Among cat lovers from all over the world, there seems to be a lot of confusion when it comes to the million-dollar question: “do male cats have nipples?”.
However, the answer to this question is a relatively simple one with a little bit of explanation.
Also, one can’t help but wonder, how many nipples do cats have?
So if you’re one of those people dying to know whether or not male cats have nipples or not, keep reading this article to find out!
Table of Contents
Do Male Cats Have Nipples?
Now, as to whether male cats have nipples or not, the short answer is a simple, resolute yes!
In that department, male cats are no different than male humans or most other male mammals for that matter.
However, just because the answer is this simple, doesn’t mean that a little extra information on the subject isn’t necessary or beneficial!
Why Do Male Cats Have Nipples?
You might be wondering why male cats have nipples if they don’t need them to feed their kittens or for any other apparent reason.
Well, the answer actually is the same, whether you’re talking about male cats or male humans or other mammals.
Basically, every mammal, male or female, has nipples. The only exception to that rule is the platypus. Even the female version of this animal doesn’t have nipples since it’s the only mammal that lays eggs!
The actual reason why even male cats have nipples is a rudimentary one that has everything to do with the way evolution works.
Namely, even though male cats don’t need their nipples for reproductive reasons or such, evolution somehow didn’t find a reason throughout the years to make them disappear and that’s why, even in this day and age, male cats still have nipples.
Furthermore, just as is the case with humans, the gender of an unborn cat isn’t immediately determined at the time of conception.
When the unborn cat is developing, firstly the torso is being shaped.
Consequently, this means that the nipples and breast tissue is formed before the sex of the cat.
To make this less abstract, the first period of time after a cat’s impregnation, you can’t really see any difference between male and female cats.
It’s only after that specific period of time, that the sex of the cat begins developing and by that time, the nipples have already started forming and that’s why even male cats have nipples!
how many nipples do cats have
The Difference Between Male And Female Cats
Now that that’s all cleared up, it’s time to look at the similarities and the differences between the nipples of a male cat and a female cat.
Although, it should be mentioned first of all, that there actually aren’t that many differences, to begin with.
When it comes to the number of nipples, for example, there’s absolutely no difference at all. Particularly, male cats have precisely the same amount as nipples as female cats have.
As to what the exact amount of nipples is, it should be noted that this varies from cat to cat, no matter the gender.
Most cats have two equal rows of 3 or 4 nipples, respectively adding up to 6 or 8 nipples in total.
However, there are also cats with 4 or 10 nipples for example, so it’s definitely not that uncommon to encounter a cat, male or female, with more or fewer nipples than 6 or 8.
A lot of people start panicking and worrying there’s something wrong when they find out their cat doesn’t seem to have the standard 8 nipples, but there’s thus really no need for that kind of commotion.
It’s perfectly normal even more so, some cats even have an uneven number of nipples, although it’s worth mentioning that this is only the case in the minority of the cases!
Another similarity is that male cats also can get terrible diseases such as breast cancer and that’s a rather unfortunate fact that not a lot of people seem to know about.
However, this shouldn’t come as a surprise since as mentioned above, male cats have breast tissue just like female cats.
The thing with cancer is that it attacks a cat’s tissue and precisely because male cats have breast tissue, they can also get diagnosed with breast cancer.
A silver lining in this aspect, though, is that it’s fairly rare to see a male cat with breast cancer!
The only big difference between male and female cats nipple-wise is that while the nipples of a female cat are capable of producing milk, that’s not at all the case when it comes to male cats.
Female cats need their nipples to feed their kittens and to basically keep these kittens alive.
That’s not something that can be said about male cats, so when you look at it that way, it’s definitely not that un-logical that a male cat’s nipples don’t really serve any functional purpose!
Lastly, one small difference between male and female cats is the fact that a female cat’s nipples can grow larger in size, besides swelling a little as well.
The reason why this is only the case with female cats and not at all with male cats is, again, very evident.
Specifically, female cats can get pregnant while male cats can’t, and swollen, enlarged nipples are a symptom of pregnancy with cats so male cats physically can’t experience that pregnancy symptom.
Even more so, if you notice that your male cat’s nipples are swollen, it could be a sign that’s something is seriously wrong and that he might be sick, so that’s definitely something to look out for!
Besides changes in the size of nipples, the nipples of a female cat can sometimes turn another shade of pink when she’s preparing to give birth to her kittens.
Again, male cats can’t get pregnant even if their lives depended on it, so discoloration is another nipple-related pregnancy symptom that male cats are unable to encounter in normal circumstances!
To conclude, you can’t tell whether a cat is male or female just by looking at the cat’s nipples.
Only if there’s a female cat that happens to be pregnant or is feeding her kittens using her nipples, you will be able to determine that you’re dealing with a female cat rather than with a male cat!
Other than in that particular scenario, nipples aren’t a gender-specific deciding factor.
Also read: are cats loyal?
Do male and female cats have the same amount of nipples?
Yes they do.
Only the female cats will end up actually using these nipples to feed little kittens though as male cats don’t do that, obviously.
But they have the same amount generally, 6-8.
Where Are Your Male Cat’s Nipples?
A big difference compared to human nipples is that a male cat’s nipples are located a little bit lower than is the case with humans.
A male cat’s nipples basically are little spots in the belly region. As stated above, most of the time, the nipples of a male cat appear in two even rows of 3 or 4 around a cat’s belly, but exceptions aren’t that rare in the slightest.
What Do Cat Nipples Feel Like?
If you are secretly wondering about this, but don’t want to feel like a weirdo touching your cats nipples, then you can just read here to find out and satisfy your curiosity.
They can look and feel a bit like small pimples on their chest and belly, difficult to find at times but feel really soft to the touch.
It can look a bit like a bug bite, or tiny pimples or small cysts.
But they are generally soft, like a soft peach to the touch.
Also read: all about Siamese cats
How To Find Your Male Cat’s Nipples
Talking about locating your cat’s nipples may seem a bit excessive since from the description above, it seems remarkably easy to find the nipples, but it’s actually not that weird.
Namely, at first, it can sometimes be a little bit difficult to find your cat’s nipples right away, which is the case for both a female cat and a male cat.
To be more concrete, most cats have a lot of fur on and around their bellies.
Well, it’s right under all that belly fur, that a cat’s nipples are located. Moreover, a cat’s nipples are very small in size, which is in stark contrast to all that fur on its belly.
Consequently, it can sometimes require a bit of digging if you want to locate your cat’s nipples!
So, if you really want to find your cat’s nipples, you will have to get your cat in the exact right position to fulfill that challenging task. You’ll have to make sure that your cat lies on its back if you actually want to have a shot at locating its nipples.
When your cat is lying steadily on its back, you’ll have to go and get a comb to comb your male cat’s fur. It’s only after you have combed your cat’s fur, that the nipples will become visible to you!
Conclusion
To make a long story short: yes, male cats definitely have nipples. However, just because they’re there doesn’t mean that they have a clear purpose in the life of a cat.
The nipples of a male cat aren’t functional in the slightest and are mainly still there because evolution has not yet found a reason to get rid of them.
Even more so, it doesn’t seem like something of the sort will happen anytime soon either.
So, if you’re rubbing your little buddy’s belly and you feel bumps that feel suspiciously similar to nipples there, don’t start to panic!
A lot of people all around the world immediately assume their beloved cat has a tumor or a parasite or such.
However, it doesn’t always have to be the worst-case scenario since it’s perfectly normal and just means that you’re male cat is a good-functioning mammal!
