The cat gets up early, how to wean it. Why doesn't my cat let me sleep in the morning? Reaction to inappropriate behavior of the owner

JaneA Kelley, May 2013

One day I (JaneA Kelley) was asked an unexpected question - how do cats determine that it’s already 6 am and it’s time to wake you up? Maybe they are smarter than we think? Perhaps they can tell time using a clock? Of course, the question was asked ironically, but there are completely rational considerations that explain why cats wake us up in the morning.

Cats are creatures of habit...

Cats are very conservative in their habits. After living in the house for only a few days, your furry friend gets used to your daily routine even better than you! If you get up in the morning at certain time to go to work, she will remember it. Not because it can keep track of the clock, but because it can quickly learn your lifestyle. And the cat will prefer not to deviate from the schedule, since, in her opinion, everything should always go without deviations from the usual pattern.

...and the usual means seven days a week.

It takes quite a long time for your cat to understand that there are weekends - days when you get up later than your typical workday wake-up time.

The good news is that most cats are able to adapt to this schedule, including weekend days in which she will allow you to sleep longer. Regularly repeated days off simply become another cat habit.

The cat senses when you are ready to wake up.

Human sleep is cyclical and consists of five phases that differ in depth - from very deep sleep, to the point of being very sensitive. In the deep sleep phase, it is difficult to wake a person even with emergency situations. Each phase of sleep is characterized by its own breathing, heartbeat and body activity.

During the night a person walks four to five full cycles sleep. The cat accurately determines when you enter a light enough sleep phase to respond to its actions. She believes that it would be right to “help” you start a new day.

In the morning, the cat, among other things, wants to eat.

Many people get up in the morning hungry. The same applies to cats, especially if you feed her as soon as you get out of bed. If the cat is hungry, then, having noticed signs of awakening, she will be happy to motivate you to take active action.

Cats are most active in the morning.

Cats are crepuscular creatures, their activity peaks at dawn and dusk. Their vision the best way adapted to the lighting characteristic of the time when day and night give way to each other. Therefore, they choose this time for hunting, playing and socializing. This is normal for cats, this is their nature. However, if a cat wakes you up at 4 am, demanding attention or food, we can talk about disturbances in the animal’s behavior.

. (RU)Dr. Elliott is a veterinarian with over thirty years of experience. She graduated from the University of Glasgow in 1987, and worked as a veterinary surgeon for 7 years. Afterward, Dr. Elliott worked as a veterinarian at an animal clinic for over a decade.

Number of sources used in this article: . You will find a list of them at the bottom of the page.

Does your cat like to go on mouse hunts at three in the morning? Is she jumping all over you? Or does it just meow to get you out of bed? Cats are masters of calculated actions. And this can lead to you losing the opportunity to get a good night's sleep. If you are having problems with your cat, there are some techniques that will allow you to take control of the situation.

Steps

A change of scenery

Find out why your cat bothers you at night. In most cats it is caused by underlying obvious reasons. It is very likely that the cat is bored or hungry, or may need you to clean the litter box.

Don't feed the cat. One of the worst things you can do is jump on cat meow and feed the animal. In this case, the cat will think that in the best possible way to receive additional food is meowing, and will continue to behave this way. Waiting too long before final delivery is also not the best solution. This will teach the cat not to back down. For her, it will become something of a game of how long you can hold out before finally feeding her. Delayed gratification will be the object of her hunt, which completely satisfies her instincts. Your best bet is to never give up.

Remove sources of temptation. Cats love to jump from heights and tear things up. When you sleep, you become an ideal target for a cat. Look around the room and identify places where your cat might jump. Pay attention to high shelves, headboards, and cabinets that can be climbed on at night and jumped from on you. If possible, remove these items or rearrange them so that your cat cannot jump on you. If this is not possible, cover them with slippery cloth or stuff them with things that the cat can't knock off. This will discourage her from jumping into such places and jumping on you.

Minimize your cat's access to the pests it catches. If your cat wakes you up in the morning by bringing her prey, you should stop this behavior. Keep your cat indoors at night if she usually has the opportunity to go outside. This will prevent her from bringing you prey in the middle of the night. This option may not be suitable for you if your cat always goes outside to the toilet through the cat flap. In this case, leave the cat at night in the room where it is front door cat door installed. This will not deprive her of the opportunity to go outside, but will not allow her to climb into your bedroom at night along with the captured mice.

If possible, keep your cat out of your bedroom. You can try locking her in another room at night. Provide her with a cozy warm corner with some food and water and comfortable place for sleep. This will get your cat out of your room for the night and give her a chance to get a good night's sleep as well.

