Kittens drinking from a male cat?

Question

I have 4 kittens, 3 from one mother (5 months old) and another from a different mother (6 months old) and recently we noticed that these younger three kittens keep trying to feed from the 6 month year old one, which happens to be a male? The mother has been feeding them regularly for about 3-4 months (she is still here but she started to avoid them during the 4th month so they would stop feeding). Is this normal cat behavior or should we be worried?

They get food and water regularly and they appear to be in good health. The kitten they keep trying to feed from doesn't seem to mind and purrs when they do it. I don't know, I've never encountered this before so I don't know if it's ok or if we should od something?

Answer 1

Nursing feels soothing to babies and kittens. That's why our babies suckle on a pacifier even though there's no milk comming from it. Your kittens do a similar thing.

The teats of a cat are all in one place and when the kittens nurse, it puts them all togehter into a compact bundle. The body contact and warmth feels good to them, so they try to recreate the feeling without their mother.

I've had cats nursing on blankets and a (male) dog before. Some become independant sooner and stop nursing, others need the contact a little longer.