When Do Kittens’ Eyes Change Color? And Why do Cats Nurse on Sweaters?
Dear Dr Barchas,
At what age does a kitten’s eye color change from its babyhood deep blue? I’ve never been sure of my cat’s age exact age, and suspect she was weaned too early, like, at four weeks. To this day four years later she is still attached to one particular sweater of mine, she kneads and suckles, her pupils dilated til she looks all soft eyed.
Ana
Denver, CO
Kittens’ eyes generally change color between two and three months of age. However, in this matter like all aspects of maturing there are individual variations. Some kittens mature earlier than others. And some kittens keep their blue eyes into adulthood (think Siamese).
Experts in animal behavior generally believe that kneading and suckling are adult manifestations of juvenile behaviors. The theory is that kneading and suckling are like a feline version of thumb sucking. The behaviors generally are harmless. I have no explanation for why your cat prefers one sweater over other objects. I have yet to see any compelling evidence that links adult suckling behavior to early weaning.
Experts in animal behavior also generally believe that living among humans is an adult manifestation of juvenile behavior in cats. If this is true (and I recognize that some people may not accept it), then kneading and suckling simply are points further along the same scale of behavior that allows cats to be our companions.
You have questions. 
Our tortiseshell kitten had orange eyes when we took her home at around 8 weeks of age. Over the next few months they slowly turned green. I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it. She was also short-haired when we got her then her coat exploded (tail first), and now it’s medium-long.
Pip kneading on jumpers isn’t just a kitten thing. My current cat
Ka – zar is 11 years old and still does it. We live in a very cold place at night so suspect he does it to keep warm. I keep a pile of jumpers on my bed for Ka – zar to sleep on.
I have a 3 year old Cocker/Pekinese mix that sheds excessively. I feed her Canade dry dog food and she has been eating that since we got her as a puppy. She also eats raw carrots as a treat and Wellness Chicken jerky treats. She doesn’t get any “people” food other than the carrots and sometimes Broccoli and Cauliflower.
She does have an issue with some anxiety when either my husband or I leave the house without her. She will race to every window to see where we are going and chase her tail and get quite upset until we come in. If we both leave for a few hours she watches us through the window and seems to settle down after we are gone. She has never destroyed anything in the house and is just fine when we come home, often coming to the door and stretching as if she’s been taking a nap.
What could be causing this shedding? She also seemed to have some allergies this summer, where her eyes would get some green matter in them. She would walk in some tall weeds and the next days her eyes would have the green pus in them. That has since passed and her eyes are fine.
I have a 7 year old Burmese mix, Bella. Wnen I brought her home from the pet shop she was approx. 2 1/2 months old. Within one week she started kneading & suckling my (now 9 year old) male Main Coon, Clyde. To this day, she still kneads & suckles him. My husband & I tease Clyde sometimes by calling him her mommy instead of her big brother…like he really understands…not!.
One 1 1/2 years ago, Bella started chewing the fur off her lower legs. After 2 months, this progressed to her upper legs. Then randomly, she would chew off fur from her stomach. Now, she is only randomly chewing fur off her legs. She is a very hyper & nervous cat. Could this be stress release or could something be physically wrong with her?
I have 4 rescues and their mother. When she carried them over and put them under a car, I looked under and 8 little blue eyes were looking out at me. They only lasted about another week before they turned green.
They are over 2 years old. However, Kristopher still wants to nurse on his mother. Of course, there is nothing there. but the activity seems to be comforting to him.
He looks so funny. He is one of the tallest, longest cats I have ever seen. He is way bigger than his mother and he looks really funny trying to nurse. His mother, Tammy, usually gets tired of it pretty quick and pushes him away.