• If you want to reward your cat for good behavior, then you can make a compromise. Keep your cat out of your bedroom on weekdays, but let her sleep with you on weekends, when you can at least get some sleep even if you're woken up during the night.

Cat training

1. Ignore her meows. When your cat starts meowing at night, you first need to check if everything is okay. If you conclude that she is not sick and has enough water and food, then she may simply want your attention. If this behavior repeats every night, you should ignore the cat. This may be a difficult task at first, but patience will pay off in the end. If you visit your cat every time she starts meowing, you will simply reinforce this negative behavior in her.

   Feed your cat before bed. You can feed your cat just before bed if she tends to wake you up at night to ask for food. It is not necessary to give a full portion, but the volume of food should be large enough for the cat to feel that it is more than just a treat. This goes well with natural rhythm life of cats. They hunt, eat, lick themselves, and then fall asleep to store up energy for the next hunt. If you feed your cat before going to bed, she will be full, and she will also want to sleep in order to gain energy for the next hunt. This will also teach your cat to understand that late feeding means bedtime.

   Play with your cat. One of the main reasons why a cat wakes at night is boredom. If your cat is alone all day, she will want to play and expend some energy when you come home. Try to set aside time to play with your cat every day. You can drag the toy along the floor so that the cat chases it. You can even give your cat something exciting to play with. As long as she has the opportunity to expend at least some of her unstoppable energy, she will tend to sleep better at night.

   Wean your cat off the habit of biting. If your cat likes to bite your arms or legs, try to stop this from happening at night. Cover yourself completely with a blanket or sheet before going to bed. You can also put socks on your feet so that the cat does not see the movement of your fingers and does not mistake them for prey. Give her something else to chew.

   • Provide your cat with catnip toys, sisal balls, scratching posts, and anything she likes to chew on.

2. Be firm. Don't change decisions taken. If you decide to let your cat out, whether just from your bedroom or from several rooms of the house, stand your ground. Once the cat understands that you are adamant, it will come to terms with the new circumstances. If you don’t resist, the cat will understand that it can achieve whatever it wants.

Many people complain that cats don’t let them sleep and start begging for food at five in the morning. As a rule, many people love their furbabies so much that they donate morning sleep even after a difficult night shift. But there are ways to get rid of this problem and feed your pet on your own schedule.

Why do cats wake us up so early?

Do not forget that cats are predators, and they still have the habits inherent in nature. Most often they go out to hunt at night, and felines always have their own routine. It’s impossible to hunt for food at home, and cats are accustomed to the fact that tasty prey depends on humans.

Many tailed cats begin to become impudent and believe that they can always beg for a treat - they don’t care what time of day it is. If the owner easily makes concessions, oh normal sleep he may forget. However, any prankster can be educated. 

How to stop a cat from jumping on its owners in the morning and yelling

As with any training—whether it's a cat, a dog, or a hamster—you'll need patience. Each pet has its own character and characteristics, so retraining may take several months. On the Internet you can find advice to spray the cat with a spray bottle, wrap it in a blanket and threaten it with a towel - but this should not be done under any circumstances. This will only cause mistrust and resentment, and the cat will consider itself an outcast. By the way, most likely, the awakenings will not stop.

The best way to sleep peacefully at 5 am is to ignore it. This method will not harm the animal’s psyche and will make it clear to him that you will not give in despite his protests. Here, as with dogs, there will be a demonstration that you are not reinforcing bad behavior. Otherwise, the cat will serve as an unwanted alarm clock again and again.

Lie down, think about your own things, make plans for the day, you can even quietly scold the cat to yourself last words, but don’t do what your pet asks of you.

Over time, the cat will understand that it has no other choice but to wait until you get out of bed, and it doesn’t matter when this happens - at 6 o’clock in the morning on a weekday or at 11 o’clock on the weekend. 

Don't forget to stand your ground.

If during a month of aging you decide to give in to the cat once as an exception, you will have to start all over again, because the fluffy will not understand why it was possible then, but now it is not. However, disrupting your sleep is not the main problem.

Sometimes domestic cats can infuriate even the most patient owner. This happens when a cat screams at night, with such a heart-rending scream that it seems that not even the calmest person can stand it. nervous system. At times his behavior seems to have no reason. In fact, to find a solution to this is not simple question, you need to understand why even a neutered cat screams in a bad voice at night. In our article we will dwell in more detail on the question of how a cat constantly yells at night and what can be done about it.

