Does your cat usually transfer towards the wall for a very good kick? Do they kick at it with a fast thumping sound whereas enjoying with their favourite toy? Cats can look like aloof and sophisticated creatures, and wall-kicking habits is unquestionably an odd one to show. However there are a number of the explanation why your cat may do that, in addition to why they may kick their toes in opposition to different objects (like your arm). This text will study seven the explanation why your cat kicks the wall and different objects and what their kicking again legs might imply.
The 7 Causes Why Your Cat Is Kicking the Wall
1. They Are Marking
Cats talk in numerous methods, together with by means of sounds, physique language, and pheromones. Cats have scent glands dotted throughout their our bodies and a few highly effective ones on their toes. These glands, known as interdigital glands, sit between your cat’s toes and launch pheromones when their claws are prolonged.
Stretching their legs out and kicking a wall (significantly on the nook) might imply that your cat is spreading a few of this pheromone across the dwelling, serving to them really feel joyful and secure. The pheromone launched from a cat’s pads once they kick helps them mark their territory, designating the house as their very own to different potential cats and reassuring themselves. Offering them with a cat scratcher can shield your partitions whereas offering your cat with the means to carry out this vital habits.
2. They’re Enjoying
Cats have a signature kicking “transfer” that may be hilarious to watch once they’re enjoying however not so humorous when it entails the wall or your arm! “Bunny kicking” is the time period used to explain this weird habits, wherein a cat will curl round one thing, comparable to a nook of a wall or a favourite toy, and kick at it in a bouncing movement with their again legs.
Bunny kicking is available in two varieties: playfulness (like they’d play with their littermates as kittens) and aggression. It’s doubtless that in case your cat is curled across the nook of a wall, bunny-kicking and biting it, it’s doubtless the play-kicking you’re seeing. Nevertheless, generally a cat will kick laborious and chew, presumably leaving gouges within the wall. That is doubtless aggression, and you’ll redirect it by providing (or throwing) your cat a toy that’s particularly designed to fulfill the sort of play, comparable to a kicker.
3. They Have to Scratch
Cats have to scratch as a part of innate habits. Innate implies that it’s a habits the animal should carry out to be joyful, and never doing so may cause them stress and even hurt. Scratching is an innate habits for cats, because it’s one of many essential methods they mark their territory (together with spraying), and it additionally fulfills a bodily want.
Cats additionally scratch to maintain their claws well-filed and take away previous claw sheaths to disclose contemporary and sharp new claws beneath. Your cat may be kicking and scratching on the wall to take away these previous sheaths. You’ll be able to present it with a vertically mounted cat scratcher to alleviate this pure urge if they like a straight, flat floor to scratch on.
4. They’ve a Good Stretch
In case you have sunny areas within the dwelling, the possibilities are you’ve seen your cat stretch out on a heat floor within the solar to bask and relieve rigidity. Cats are the identical as people in that they undergo fatigue and ache in joints and muscle tissue¹ once they’ve been inactive for a while. Some cats wish to have a tough floor to stretch and arch their backs, like a wall.
5. There’s One thing Caught in Their Paws
In case your cat is backing up onto your wall and is kicking and shaking their again legs wildly, it could have one thing caught in its paws or between its toes. Some cats have tufts of hair between their toes that may be a straightforward place for particles (often cat litter) to develop into caught and really irritating for a cat.
Lengthy-haired breeds comparable to Maine Coons and Norwegian Forest cats can have very lengthy hair between their toes, which means litter is commonly caught. Kicking and shaking their again legs or kicking them onto a wall may be one of many methods your cat tries to take away this particles, significantly smaller objects like grains of litter which are more durable to take away with common grooming.
You’ll be able to gently restrain your cat so you may have a look at its paws and between its pads to take away the offending object and examine if a extra extreme harm has occurred. In case your cat has inured itself, take them to a vet as quickly as attainable since paw pads are very delicate, and an harm is more likely to be painful.
6. They Need Your Consideration
Some cats crave their proprietor’s consideration greater than others and may get inventive with how they attempt to get it. Some cats meow, some do cute methods like patting their heads with their paws, and a few will go on the hunt and convey their proprietor again “presents” of killed prey. One cat, nonetheless, discovered to knock¹ on their proprietor’s door with their again toes to be let in! So, it’s not out of the realm of chance that your cat is solely kicking the wall with their toes as a result of they understand it will get your consideration.
In case your cat did this by chance at some point and also you reacted to it (both positively or negatively), there’s an opportunity that they related the kicking with the eye. They’ll use the kicking as a type of attention-seeking, and one of the simplest ways to fight that is to disregard your cat once they do that.
7. They Have a Neurological Dysfunction
Generally, there may be extra sinister the explanation why your cat could possibly be kicking the wall. Neurological problems may cause a cat to carry out weird behaviors resulting from degeneration of illness of the mind, spinal wire, and nervous system. One such illness is feline hyperesthesia (or twitchy cat syndrome), which is debated amongst veterinary professionals however is especially seen as a seizure dysfunction or behavioral dysfunction attributable to intense stress.
The first indicators of hyperesthesia are a attribute “rolling” of the pores and skin on the again, leaping and kicking, and frantic biting on the base of the tail. One other attainable neurological trigger for wall-kicking is any illness that causes muscle jerks or ataxia, comparable to seizure problems (epilepsy) or nerve harm. For those who discover any new or alarming habits (together with wall kicking), take your cat to the veterinarian as quickly as attainable to allow them to rule out any sickness or illness. They’ll additionally advise you in your cat’s habits.
Why Does My Cat Kick My Arm?
In case your cat fortunately performs with you and innocently rolls over to indicate their stomach, this may look like an invite to stroke them there. Whereas some cats will gladly permit their homeowners to stroke their tummies, many will immediately wrap their paws round their proprietor’s arms and bunny-kick them with their hind legs. This may be painful! The explanation for that is twofold: for self-defense functions and a part of their looking habits.
A cat’s stomach is certainly one of its most delicate areas. In the event that they have been defending territory from an aggressor (e.g., one other cat), their stomach is an space of sentimental pores and skin and vulnerability. Mendacity on their facet leaves them with all 4 paws and claws to defend themselves. When looking, cats will use the bunny kick to maintain their prey tightly inside their grasp, and the motion and sharpness of their claws can end the hunt rapidly.
How Can I Cease My Cat From Kicking?
Stopping your cat from kicking will rely upon the rationale they’re doing so. On the lookout for physique language that supersedes aggressive behaviors, comparable to dilated pupils and flattened ears, might help you anticipate an assault. Both stopping the play or giving your cat a toy to kick can cease them from hurting you. In case your cat has a favourite spot they wish to kick, making an attempt a preventative like a repellant spray might help, in addition to putting pure repellants like orange or lemon peel across the space.
If it’s scratching-related, discovering a scratcher your cat likes is essential to defending your partitions from their sharp claws. Vertical scratchers, horizontal scratches, or extra conventional scratching posts are all good concepts, and you will have to check out a number of to seek out out which fits your cat finest.
Conclusion
There are a lot of the explanation why your cat may resolve to kick your wall. It may be random, purposeful, or opportunistic, however it may be irritating for homeowners once they don’t know what’s inflicting it. We’ve explored seven attainable the explanation why your cat kicks your wall and checked out some methods of stopping this from occurring. We hope you’ve discovered this text informative and helped you uncover what’s going by means of your kitty’s head once they start kicking at your wall.
Featured Picture Credit score: Irina Bobreshova, Shutterstock