As a loving pet parent, you probably want to show your cat all the love and affection you can, but how safe is it to kiss your cat? And should you kiss your cat on the mouth?
Many people, in particular those who aren’t owned by a cat themselves, are repulsed by the thought of a human kissing their cat, “he licks his bum with that mouth!”, but to you it’s just another sign of your mutual affection.
How Risky is it to Kiss Your Cat?
As well as being part of your family, you mustn’t forget that your cat is still an animal who can harbour germs and bacteria that can be passed onto you. Zoonotic diseases that your cat can pass onto you through kissing include cat scratch fever, the fungal infection ringworm, highly contagious common bacteria like E-coli and salmonella, and nasty parasites such as toxoplasmosis.
Are Some People More at Risk Than Others?
There are certain groups of people who are more susceptible to picking up germs from cats, and that’s just common sense really. We know that pregnant women should avoid cleaning out litter trays because of the risks to their unborn child, so they’re obviously going to be more at risk of picking up bacteria through smooching with their cats. People with weaker immune systems, such as young children, older people and people with auto-immune deficiencies and diseases all fall into the high risk category as well.
Should You Kiss Your Cat on the Lips?
Although your cat’s mouth isn’t going to be a complete breeding ground of bacteria, there is a much greater chance of passing bacteria from your cat to you if you’re regularly kissing him on the lips. In all honesty, a cat ‘kissing’ you by rubbing his head and face on you is a much bigger sign of affection than a kiss on the lips, as he’s transferring scent markers to claim you as his, so kissing his furry little head is probably the safest option for when you want to demonstrate your love for him.
Although there are some health issues involved in kissing cats, it’s important to remember that there are proven health benefits that come from owning a cat. Owning, taking care of and regularly petting a cat are all proven to increase your health by lowering stress and its related diseases, so don’t let the risk of germs put you off having a loving relationship with your purrfect pet.
Be sensible when it comes to kissing cats, only kiss your own cat because you know the state of his health, and if you’re concerned about the potential health risks limit it to kissing him on the head, and you won’t need to worry about it.
Do you kiss your cat? What’s your view on kissing your cat on the lips – should you or shouldn’t you?
Top image: Juanedc.com via Flickr
I kiss my cat on the forehead a lot.
Great info! Pinning…
This is really important information. I used to kiss my dogs, and the dogs at the shelter, on the lips but not anymore. Once I learned that there can be some risks to your health I stopped “French kissing” dogs & cats! Now it’s only licky-licks on the face, head, etc.
Yes, Mom Paula kisses us all over!
This dog mom kisses her baby on the lippies. I know I would if I had a cat, too 😉
Such a great post! Our dogs have all been lickers especially Shasta!!
Nala was not a big mouth kisser- she was a major head rubber and very demanding on that. She had hurt her jaw and probably had arthritis so she loved massages. She occasionally licked but not on the face.
Rosie prefers hugs and kisses on the head. Great post.
Yeah, there is not lip kissing here. I’ll kiss the Farm cats on the tops of their heads but that is about it. And not all of them will allow it – I’m talking about you Pumpkin!
My cats get kisses all day long although it’s never on the lips. I don’t think they want me that close!. I guess I never thought that for some people it might be a health risk. Thanks for sharing this information..
I do kiss my kitties – but on the top of the head. A lot of times, I follow a kiss on the head with rubbing their cheek with mine. 🙂 They seem to understand that it is a form of affection. Cinco is not a big fan of kisses, but Manna is all about it.
I’ve felt like it was fine to kiss a pet on the head. I don’t care if someone else kisses their pet on the mouth, but I just kiss my dogs on the head. My cat doesn’t seem to like a lot of physical interaction except petting occasionally.
We give our cats lots of kisses (on the head, but not on the lips) and snuggles. 🙂
It’s important to be aware of species-specific signals, too. Cats might sniff another cat’s nose or mouth, but don’t typically “kiss” the lips, so this could be a confusing thing to do to your cat. I agree, it’s much better to do petting, or kiss the forehead (which mimics the head-bumping “bunting” behavior of cats) that shares scent and indicates trust.
Of course I kiss my cats, but never on the lips 🙂
Mum rather kisses us on the nose, which is not the best idea according to our mind (she loves garlic !). Purrs
She kissed me first. The first time, she had missed dinner, and I had had pizza, and I may have had some cheese on my face that was tasty enough for her.
TW and Pop kiss me a hunnert times a day. Usually they kiss me on the head but occasionally I’m put my head up and once I exchanged bodily fluids with TW. HAH! She ran to wash her mouth out.
I am always kissing my cats but not on the lips.
Yep!! “I kissed a cat (or two or three) and I LIKED it!!” I have an auto immune disease (Graves Disease which is in remission)……I don’t deliberately kiss Cody on the lips but I kiss his nose!
Well, I hafta admit it…the mom kisses me on my lips…and I love it! ~Wally
We’re all kind of EWW about the lip-kissing too. Though we don’t mind grooming her occasionally.
My human says Ewww! about kissing cats on the lips. I don’t think it’s a good idea for kitties to be kissing humans on the lips either – you know how germy human mouths are! She only kisses me on the head. And I get hugged lots.
I kiss my kitties on the head all the time! I don’t usually kiss them on the mouth though because they don’t seem to like that. Delilah likes to lick my mouth though… she’s a weirdo! MOL!