Dear Faith,

I have a problem with Coral, my threeyear-old female calico. She’s a great cat — except for one thing. When she lies on me when I am in my chair, she kneads me constantly. I pull her paws away or I put her down, but she comes back and starts kneading all over again. My right arm and shoulder are full of scars from her claws. I have a groomer clip her claws regularly and I put a towel on my shoulder, but her claws poke through. I do love to hold her; it is comforting to me until she starts kneading. How can I get her to stop?

KNEADING SOME RELIEF

Dear Kneading,

Kneading is a normal activity for cats, and they do it for several reasons. It can be a comforting behavior learned while nursing as a kitten, a way to show you that she’s relaxed, or a method of marking territory, because cats’ pads have scent glands. Whatever Coral’s reason, be assured that she is content and happy with you. However, I understand how uncomfortable kneading can be. To decrease your discomfort and injuries, here are some ideas:

Since the nail trimming is not doing the trick, try applying a product called Soft Paws to her nails. To learn more, go to softpaws.com.

Keep a thick blanket or cat bed handy. Place it on your lap before letting her jump onto your lap for snuggle time.

If that isn’t working, redirect her, using treats, onto a pet bed or blanket next to you, so that you can pet and praise her while she kneads.

It sounds like the towel you put on your shoulder wasn’t thick enough to prevent injury. Try a thick, dense blanket instead.

If you are not familiar with clicker training for cats, maybe you could do a Google search and find some instructions on using a clicker to redirect a cat’s attention to a new location.