Thursday 21 July 2022

Scent Marking And Your Cat’s Sebaceous Skin Glands


Your cat’s skin has two major kinds of glands: sebaceous glands and sweat glands.  A lot of these sebaceous glands secrete sebum (an essential oily secretion) and are often associated with follicles of hair.  Sebum acts as waterproofing for these hairs and also keeps the skin supple.  Additionally, cats have higher concentrations of these sebaceous glands around their scrotum, prepuce, eyelids, tail base’s top surface, lips, and chin.  And these glands beneath their chin area’s skin are also known collectively as the “submental organs.”  Those around the tail’s base are collectively called the “supracaudal organs.” 

The specialized secretions coming from these collected glands play an essential part in your cat’s scent marking.  You will often see cats rubbing their tail base, temporal areas, lip, and chin over areas or certain things.  Over time, these secretions accumulate on your cat’s favorite marked items as greasy, blackish-brown spots.  You might also find yourself being “marked” when returning home as your cat rubs herself against you.  A cat will typically also mark some items during feeding moments.

If you have any questions or concerns about your pet’s behavior,  don’t hesitate to contact your animal clinic Marietta, GA.

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