Why Is Your Cat’s Tongue Hanging Out? 16 Reasons Explained

By: Author Amanda OBrien

Cats can look hilarious and cute when they stick their tongues out – which is good as they tend to do it frequently. Unlike humans, it is unlikely that your cat is being rude when it sticks its tongue out – so why do cats stick their tongue out?

In This Article:

• Discover the 16 most common reasons why cats stick their tongue out, from harmless quirks to potential health concerns
• Learn when a hanging tongue is normal behavior versus a sign that your cat needs veterinary attention
• Find practical tips to help if your cat keeps sticking their tongue out and shaking their head
• Understand which common mistakes cat owners make when dealing with this behavior and how to avoid them

There is a multitude of reasons, from the innocuous to symptoms of bigger health and wellness issues. But, not every instance is a reason to rush to the vet yet. Unless this is paired with one or more symptoms, you and your pet should be in the clear.

So, if you’ve ever found yourself wondering, ‘why does my cat stick his tongue out?’ keep reading as I break down all of the possible reasons for this odd habit.

Cat Hanging Tongue Out: What You Need to Know

If you’re short on time, here’s the quick version: most cats with a hanging tongue are just relaxed, mid-groom, or “blepping” (more on that below) — and it’s nothing to worry about on its own.

It’s worth paying closer attention when a hanging tongue is new, constant, or shows up alongside other signs — things like bad breath, drooling, weight loss, difficulty eating, disorientation, or a change in your cat’s usual behavior. Those combinations point toward something worth a vet visit, whether that’s a dental problem, an oral injury, heat stress, or an age-related change. On its own, and especially in a cat who otherwise seems fine, a tongue hanging out for a moment or two is rarely cause for alarm.

The 16 reasons below run roughly from most to least common, and from harmless to ones that warrant a check-up.

Cat Sticking Tongue Out? 16 Reasons Why

So, why is my cat’s tongue out? Here are the top reasons ranging from as harmless to symptoms of a more serious issue.

1. Your Cat Has Hair on Its Tongue

Interestingly, this reason can also apply to humans. I often seem to have cat fur on my tongue.

But of course, your kitty will possibly have more due to the amount it sheds. This is especially true in the seasons when cats shed the most. Plus, their tongue is much smaller, so the hairs will take up more significant space.

This situation often occurs after your cat has had a grooming session and ends up with some hair on its little exfoliating tongue. Usually, your cat will have tried several ways to remove the hair. But if they can’t and have had enough, they will just relax and let their tongue hang out, hoping nature will take care of it.

2. Your Cat Is Blepping

Blep or blepping originated on the internet as an onomatopoeia. It is quite an accurate word describing the act of unconsciously leaving, usually just the tip of the tongue outside the mouth.

Internet users usually use it for both cats and dogs, but it can also be applied to other animals (and maybe some humans??).

Thankfully it is harmless. Cats use all of their sense to explore the world, including their tongues, and sometimes they just forget to put their tongues back in their mouths.

In fact, blepping can be a rather meditative state for your kitty. If your cat sticks their tongue out, they are at one with the moment and are often taking in all elements of its surroundings. They could just be exploring smells they hate, tastes they love, and even interesting sounds around them.

However, if it’s an old cat’s tongue hanging out and it keeps happening a few times, it could be a sign of feline cognitive dysfunction. More on this later.

3. Your Cat Wants To Get Rid of a Bad Taste in Its Mouth

Cats will usually stick out its tongue to rid themselves of the bad taste if they’ve had an untasty meal. If you have a picky cat and you want to get them to eat, you can try to add some fresh food into their bowl or incorporate play into their meals.

But, more often than not, your feline might’ve nibbled something they shouldn’t have or accidentally got flea treatment into their mouths. Bitter-tasting oral medications can trigger the same reaction, so if you’ve recently started your cat on a new medication or topical flea treatment and notice tongue-flicking or drooling right after, mention it to your vet — it’s usually just an unpleasant taste reaction, but it’s worth confirming. If you have a pet eager to chomp on anything, it is important to keep cats away from plants or objects that may be harmful.

If they have ingested something toxic, it is imperative that you take them to the vet immediately so they can treat the issue.

4. Your Cat Is Very Relaxed

Similarly to blepping, sometimes your pet’s tongue just hangs out of its mouth because it’s in a truly relaxed state.

