Mary Allen
It is well known that cats are very clean animals that spend a lot of time grooming themselves. As babies, the velvet paws are taught by their cat mother how to clean themselves. Occasionally, cats not only lick themselves but also their fellow cats.
When Cats Groom Each Other: Social Behavior
The hierarchy in cat groups and the social structure among the velvet paws are very complex and not all the rules of feline social behavior have been fully explored. Mutual grooming, however, appears to be reserved for cats that are either related or very close.
Licking the other is then a token of love, a sign of affection. It demonstrates trust. The cat wash usually has a relaxing and calming effect on the cat being brushed. So it is a tender gesture and strengthens the bond between each other.
Note: Occasionally, mutual cleaning can also turn into an extensive game in which the cats playfully bite each other – keyword love bite. Don’t worry. This form of biting is comparable to a pinch, which is slightly painful but has nothing to do with vicious combat behavior.
“Maternal Instinct”
Cats grooming each other to show affection is probably instinctive. Mother cats lick their babies clean for the first two weeks, as the little furry friends still have to learn to put the cat wash in their paws themselves.
The kittens feel particularly comfortable and secure with their mum and associate this feeling with cleaning and being cleaned. If they later want to give a fellow cat that they have taken to their hearts a feeling of safety and security, they brush it. Incidentally, this is not only done by female cats, but also by tomcats.
It has been observed in some cases that cats with a higher status groom more frequently and allow themselves to be groomed less frequently with lower status cats. It is possible that the higher-ranking animals see it as their task to “mother” the other furry friends.
Mutual Cleaning: Practical for Hard-to-Reach Places
Another reason for washing your cat together is far less romantic: a cat alone cannot get to some places on the neck and head.
If the cat lets herself be brushed by a conspecific, it can lick it there and thus help her with grooming. Mutual cleaning is also very practical.