Cat licking her nipples: advice needed on Cat Chat

[Lily]

Hi, this was my post on catchat.

I've just noticed that her nipples are looking quite red and inflamed.  Just tried to touch one and she jumped a mile.  So I've made an appointment at the vets tonight, so I'll let you know how it goes.

[Mark]

I just wondered about skin complaints. When I get psoriasis flare-ups, my nipples itch like crazy  (Luckily haven't had one for a few years and just get it on one ear now) but as psoriasis can be brought on by stress, maybe it is something like that?

[blackcat]

It would probably be helpful to know how long ago she weaned her litter, but I have to say that for me it was quite a suprise how conspicous a cat's nipples were for some time after she had stopped lactacting. Sofie, who was 9 months old when I adopted her had very conspicous nipples for at least 18 months but this only became apparent when she was washing her belly. Eventually  the hair seems to cover them over so they are less noticeable. I wonder if the owner has only noticed this 'tummy-washing' lately because her girl has been outside and got her tummy fur wet by wandering through grass? This may cause more frequent grooming which would of course reveal the nipples.

I would not be too perturbed unless it seemed that fur was being lost as a result of the grooming process or the nipples were inflamed in some way ... so I guess my advice would be observation and intervention if a problem seemed to be developing ...

And there's always Feliway if the owner is concerned about stress ...

[Christine (Blip)]

This is on Cat Chat, in Health and Behaviour called Licking her nipples:

"I have a 1 year old (ish) rescue cat who I know has already had one litter before she was spayed. I've noticed in the past day or so that she's gromming her belly a lot and licking her nipples, so much so that I can see them through her fur. They're not red or sore but pale pink. Why is she doing this? Should I be worried?"

Can anyone help the poster?