To solve the problem of a cat yelling at night, you first need to understand the reason for its behavior. There are some pets that can vocalize around the clock, not only at night, but also in the morning. The most common reasons for such cat behavior are:

Hormonal surges

Cats that have not undergone sterilization regularly perform nightly concerts. Moreover, cats scream from such strong desire have offspring that cause them physical and mental torment. A non-castrated cat experiences the same thing; when it screams, it tells its partner that it is full of strength and desire. It is impossible to combat this phenomenon in an animal that has not undergone sterilization. All that remains is to help the pet find its other half and wait out this difficult period.

Pet disease

• If an older cat, who seems to have survived the sterilization process, screams at night, then most likely she is tormented by some kind of disease. Often, when an old animal screams, it has diseases such as Alzheimer's or some kind of nervous disorder. This is an irreversible process, which can only be alleviated with the help of a veterinarian who has prescribed medications that can alleviate the pet’s condition at least temporarily.
• A similar reaction can be caused by acute abdominal pain, which can be determined by palpation. A healthy animal should have a soft belly that does not cause anxiety.
• If a previously calm cat screams restlessly, then it is quite possible that helminths are bothering him.
• When a neutered, middle-aged cat yells, this may be a sign urolithiasis. The pain intensifies especially after visiting the toilet, therefore, at this time the animal will behave more restlessly.
• There are cases that after sterilization a cat screams and wants a cat. This is possible if part of the ovary was left behind during sterilization. Veterinarian consultation is required.

To attract attention

When a kitten screams at night, for no apparent reason, then perhaps he just wants to attract attention or beg for the desired treat. This tricky maneuver can be understood by treating the cat with a treat. When the reason lies in this, then the cunning person, after achieving his goal, will calm down. However, you cannot follow his lead, otherwise he will constantly terrorize the owner. Kisa, who is constantly alone, attracts attention to herself in a similar way; she also wants to communicate, play, get required dose caresses.

Sense of anxiety

Cats are able to anticipate any unpleasant event or element; there have been cases when they predicted an earthquake in a similar way.

Battle for territory

Sometimes it is not enough for cats to place marks to claim their rights to the territory; they scream to declare their rights to a certain area. This is done to warn other cats so that they do not even think about entering into competition with him. Most often, a cat has to do this when moving to a new place of residence.

Yearning

If a kitten screams, then this is a manifestation of longing for its mother cat. A kitten that has just appeared in the house behaves restlessly at first. You need to calm the baby down, talk to him kindly, then he will get used to it and everything will return to normal.

How to deal with a cat screaming at night

If a previously calm cat begins to scream at night, then there is only one competent way out - a trip to the veterinary clinic. A professional approach from a veterinarian will help you get out of the situation competently and understand the reason why the cat is yelling and survive the period of cat yelling.

• If a non-neutered cat screams day and night and wants a girlfriend, then it would be better to let him go for a walk. Of course, for animals that have not been sterilized there are hormonal drugs, helping to relieve the craving for procreation. But their use is justified only in the rarest cases, since they cause irreparable damage to the pet’s health. After the cat has calmed down and satisfied its needs, you can think about castration.
• There are times when a neutered cat continues to scream at night. When an animal has been castrated recently, this means that the hormones have not yet completed their effect. You will have to be patient a little, in the future everything will pass and the pet will calm down.
• When a sterilized cat screams, you need to understand that the hunter’s instinct is still strong and it is better to try to satisfy it with play. Active games, imitation of hunting will help make sure that the kitten will be busy during the day, and accordingly at night he will need rest.
• If the kitten played well during the day and subsequently ate meat, then another instinct will work for him - deep sleep. It is good if the kitten eats heavy food at night, the digestion of which will require more energy. But a castrated cat should not eat meat at night, as he is prone to obesity.
• As soon as the kitten appears in the house, you need to teach it to sleep in its place from the very first day, so that later there will be no problems with the night cry of the animal demanding to be let into the owner’s bedroom.
• In particular severe cases When an animal that has survived the sterilization procedure continues to torment its owner with its screaming, you can give it the drug Kot Bayun or Feliway. These are products made from plant materials and will not harm your pet. But before giving them, you need to be sure that the cat is not suffering from any disease, so a visit to the veterinarian is mandatory.

How not to behave

Of course, when it seems that you have taken all the measures - fed, watered, caressed, survived the sterilization period, and the cat still screams at night, then even the calmest owner will lose his nerve. But under no circumstances should you use violent measures against an animal or shout at it. After all, a cat is a very smart creature; it has a sense of revenge. And how she will take revenge is unknown.

