Female cats typically go into heat, or estrus, several times a year. Each heat cycle lasts around 2-3 weeks and occurs every 2-3 weeks during breeding season – typically spring and summer.
When a female cat goes into heat, hormonal changes trigger their reproductive drive and lead to behaviors aimed at attracting and mating with a male cat. These behaviors include excessive vocalizing, affection, restless activity, decreased appetite, and the need to escape in search of a mate.
Females in heat will display their receptive status through scent marking, vocalizing, body postures that enable mating, and behaviors to attract male attention. Understanding the signs, causes, and ways to manage a cat in heat can help owners address this natural but often unwelcome part of owning an unspayed female cat.
Hormonal Changes
During cat heat cycles, which last around 4-7 days and occur every 2-3 weeks during breeding season, female cats experience a rapid rise in estrogen levels (VCA Animal Hospitals, n.d.). According to Little (2012), this estrogen spike triggers receptivity and mating behaviors. The elevated estrogen makes cats more affectionate and attention-seeking during this time, as they try to attract potential mates.
Reproductive Drive
When a female cat enters her heat cycle, also known as estrus, her hormones drive her to seek out a mate and reproduce. The rising levels of estrogen in a cat’s system triggers the urge to mate. According to veterinarians, the surge of estrogen can make female cats extremely affectionate and even desperate to mate during this time (https://www.quora.com/Why-do-in-heat-cats-react-to-human-touch-like-they-are-trying-to-have-sex-with-the-human-Do-they-think-we-are-cats-or-do-they-not-realize-humans-can-t-have-intercourse-with-them-or-get-them-pregnant).
Since the reproductive drive is so strong, a female cat in heat may see human males as potential mates. The hormones impair her judgement and lead her to solicit attention and attempt to copulate with any available male – even human males. This is purely instinctual behavior driven by her biological urge to mate and reproduce during estrus.
Scent
Male human pheromones and scent can be attractive to a cat in heat. Female cats in heat release pheromones to attract male cats for mating. However, these pheromones can also attract male humans due to similarities between human and feline pheromones. Additionally, male human sweat and body odor contains chemical compounds like androstenol that mimics sex pheromones for female cats. When a female cat senses these smells, her natural mating instincts can kick in, causing her to rub, knead or headbutt the male human as she would with a male cat mate.
Research shows male human scents can elicit mating behaviors in cats more than female human scents. One study found 86% of female cats in heat were attracted to shirts worn by male humans compared to 30% for female worn shirts (Source). This demonstrates how a male human’s natural pheromones and body chemistry can sometimes lure a female cat in heat, though the attraction is misguided.
Attention Seeking
Cats crave attention during their heat cycle and see human males as a source of comfort and bonding. When a female cat enters her heat cycle, also known as estrus, her hormones fluctuate causing behavioral changes.
According to Male & female cats in heat – what you need to know, female cats in heat are more attention seeking, often demanding affection and care from their owners. This is likely an instinctual behavior, as female cats in the wild rely on males for food and protection during the vulnerable mating period.
Additionally, as explained on Why Do Cats Act Weird When They Are in Heat?, male cats can also seek more attention when a female is in heat. They display affectionate behavior like head-butting and kneading as they sense the female’s hormones.
So in summary, both female and male cats crave human interaction during the heat cycle, seeing their owners as a source of attention and bonding. This often presents itself as demanding or clingy behavior. It’s important for owners to be patient and provide extra care and affection during this time.
Kneading and Head Bunting
Two common behaviors that cats display during heat are kneading and head bunting. Kneading, when a cat rhythmically presses its paws against something, and head bunting, when a cat rubs its head against people or objects, are signs of affection in cats that become more pronounced when in heat. This increase in affectionate behavior is due to hormonal changes, as female cats have increased oxytocin levels during estrus cycles [1].
Though kneading and head bunting are normal feline behaviors, during heat cycles cats are more motivated to seek attention and spread their scent, which leads to increased kneading and bunting. Cats that are not neutered will target these behaviors at potential mates when in heat. However, even spayed cats will often direct kneading and bunting toward their owners as a social bonding behavior that releases oxytocin. So while triggered by instincts related to the estrus cycle, kneading and head bunting should not be interpreted as strictly mating behaviors, but rather as signs of a cat’s affection and attachment [2].
Male Bonding
Female cats that are in heat can sometimes bond closely with human males in the household. According to research from Modern Veterinary Clinic [1], male cats are more likely to bond with female owners, while female cats in heat may prefer male owners because they tend to be more caring and gentle. The affectionate behaviors like kneading, head-butting, and seeking attention are signs that the female cat is experiencing hormonal changes and a reproductive drive, which may cause her to direct mating behaviors toward available males – even human ones.
While the cat is likely not bonding specifically due to the human’s gender, the scent and presence of a male human when the cat is in heat may trigger her mating instincts and desire for attention. However, proper care including spaying can prevent a female cat from going into heat and displaying these mating behaviors. Overall, gender bonding is not necessarily common in cats, and depends much more on the individual cat’s personality and how she was raised.
Misdirected Mating
When female cats go into heat, their hormones drive them to seek out and mate with male cats in order to get pregnant. However, this strong reproductive urge combined with the scent female cats emit when in heat can sometimes cause them to direct their mating behaviors towards improper targets, including human males. This phenomenon is known as “misdirected mating” or “reproductive interference”.
According to PetPlace, misdirected mating is likely due to the cat’s hormones overriding her usual reasoning and discrimination, causing her to solicit any nearby male – even human males – for mating. The Reddit Science Facts community also notes that misdirected mating between species, while uncommon, does sometimes occur due to the female cat’s strong reproductive drive.
So in summary, female cats in heat can end up directing mating behaviors towards humans due to hormonal changes that create an overriding urge to mate and reproduce.
Preventing Unwanted Behaviors
There are several tips for discouraging a cat in heat from approaching human males:
- Get your cat spayed. Spaying eliminates the hormonal changes that induce heat cycles and the desire to mate. It’s the most effective way to prevent a cat from seeking out males when in heat. (Source)
- Keep your cat indoors and secure the house. Block any potential escape routes so your cat can’t go looking for male cats while in heat. Use child locks, cover windows, and keep doors closed. (Source)
- Give your cat extra affection during her heat. Petting, brushing and playing can help satisfy your cat’s need for attention and discourage her from seeking it from males. (Source)
- Clean the litter box frequently. The scent of urine can attract males, so scoop waste out more often than usual. (Source)
These steps can reduce the likelihood of male cats being drawn to your home and deter your female cat from seeking their attention.
Conclusions
In summary, female cats in heat are attracted to human males for several key reasons related to their biology and instincts. When a cat goes into heat, hormonal changes drive her strong urge to mate and reproduce. This activates her drive to seek out a mate and gain his attention.
Since humans don’t produce the appropriate feline pheromones, cats cannot rely on scent alone to identify potential mates. So they broaden their attention-seeking behaviors to include kneading, head-bunting and vocalizing to human males, even though humans are the wrong species. From the cat’s perspective, they are simply responding to their biological mating imperative in the absence of available feline partners.
While this can lead to annoying behaviors, understanding the root causes can help owners control the cat’s environment and meet her needs in more appropriate ways during her heat cycles. With proper care and patience, this time can pass without undue stress for owners or cats.