn't my cat clean itself?" The answer can be explained by the following illnesses or problems that cause the interruption of self-hygiene in adults:

  • dental problems: Teeth fractures or infections cause pain and rejection of washing in cats.
  • oral problems: Diseases that cause infection or inflammation in the mouth, such as gingivitis or feline chronic gingivostomatitis, cause pain and cause cats to stop licking themselves to avoid it. In addition to stopping licking, they also stop eating solid food for the same reason.
  • Obesity: when a cat has a high body condition, movement is limited and cannot lick itself as it would with an ideal body condition.
  • arthrosis: the degenerative process of the joints, typical of age, causes discomfort and pain that can hinder or impede the cat's normal licking action.
  • Backache: Low back pain can also make the cat not want to lick itself to avoid the painful twinges.
  • fractures: bone fractures, whether mandibular, thoracic, pelvic or vertebrae, prevent licking by reducing movement and associated pain.
  • senile dementia: With age, cats can develop dementia and forget behaviors such as licking.

My cat does not clean the anus

If a cat does not clean the anus but continues to clean the rest of the body, this could indicate that has a problem where it causes pain to touch, such as swollen glands, perianal tumor, hernias, wounds, or fistulas. Both in these cases and in the previous ones, it is necessary to go to the veterinary clinic.

What to do if my cat doesn't lick itself

When the cat doesn't clean itself because it didn't learn from its mother, regardless of the cause, we can try to teach this behavior ourselves. So if you're wondering how to teach a cat to clean itself, try to do the following:

  • Wipe wet cloths through some areas of its coat, so the cat will notice that something is happening and will try to get the moisture out, and may take this behavior as a habit for the future.
  • apply malt on some part of the paws or other easy-to-clean area so you can see what licking is all about. Discover all the benefits of malt for cats in this article.

Cats are very clean, so when they notice how clean the licked area is, many begin to clean themselves.

Now, if your cat doesn't wash due to an illness, it should go to the vet to be diagnosed and treated as quickly as possible, in order to restore the animal's quality of life and get it to resume this behavior that is so necessary for it.

And if you want to understand even more about why a cat doesn't clean itself, don't miss the following video from our YouTube channel: