Cuddles from a cat

[Tenbears]

My cat often likes to lie on my chest and be petted, and she often then stretches out her paw and places it gently on my mouth or cheek. Does anyone know why she does this?

[WendyW]

Our cat does the same thing but we don't have a clue why. Maybe she is stroking us :)

[Hippy]

My puss does this too. I have a beard and he carefully extends his claws and "combs" the beard without touching the skin underneath, but only a fraction of a cm away. He knows I enjoy this so carries on. I think he is registering affection.

I think the cat likes being stroked because it feels like their mother licking them when they were blind litte newly born ones.

[Kit]

My cat does it - usually means "Oi, pay attention" if I'm not stroking her enough. Now the other cat is a different matter. He loves fuss, and turns himself inside out while being stroked. However, while I'm stroking him he will grab my hand with his teeth - not biting, more holding it - no idea why he does that.

[The Rut]

When our cat had kittens I noticed they did something similar when they was suckling

[Kit]

Cats pretending to be kittens sucking - that's a rather different thing, and definitely less comfortable than being patted with a paw! They "knead" with their paws - which from a kitten is quite soft and stimulates milk flow. However, as they get older their claws grow bigger. My cat, in between biting my hand, also kneads my knee when he's being stroked - only it's modified into an excruciating form of 10-needle acupuncture. What's dafter still is when he "kneads" his paws in mid-air - lies on his back and stretches one paw, then the other.

[Pickle]

My cats do that too. I think it's probably some kind of display of affection. One of my cats will do 'gimme five' with you when he's in a good mood. If you hold up a hand in front of him, he'll get up on his back legs and bat your hand with his paw.

[Dr Gonzo]

I think you all need to get out more, or buy a dog, they are much more affectionate, if thats what you are looking for!!!