In addition, cats are also proud animals, they will not tolerate any violence against themselves, it is impossible to achieve anything with the help of force, you just need to try to show patience and attention. Only in this case is it possible to obtain a positive result.

Most owners are faced with the fact that the cat does not sleep at night and wanders around the apartment, meowing pitifully. The owners see no compelling reason for such a nightly "concert". But cats wander around the house at night, meowing pitifully and yelling for a reason.

There are a number of specific reasons for such behavior that is incomprehensible to the owners of the pet. Before you just yell and scold fluffy pet, it is advisable to understand the reasons for his heart-rending scream and take appropriate measures to eliminate them.

Why does a cat yell at night: the main reasons

Some pets scream all day long, and not just at night. However, castration rarely helps and the pet continues to scream at night.

Any cat, regardless of gender and breed, has its own needs and desires, which it tries to convey to its owner by meowing and sometimes screaming. Therefore, these animals extremely rarely scream for no apparent reason.

Hormonal disbalance

The first and most common cause of cat crying is hormonal surges. Uncastrated (spelled together) cats scream at night from physical and mental stress, which they experience due to these failures, and unsterilized cats can behave this way during estrus.

Cats suffering from a lack of carnal love are popularly called “March cats,” but pets can scream at night not only in the spring season. The reason for the screaming in this case can be solved by providing the uncastrated cat with a female, and only then will he stop waking up his owners at night. A young pet can be neutered. The castration procedure is carried out by a veterinarian in a hospital under anesthesia. This operation is harmless to cat body and is effective in combating nightly “concerts” of the pet.

Psychological reasons

The following reasons are not related to the physical, but only to psychological state pet Among them, the following should be highlighted.

1. 1. Longing. It is most often experienced by kittens that have recently been weaned from their mother. They behave restlessly, wander around the house in search of their mother and meow pitifully. The owners need to cuddle the babies, give them more attention, calm them down, and then they will stop being nervous.
2. 2. Extortion. The night cry of a cat for no apparent reason indicates simple extortion on his part. Most often, cats try to beg their favorite treat from their owners. If you treat him delicious food and monitor the further reaction, you can easily figure out this tricky trick. Having received what he wanted, the cat will instantly calm down and stop screaming. But in the future, you shouldn’t give the cat a treat every time it screams, otherwise the owners will good sleep not to be seen.
3. 3. Attracting attention. Cats that are alone all day try to attract the attention of their owners at night. The cat jumps onto the bed small child or at the head of the owner, starting to scream near the ear. He just wants to chat or play with him, since during the day he does not have such an opportunity. On weekends, it is advisable to pay more attention to a pet and then the problem will solve itself.
4. 4. Feeling of anxiety. Being in a state of tension, cats often scream not only at night, but also in the morning. Most often, they sense something wrong and try to warn the owner. There are cases where cats, with their restless behavior, predicted earthquakes and other natural disasters.

Diseases

The most serious cause of a cat crying at night may be a certain disease. Among the main ailments that provoke a pet to scream at night, it is worth highlighting the following:

1. 1. Nervous disorder. If old cat wanders around the apartment and does not find a place for herself, then she clearly has health problems. Older pets, even those who have been neutered, suffer from Alzheimer's disease or nervous disorder. It will not be possible to cope with these irreversible disorders at home, and the pet must be taken to the veterinarian. An appointment will be made at the hospital medicines, which will help alleviate the condition of an elderly pet.
2. 2. Diseases gastrointestinal tract. After eating, the cat may constantly walk around the house and scream heart-rendingly. This behavior may be due to acute pain in a stomach. You can determine it at home by palpation. U healthy pets the abdomen is soft, and palpation does not cause any unpleasant sensations in the cat.
3. 3. Worms. Another reason for an animal meowing at night can be helminths. The cat is experiencing painful sensations because of the worms that have settled in his body, and cannot find a place for himself.
4. 4. Urolithiasis. Castrated adults begin to scream loudly when they have urolithiasis. It is not difficult to determine whether your pet has this disease on your own. A cat with urolithiasis behaves restlessly not only at night, but also when going to the toilet, or cannot pee at all for several days.
5. 5. Complications after sterilization. Sometimes young cats, after sterilization, do not allow their owners to sleep and scream at night, demanding a male. This behavior is not typical for sterilized females and therefore it is advisable to show the cat to a highly qualified veterinarian.

If you suspect any disease in your pet, you must immediately show it to a veterinarian. Fighting the disease at home without first consulting a veterinarian can only worsen the cat’s condition.