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Why Does My Cat Hug My Leg? (Craving Attention?)

If your cat is hugging your leg you may be wondering why this is happening, if this is normal, and if you can prevent it happing…

Why does my cat hug my leg?

Your cat will hug your leg for several reasons. Some of the most common reasons as a call for attention, a sign it wants to play, and a comfortable position while it sleeps in your bed. Unless it’s biting or scratching aggressively it’s likely to have good intentions.

So, now you know. But, how can you prevent this? Do some cats copy your hugging behavior? Should you avoid rough play with these cats? Keep reading for these answers, and much more…

3 Reasons why cats hug your leg:

Earlier I gave you a high-level selection of reasons why your cat may hug your leg. In this section I will give you more detail on each of these:

01. Craves affection

When a cat grabs you in this way, for a hug, it often wants or craves affection. It knows that meowing may not always get its point across so it will do this as a more direct way to indicate its intentions. And, in the hope that you will reciprocate.

02. Wants to play

As your cat gets bored, especially if it’s an indoor cat, it may just want to play with you. This tends to happen when you don’t play with it enough, in your cat’s opinion, and this is called for you to play with it.

03. Comfort while they sleep

If your cat is sleeping and you happen to be near it there is a chance it will hug onto your leg like this just for comfort. It will appreciate being near you while it sleeps and feel secure around you.

How can you prevent your cat from hugging your leg?

If your cat is hugging your leg and you have had enough of it you may be keen to find some ways to get it to stop. Here are some suggestions:

01. Distraction

The first way to stop this is to use distraction. If your cat is about to, or just about to hug you, simply distract it. This can be done by throwing a fun cat toy (Click here to see the reviews, on Amazon #Ad) in the opposite direction. Your cat will run after it and forget about its hugging game.

02. Cover your legs

One of the issues people have with this leg hugging is the damage or scratches it does to their legs. You can avoid this by simply covering your legs. I understand your cat can, and may still try to hug you. But, if it has been leaving scratches this will prevent that.

03. Positive reinforcement

Another method is to train your cat not to do it using positive reinforcement. This entails rewarding your cat with a cat treat (Click here to see the price, on Amazon #Ad) when they respond positively.

The idea is to make them enjoy being rewarded in this way when they behave and in time, with persistence, there is a good chance they will be trained to do what you want for the pleasure of the reward.

Do some cats copy you hugging?

Some cats are known to hug to copy you. The theory is they watch you greeting and smiling at friends and family and emulate your behavior. There are known studies that I know to support this, but this could be one logical reason as t why they may do this.

Cats are often more intelligent than we give them credit for. Therefore, they may be taking in more than we think they are, which could include the hugging we do.

Do cats mean to scratch your leg when they hug?

Some cats may scratch your leg but do not intend to harm you. Many of them, that hug their owner’s leg, often understand that your skin is soft and fragile and will hold in their claws and teeth to not hurt you. There could be a chance that its still working this out and will stop in time.

Unfortunately, there are some cats that either does not get the fact it hurts you, or simply do not care. And, those are the ones that tend to cause the most hassle.

Do cats hug legs if you ignore or neglect them?

Cats are known to hug legs if you ignore or neglect them. This may be their way of getting your attention because they are being starved of it. However, they may also do this if you are focused on another activity and they are feeling jelous.

Your cat knows that if it grabs your leg in this way it will definitely get your attention and in most cases it works. Even if you react negatively, which isn’t advised, it will still see this as a win because it got your attention and make it feel inclined to use this tactic again in the future.

Why does my cat cuddle my leg?

If you wake up in the night to find your cat cuddling your leg it is mainly because it want to be near you. This is common when cats sleep in your bed or hop on top of you while you are on the couch relaxing.

So, if you have ever seen your cat grabbing your leg for dear life while you take a nap you now have a logical reason why this is happeing.

Why would your cat hug your leg and lightly bite?

If your cat is lightly biting your leg, or arm, it is likely to be a way for it to playfight with you. It knows that if it bites down too hard it will hurt you, so it will just do enough to know it want to play rough without hurting you. This is sometimes allon with it hugging your leg.

Dogs, as well as cats are known to do this and usually know how far to go withought causing you pain. You may find they do hurt you accidently while they learn their boundaries, maybe as kittens, but they will soon learn how far to go.

Why does my cat attack my legs for no reason?

Your cat may attack your legs for no reason as a form of redirected aggression. This can happen when they are exited or anxious about something else, such as a rival cat outside that they can’t get to. When this happens it will seem like a random attack from your perspective.

Think of it this way, have you ever been upset and started acting off with a friend, or lover? Well, this is a similar response your cat may be exhibiting.

Should you avoid rough play to stop your cat from biting?

If your cat has a habit of biting you you should definitely avoid rough play. Some cats find it hard to draw the line between playing and heated aggression. So, to protect yourself, its best to avoid this kind of playfighting because it can easily prokoke it.