Sometimes when your cat is in a very relaxed sleeping position, half asleep, or is being groomed, they may be so relaxed that their tongue just kind of falls out of their mouth a bit. This can, of course, also be why your cat is drooling sometimes.

Other signs to see that your cat is relaxed include low-pitch purrs, chirps, head boops, and slow blinks. If they’re totally relaxed and feel safe around you, you may even notice them snuggling or constantly being around you too.

5. Your Cat’s Mouth Is Out of Room

This is a situation that sometimes arises with flat-faced cat breeds. In some flat-faced (brachycephalic) breeds like Persians, Himalayans, and Exotic Shorthairs, a cat’s tongue is almost always slightly out of its mouth. This is due to the shape of your cat’s jaw and skull and the fact that there isn’t much room for the tongue to sit fully tucked in.

While this isn’t a problem on its own, it can cause issues for your cat while eating, and flat-faced breeds are also more prone to other dental crowding issues as a result of their shortened jaw. If your flat-faced cat’s tongue protrusion seems to be getting in the way of eating comfortably, do see your vet — sometimes vets can remove teeth to ease this issue.

6. Your Cat Has Dental Problems

If your cat also has bad breath or is not eating as they usually do, plus its tongue is spending quite a bit outside its mouth, they may have dental problems.

Brushing is preferred, but sometimes our pets are just finicky about it. Thankfully, you can help them by keeping your cat’s teeth clean without brushing. If you keep up with their dental hygiene, they can develop dental issues like gingivitis and periodontitis.

If their tongue is out, accompanied by their resistance to eating dry foods, treats, and a slowed eating pattern, it may be time for a check-up.

7. Your Cat Has Lost Its Front Teeth

Speaking of dental health, although not common, your cat can lose their teeth. Kittens tend to lose their baby teeth until they are three to four months old and will start growing adult teeth just like humans. However, if your cat loses any of their “adult teeth”, it should raise some dental red flags.

A loss of front teeth may be the cause of your cat’s tongue sticking out. A cat’s front teeth actually hold its tongue back and in place. If they are gone, there will be tongue slippage.

8. Your Cat Is Thirsty or Too Hot

If it is a warm day and there is quite a bit of tongue-lolling, check that your cat has easy access to fresh water. A few simple things help keep cats comfortable in warm weather: fresh, cool water in more than one spot, a shaded or air-conditioned room to retreat to, and a fan or cooling mat if your home tends to get warm.

Long-haired cats are more prone to heatstroke than short-haired breeds, so keep an eye on them. If your cat also appears disoriented or is vomiting, this may be heatstroke. If this is the case, don’t hesitate to contact your vet.

9. Your Cat Has Stomatitis

Stomatitis can happen to cats at any age. It can take the form of ulcers, painful gums, inflammation, and a sore tongue. Stomatitis has multiple causes – from a common cat virus to a compromised immune system to bad teeth. It is not a common disease, but it is very painful.

If your cat is also losing weight, drooling, pawing at its face, and sticking its tongue out, do see your vet. Stomatitis is treatable with medication.

10. Your Cat Has Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome (Feline Dementia)

Although cats can live a long time, as they deteriorate with age, so does their mind. If your cat is a senior — this becomes more common from around age 10, and affects roughly half of cats over 15 — a hanging tongue alongside other changes could be a sign of Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome (CDS), sometimes still called feline dementia.

Other symptoms of CDS include disorientation, changes to sleep-wake cycles, increased night-time vocalizing, house-soiling, and changes in social interaction or grooming habits. Many times your cat’s sleeping position reveals they’re sick, so keep a close eye on them throughout the day.

There’s no cure for CDS, but it isn’t untreatable either — vets can rule out other conditions that mimic it (like high blood pressure, kidney disease, or arthritis pain, which are all more common in senior cats and can look similar) and, once CDS is confirmed, suggest ways to support your cat’s quality of life. These typically include environmental changes to reduce disorientation, adjustments to diet, and in some cases medication — your vet is the right person to tailor this to your cat rather than a generic supplement recommendation.

11. Your Cat May Have Been Poisoned

This is uncommon, sometimes your cat eats something venomous, like a poisoned dead mouse. If this is the case, it will most likely stick its tongue out, trying to get rid of whatever has caused the issue.

Remember that quite a few flowers can be toxic for cats. Call your vet asap if you think this is the case.

