Need help so glad to be here
1 - 8 of 8 Posts
Thank you for asking. See below.
Due to having implants in my left shoulder it is much more comfortable for me to sleep in a down stairs recliner. Sleeping in the recliner is not the problem. The problem is our cat Sunny's late night behavior. The nighly hours of Sunny's ungodly howling is both depriving me of sleep and driving me out of what little mind
I have left. One reason she may be so hyper is she is not currently allowed to go outside to play due to our extreme heat (108 today, in the mid 90's at night). Of course she sleeps most of the day. While my wife Cathy and I watch evening television Sunny lovingly cuddles up in our laps. Come lights out Sunny goes into her aforementioned howl fest. Any suggestions?
Joined
·
31 Posts
Wow! That heat is unimaginable to me, being from England! The most I've ever experienced is 30c, so I can only imagine how you & you cat feel.
I've never had any problems with my cat at night, he used to pull up the carpet near his cat flap when I used to lock him in, but now I leave it open he doesn't. And he doesn't really go out at night out of choice now.
It could be that Sunny is bored, especially if confined at the moment? If you sleep where you normally relax during the day, maybe Sunny can't differentiate between when you're sleeping and relaxing and thinks you're being ignorant and just wants attention?
I'm not sure how you could combat it really, except to close off where you sleep! How old is Sunny? Has she been spayed?
I've never had any problems with my cat at night, he used to pull up the carpet near his cat flap when I used to lock him in, but now I leave it open he doesn't. And he doesn't really go out at night out of choice now.
It could be that Sunny is bored, especially if confined at the moment? If you sleep where you normally relax during the day, maybe Sunny can't differentiate between when you're sleeping and relaxing and thinks you're being ignorant and just wants attention?
I'm not sure how you could combat it really, except to close off where you sleep! How old is Sunny? Has she been spayed?
Joined
·
15 Posts
I have some questions if you don't mind.
- Have you recently moved or had a change in living arrangements? Say, new people or pets living with you.
- Is your cat fixed?
- Besides the change in outside playtime, are you playing more with your cat to make up for it?
My thoughts are that your cat is either stressed, hormonal, or bored. I'm going to assume living arrangements haven't changed and your cat is fixed. I have never known a cat to over do it when playing and exploring so I am a little surprised you're keeping her from going outside (then again I would worry too much about my two boys and probably keep them indoors too if I were you. lol). There is this great toy called da bird. I've only seen it sold at Petco. Flipping the toy around it looks and sounds a lot like a bird in flight. My family cat is VERY picky about toys and gets bored easily but with the da bird, she will jump and twist in the air to catch it. Maybe try a bird feeder near a window for your cat. That's how I bring the "outside in" for my two boys because they used to be inside/outside but are now completely inside due to where we currently live. If your cat really likes the "bite size" birds (as I like to call them, ex. house finches and chickadees), you could try a hummingbird feeder.
- Have you recently moved or had a change in living arrangements? Say, new people or pets living with you.
- Is your cat fixed?
- Besides the change in outside playtime, are you playing more with your cat to make up for it?
My thoughts are that your cat is either stressed, hormonal, or bored. I'm going to assume living arrangements haven't changed and your cat is fixed. I have never known a cat to over do it when playing and exploring so I am a little surprised you're keeping her from going outside (then again I would worry too much about my two boys and probably keep them indoors too if I were you. lol). There is this great toy called da bird. I've only seen it sold at Petco. Flipping the toy around it looks and sounds a lot like a bird in flight. My family cat is VERY picky about toys and gets bored easily but with the da bird, she will jump and twist in the air to catch it. Maybe try a bird feeder near a window for your cat. That's how I bring the "outside in" for my two boys because they used to be inside/outside but are now completely inside due to where we currently live. If your cat really likes the "bite size" birds (as I like to call them, ex. house finches and chickadees), you could try a hummingbird feeder.
Joined
·
35 Posts
Have you tried playing with her, our cats used to be a nightmare at night we locked them downstairs and because they where adopted they just got jags so where banned from outside for a month.
We got toys for them, ones we could use for them (toys on sticks so they could 'hunt)and ones for them to chase that don't make much noise (catnip mice, balls, feathers)
They where fine during the night after that if we made sure we played with them for abit at night before we went to sleep as they would just sleep straight away.
We got toys for them, ones we could use for them (toys on sticks so they could 'hunt)and ones for them to chase that don't make much noise (catnip mice, balls, feathers)
They where fine during the night after that if we made sure we played with them for abit at night before we went to sleep as they would just sleep straight away.
I've had issues with this myself. I discovered early on that Milo was super active at night, and quickly decided not to let him sleep in my room while I slept. This eventually turned into a nightly ritual of him meowing and pawing at my bedroom door for hours, hoping to get in. Lonely? Probably. Too much energy? Most likely.
The two changes I made were making sure I played with him for as long as I could before going to sleep (which would wear him out a bit, and allow him to get into a sleep-at-night habit.), and to put up a compressed air canister with a motion detector near my bedroom door. The compressed air really helped, and I use it on occasion to help reenforce the training. The playtime at night also really helps, but he still meows on occasion.
I know you may not be sleeping in your bedroom, but perhaps your kitty can go into his own room at night, separate from you? The air canister would help in that situation (I bought mine on Amazon, but I've also seen them at Petsmart).
Good luck! I definitely understand your frustration. Being sleep-deprived doesn't help anything...
MJ
The two changes I made were making sure I played with him for as long as I could before going to sleep (which would wear him out a bit, and allow him to get into a sleep-at-night habit.), and to put up a compressed air canister with a motion detector near my bedroom door. The compressed air really helped, and I use it on occasion to help reenforce the training. The playtime at night also really helps, but he still meows on occasion.
I know you may not be sleeping in your bedroom, but perhaps your kitty can go into his own room at night, separate from you? The air canister would help in that situation (I bought mine on Amazon, but I've also seen them at Petsmart).
Good luck! I definitely understand your frustration. Being sleep-deprived doesn't help anything...
MJ
I also have a cat who is forced to be inside as we have adopted him just over a week ago. He is 10 months old and like to talk a lot. I don't mind his nighttime cuddles because he just sneaks up close, but he talks and scratches our warderobe mirrors and that drives me crazy. Apart from shutting him out of our bedroom does anyone have any tricks about mirror scratching?
1 - 8 of 8 Posts
Join the discussion
Join now to ask and comment!