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November 2012 Moms
Cat owners: need some advice. this momma needs SLEEP!
My husband and I adopted our first cat in January and he was fine and super well behaved, but about a month into having him he started keeping us up at night. He pounces on our feet and legs under the covers usually starting around 4 am and proceeds to do it for the rest of the morning until we wake up (and it HURTS - he has claws), and in between pouncing he meows a high pitched whine walking in and out of our room. We can't shut him out of the bedroom, as he knows how to open doors (UGH!) and will just open it and come back in! Our bedroom door doesn't lock although I told DH we need to get a new knob with a lock.
We've tried spraying him with water (he jumps off the bed but then comes back and does it again a few min later), picking him up and putting him on the floor (same result), playing with him for a while before bedtime to wear him out (sometimes works where he'll sleep later than usual but he'll still wake us up at maybe 530 or 6 pouncing), feeding him super early when he wakes us up (he's not interested in the food).
Once I found out I was pregnant it made everything worse, I'm obviously tired to begin with, and I've had to start sneaking in the guestroom (which locks!) when the cat's not upstairs to get away from him, who then bugs my husband and he's miserable and exhausted at work. We have to fix this problem soon or DH says we're giving him away, which is not an option in my mind, but honestly I don't know what else to do. He's fine during the day, playful and lovable, causes no problems at all...he's just a terror at night. I'm guessing it's because he's bored, we've tried buying new toys hoping they'll entertain him at night, that doesn't work either. I'm concerned what will happen when baby comes - will he try to pounce on the baby while he's sleeping in our room before we transition to the crib? Or will he be meowing outside the door keeping baby up?
Our vet hasn't been much help with solutions other than getting a 2nd cat to keep him company, and that is clearly not happening since DH can't stand having one cat let alone two. We've talked about getting a baby gate to put at the top of the stairs but I'm afraid he'll just jump over it. Tonight we're going to try both sleeping in the guest room to try and trick the cat - this is getting ridiculous. Any suggestions are appreciated. TIA!
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Re: Cat owners: need some advice. this momma needs SLEEP!
Do you have food out for him all night, or is he wanting you to et up to feed him? --keep some food out.
Get a door that locks. They are reasonably priced and easy to install.--you could probably switch the one off the guest bedroom.
A baby gate will not work with a cat
Could you lock him in the room with his food an litter over night and let him out in the mornings?
GL
BFP #1- 11/7/10 ~EDD 7/20/11 ~M/C (bo) 12/6/10 @ 8wks ~Missing my Little Firework
BFP #2- 9/11/11 ~EDD 5/25/12 ~M/C (mmc10w)11/4/11 @ 11wks ~Missing my May Flower
BFP #3- 02/21/12 ~EDD 11/1/12 Audrey Lee Born 11/4/2012
BFP #4 ~EDD 6/20/14 stick baby stick!
Thanks ladies. He has food left out all night and even if DH gets up early and feeds him, he just walks away and doesn't eat it. I think he just is bored and wants us to wake up and play.
Kitty is about a year and a half old (not sure exactly since we adopted him) so I'm hoping the behavior goes away.This morning DH was furious and saying we were definitely giving him away, he can't go through life and work without sleep (and he works super long hours to begin with). I'm so stressed out about this
A friend suggested Feliway spray or the diffuser, I may try spraying outside of our room...
I wouldn't free feed him. Get him on a schedule when he eats at 7am and 7pm or something to that effect.
Also..try playing with him right before you go to bed to tire him out. It sounds like he's got a ton of energy, try burning some off right before bed
and if that doesn't work...get a lock for your door..I feel your pain..one of our cats opens doors..it's annoying!
Also..there's a great show on Animal Planet called My Cat from Hell. I love watching it..the host always has such great tips!
we have one that would scratch at the door to get in, 10 mins later scratch to get out, 10 mins later in, out, all night long... whine if we don't let her in, open cabinets, get in the trash, on the counters and stove, just a complete menace... she is now crate trained. she sleeps in there with my dog. if i could figure out how to PIP i would add one of them together... it seems having a "buddy" has kept her somewhat satisfied. if you have a travel carrier, try that. give treats for being in there so kitty knows it's not a "punishment" and eventually when you say "ok, bed time" or you say "crate" kitty will just go because it's routine. or at least mine does
I love that show my cat from hell! I actually considered calling them to be on the show b/c it's getting that bad. I think you have to be in the LA area though
We don't have a crate large enough to put him in at night, just our little travel carrier we take him in to go to the vet, and he FREAKS OUT when you try to get him to go in there. I think we're either going to have to lock in him in another room or lock him out, and I'm just anticipating the crying and scratching outside our door...ugggggh.
Our cat is completely insane though I attribute it to being mostly because he picks up on me being pregnant. He stalks me, tries to hump my arm (only mine!) and generally he's never more than a few feet away... it's really awkward when you're trying to have some private time with DH and there is a cat scratching and meowing loudly outside the bedroom door.
We also have a theory that he acts so crazy because he hasn't been neutered yet either and we're REALLY hoping he mellows out when we get that done.
Our utility closet with all our cleaning supplies and such is a walk in closet that's inside our upstairs bathroom, and our bedroom is downstairs. This is also where his litter box is, so sometimes we will put his food and water in there and close the door. He complains for a bit but we can't hear him all the way in our bedroom, so that helps, though I feel bad leaving him in there for too long so it's only a short solution.
Avery - March 16, 2011
Things to avoid during pregnancy: Eye contact with cats. Cats will suck the burgeoning life right out of you, using their infamous feline mind-powers. Avert your eyes, and move along.
FACT: 1 in 10 people are said to be a carrier of Listeria. Therefore you should avoid all shopping malls, grocery stores and busy street corners for the duration of your pregnancy. Or microwave anyone you contact until steaming, just to be safe.