12. Your Cat Is Grooming Itself

When cats aren’t sleeping, they are often grooming themselves. The tongue is a vital part of a cat’s grooming routine.

Their tongue is covered in little spiky pieces of keratin called papillae. These little spikes are critical in allowing a cat to groom itself effectively.

If your cat is sticking its tongue out, it may take a break mid-grooming. Or, it may have recently finished grooming itself and just forgotten that its tongue was still lolling out and about.

13. Your Cat Has Something Stuck In or Between Its Teeth

After a tasty meal, often, we get a bit of food stuck between our teeth. We have toothpicks or floss to get rid of the uncomfortable feeling. But cats? They’re not so lucky.

When cats get food stuck in places in their mouths or between their teeth, they will use whatever they have at hand (or paw) — their tongue. By sticking their tongue out, they can dislodge whatever they want out of their mouth.

14. Your Cat Is About To Vomit

Most cats stick their tongue out when they feel like vomiting. This is most likely to happen just after your cat has eaten, particularly if they are trying new food.

But they can also vomit due to motion sickness. Usually, your cat’s tongue will start to wag in the car before they vomit. If you’re in a vehicle and this starts happening, try to stop it and let your cat get some fresh air before continuing with the journey. Calming treats may also help them on long drives.

15. Your Cat Has a Respiratory Infection

Respiratory infections in cats are quite common in cats and are similar to a cold. The good news is that you can’t catch a cold from your cat, so you should have more than enough energy to help them recover.

One of the first things you’ll notice with an upper respiratory infection is that your cat struggles with its breath. And as a result, its tongue may come out of its mouth. Other symptoms usually associated include loss of coordination or interest in grooming.

You can treat it at home with a little extra TLC, but if the problem persists for more than a few days a vet is the best option.

16. Your Cat’s Jaw Has Loosened

Again, just like with humans, while a cat is sleeping, it may become so relaxed that its jaw loosens. This can also happen while you are petting your cat. When a cat’s jaw relaxes, the tip of its tongue will come out of its mouth.

In most cases, a cat sticking its tongue out is not a cause for concern and can be pretty endearing. However, if it is an ongoing behavior accompanied by other symptoms like weight loss or lethargy, it is always worth checking in with your vet.

Scottish Fold Cat

Why Cat Tongues Are Rough and Spiky

A quick detour into anatomy, since it explains a lot of the reasons above: a cat’s tongue isn’t smooth like ours. It’s covered in hundreds of tiny, backward-curving hooks called papillae, made of keratin (the same material as claws and hair). Under a microscope, they look almost like a row of tiny scoops.

Those papillae are why a cat’s tongue feels like sandpaper against your skin, why loose hair gets caught on it so easily during grooming (see reason #1), and why grooming itself can take a fair amount of effort — hence a mid-groom tongue-out break. It’s also part of why cats groom so thoroughly and so often: those hooks are genuinely effective at working through a coat, which is exactly what makes stray hair or debris likely to get stuck on the tongue in the first place.

Tips for When Your Cat Keeps Sticking Its Tongue Out and Shaking Its Head

A hanging tongue on its own is usually nothing to worry about. But a hanging tongue combined with head shaking is worth paying closer attention to, because it points toward a slightly different set of possible causes than tongue-out alone — most commonly ear irritation (like ear mites or an ear infection), oral or dental pain, or nausea.

A few practical things to do if you’re seeing this combination:

• Book a vet check rather than waiting it out. Head shaking with a hanging tongue is a fairly reliable sign that something specific is bothering your cat, rather than just a relaxed or spaced-out moment. A vet can look inside the ears and mouth, which isn’t something you can safely or reliably do yourself.
• Don’t try to physically hold the tongue in or force the mouth closed. It won’t fix the underlying cause and can stress or hurt your cat.
• Avoid home remedies for the ears without guidance. Ear cleaners, oils, or drops not specifically recommended by your vet can make some ear conditions worse.
• Note when it happens. Is it after meals, after being outside, in warm weather, or seemingly out of nowhere? That pattern is genuinely useful information for your vet.
• Keep water and soft food accessible in the meantime if your cat seems reluctant to eat, without trying to diagnose or treat the underlying issue yourself.

On training: it’s worth being upfront that most causes of tongue protrusion — dental issues, anatomy, nausea, cognitive changes — aren’t things you can train a cat out of, because they’re not really behavioral in the first place. If the cause is genuinely just a habit (like relaxed blepping), there’s nothing to “fix”; if it’s one of the medical causes above, the fix is treating that cause, not training around it.

