[artiesmom]

A question for everyone.
With all this discussion about hyper###, sorry, forget name of it--means hyperactive cat, I have been watching Artie in his sleep.
Artie twitches a lot, his skin ripples, and he jumps while he is sleeping.
I notice this at night, when he is on top of me.
I do not see this doing the day when he is napping..it seems only when he is sleeping on top of me! Is this something to be concerned about.
I adopted him in March. He is 8yrs old, a real sensitive, smart, scaredy cat--a really sweet guy. We do talk to each other; and he loves to 'nest', knead on me before he settles down for a deep sleep.
I have been attributing this to his 'dreaming'.
He has done this since the day I got him. That night he automatically jumped on me, kneaded, purred, and fell asleep..I saw this behavior that night.
I hope it is nothing to worry about. He is my buddy.:love2
But, why does he do this? Is it normal...
thanks all.
:kittyturn

 

[minikin44]

My kitten does that too and from whatever I've read, you're right, its like REM sleep for humans but the cat version. My kitten snores too lol

 

[orrymain]

Orry also snores and I've also read the "twitching" and such is like REM sleep for humans so nothing to worry about. It is normal.

 

[minikin44]

Re-reading your post, I think I can explain why he twitches sometimes and not others... cats sleeping during the day are lightly cat-napping... when he sleeps on you he goes fully asleep. You should be flattered, because it means he feels secure with you.

 

[doodlebug]

With all this discussion about hyper###, sorry, forget name of it--means hyperactive cat

I agree that this just sounds like normal dream behavior.

But just to be clear, hyperesthesia does not mean hyperactive cat. It is a neurological disorder that causes skin rippling, sensitivity at the base of the tail, aggressive tail chasing, and a variety of other symptoms.

 

[rightsaidfed]

When I first got my kitten, I used to catch him suckling in his sleep. As far as I'm aware, he wasn't weaned too early or anything. I just took it as him feeling comfy and secure and having happy dreams of his mama.

I don't see him do that much now, but as he's approaching 7months, he's "too cool" to sleep with me anymore. Hopefully he'll warm back up to me when he's done with this independent stage.

 

[catloverami]

Cats experience dreams and often act out their actions.....whiskers twitching, mouthing, legs and body twitching. Used to have a dog that actually looked like he was running while in REM=Rapid Eye Movement sleep stage.