Cat waking us up every night - please help- desperate at 39 weeks pregnant

[biscuit13]

Every night our 1 year old cat meows and scratches at our bedroom door from about 5am to wake us up.
We are due our first baby in 1 week so im not sleeping much anyway, and then I'm awake from 5 because she doesn't stop until one of us (me) gets up.
Weve tried everything, water sprayer, 'no-scratch' spray on door, tried letting her in to see if she would settle and she just kept running accross us crying. Weve tried ignoring her but it was an hour and a half and she was still going. We feed her right before we go to bed so that shes not hungry. When I eventually get up she doesn't even want food she just wants to sit with me.
I dont know what else to do, please help me.
Oh and we cant just have her in with us all night because of when our baby is here, we don't want to risk her getting in the crib and suffocating baby. Plus weve never let her in at night so its not like we are taking that away. Its not been a problem until recently.

I need a solution because pretty soon im going to be awake most of the night with a newborn, I dont think I can take it if the cat then wakes us up too.

Can you shut her in a room downstairs where you won’t hear her? Kitchen with a nice warm bed?

@NaughtipussMaximus Thats our last resort, she's an indoor cat so we would have to keep moving her litter tray back and forth, where as at the moment the mess is contained to the bathroom. We used to do that when she was a kitten but havent done that for ages so she had more space, maybe we'll have to go back to it.

Get another litter tray and shut her in a room downstairs with a bit of nice food. It’s the only way.

Difficult! We had the same with our cars when we had DS, except by then they were allowed out so we could shut them downstairs. Not that it’ll be much consolation right now but ours grew out of the early mornings!

@Itllbeaninterestingchristmas now that I'm up she's curled up at the other end of the sofa and gone to sleep! She just wants company, I feel awful that she gets so distressed because she must wake up and feel lonely.
Also she loves her food, whenever we put food down she eats it all in one go, so we feed her smaller portions (she kept being sick from overeating 🙄) we give her some dry food literally before we go to bed. So I dont think its food related.

Hello! I'm 41 weeks pregnant today so feel you on the no sleep thing!
I saw a thread on here the other day about someone struggling with the same sort of issue and people recommended you can get like a sticky tape to lay down outside your door and it detracts the cat? I think it's a special pet tape and someone also said about putting foil along the bottom of your door as cats don't like the feel of it?
I'm sorry I can't remember exactly but maybe a quick google about the tape or foil will help?
Just one pregnant lady trying to help another 😂
Good luck!

Can she start being a cat that goes outdoors sometimes? We lock ours downstairs for the same reason plus he bites our toes.

There was a similar thread last week about the same problem. Have a search as people we're recommending things like sticky tape and foil which seemed to work for people.

@NaughtipussMaximus do you think its a phase then? I keep thinking maybe she's just unsettled because she can sense the baby will be here soon.

@sophs29 thank you! 🙈 im inly getting about 4 or 5 hours a night at the moment which i know is fairly average at this point but still! I dont want to be sleep deprived before baby comes! Anyway thank you, hope your baby comes soon!

@footprintsintheslow thank you, I'll have a look, first time posting on the pets board but I will see if I can find some similar threads.

@biscuit13 I completely understand! sleep is precious right now 😂
I've also heard pets acting strangely near your due date can be a sign! so maybe your cat can sense something bless it!

Get another litter tray and put her downstairs. We did this once we realised the cats were waking us more than the DC and I wish I hadn’t waited as long as that to do it.

Here it is

Cat scratching at closed door and waking baby http://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/thelitterr_tray/4061836-Cat-scratching-at-closed-door-and-waking-baby

@footprintsintheslow thank you, I couldnt find it. Have had a read and going to try the tin foil idea first! 🤞🏻

@footprintsintheslow @sophs29 so we did the foil thing last night, covered the whole bottom half of the door with it....
2am shes out there tearing it down 🤦🏻‍♀️ clearly along with water (shes gets in the shower when its on if you don't close the door quick enough!) she loves foil too. Haha.
We ended up shutting her in the living room with her litter tray so we could sleep, might have to do that for a few nights.