When It’s Nothing to Worry About

Most of the time, a hanging tongue is one of the harmless categories above: blepping, a relaxed jaw, a mid-grooming pause, or simply the shape of your cat’s face if they’re a flat-faced breed. You can generally relax if:

• Your cat is eating, drinking, and behaving normally otherwise
• The tongue tucks back in on its own after a moment
• There’s no bad breath, drooling, weight loss, or visible mouth pain
• It happens during obviously relaxed moments — naps, grooming, being petted

If all of that checks out, you’re very likely just looking at a normal (if slightly silly-looking) cat quirk.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

A few things worth avoiding if your cat’s tongue is hanging out more than usual:

• Assuming it’s always cute and harmless. Most of the time it is, but dismissing every instance without noticing accompanying symptoms means dental issues, stomatitis, or CDS can go unaddressed for longer than they should.
• Trying to physically reposition the tongue. This doesn’t address whatever’s causing it and can startle or stress your cat.
• Using human oral care products. Human toothpaste and mouthwash aren’t formulated for cats and some ingredients are unsafe for them — stick to products made specifically for cats, and check with your vet before introducing anything new.
• Chalking senior cat changes up to “just old age.” Behavior changes in older cats, including a more frequently hanging tongue, are worth a vet visit rather than being written off, since some causes are manageable with treatment.
• Delaying a vet visit for cost reasons when symptoms are stacking up. If a hanging tongue is paired with weight loss, reduced eating, drooling, or disorientation, it’s worth having it looked at sooner rather than later — some of these conditions are more straightforward (and often cheaper) to manage the earlier they’re caught.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is a Cat’s Tongue Hanging Out Normal?

Yes, in the vast majority of cases. Blepping, relaxed napping, and mid-groom pauses are all completely normal and are the most common reasons a cat’s tongue hangs out. It becomes worth investigating when it’s new, constant, or accompanied by other symptoms like bad breath, drooling, or weight change.

When Should I Worry About My Cat’s Tongue?

Worry less about a single instance and more about patterns: a tongue that’s out constantly rather than occasionally, one that appeared suddenly in an older cat, or one paired with reduced appetite, weight loss, drooling, disorientation, or head shaking. Any of those combinations is a good reason to book a vet visit.

Do Cats Feel Pain When Their Tongue Is Exposed?

Not usually, if the cause is one of the harmless ones — blepping, relaxation, or a flat-faced cat’s normal anatomy don’t cause pain. However, if the underlying cause is something like stomatitis, a dental problem, or an oral injury, there can be genuine discomfort involved, which is one more reason accompanying symptoms matter more than the tongue position itself.

Why Does My Cat’s Tongue Shake?

A slight tremor or flick of the tongue can happen just before vomiting, as part of scent-related behavior (some cats do this when investigating strong smells, a reflex related to their vomeronasal organ), or alongside nausea from motion sickness. Frequent or pronounced shaking is worth mentioning to your vet, especially if it’s a new behavior.

Can Heat Cause My Cat’s Tongue to Hang Out?

Yes. Unlike dogs, cats don’t rely heavily on panting to cool down, so a tongue hanging out on a hot day can be an early sign your cat is struggling with the heat. Make sure they have access to cool water, shade, and airflow. If it’s paired with disorientation, vomiting, or lethargy, treat it as a potential heatstroke emergency and contact your vet immediately.

How Do I Clean My Cat’s Exposed Tongue?

If your cat has a tongue that’s chronically out due to a dental issue, tooth loss, or facial anatomy, it can occasionally dry out or crack from constant air exposure. Your vet may recommend a pet-safe way to keep it moisturized in these cases — this isn’t something to improvise with human products, so ask your vet for a recommendation suited to your cat’s specific situation rather than trying a general home remedy.

Next Steps

As a pet owner, you can pat yourself on the back for doing the necessary research to ensure your pet’s well-being.

While this list gives you 16 reasons why your cat’s tongue might be sticking out, it’s not exhaustive. If a hanging tongue shows up alongside any other symptoms, it’s better to be on the cautious side and book a vet check-up rather than wait and see.

But don’t worry. The majority of the time, a cat sticking its tongue out is just them spacing out and resting in a relaxed manner.

Have you experienced a situation where a cat has stuck out their tongue? Tell us about it in the comments below!

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