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The litter tray

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

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Original poster

Cat waking me up at 5am

49 replies

AllotmentJam · 30/06/2021 09:27

My cat is a slightly needy indoor cat.

She has developed a bad habit of waking me up in the mornings. It’s something she’s always done on and off but it’s much worse (earlier) in summer. She’s doing it by scratching at walls or yowling or just sticking her paw on my face. She’s currently doing it around 5am. I’m bloody knackered!

She does have hyperthyroidism but this is under control.

Things I have tried:
Making sure she always has food
Putting an extra bowl of food upstairs so madam doesn’t have to venture far (this helped for a bit but now it doesn’t seem to?)
Getting up and Chucking her out of room- this doesn’t help because it wakes you up properly to do it and she goes crazy at the door. She’s now started running under the bed when she suspects this is about to happen.

I don’t even really know what she wants. She’s not just being noisy round the house - she’s definitely waking us up on purpose!

Any ideas? The only thing that helps is bad weather and then she has a lie in!

Please don’t suggest locking her in downstairs overnight. She gets proper distressed being shut in which I assume is related to her rescue history.

OP posts:

gurglebelly · 01/07/2021 16:53

We have the same with boy cat. Around 4am if the door is open he will come in and start licking our elbows (?!), if it is shut he will scratch on it and sing the song of his people.

We think it's because the birds wake up, so he thinks everyone should be awake

TokyoSushi · 01/07/2021 16:57

Yep, any time between 3 & 5am, I feel your pain!

TroysMammy · 01/07/2021 22:02

@ScottishNewbie getting ready for his sleeps

ScottishNewbie · 01/07/2021 23:06

[quote TroysMammy]@ScottishNewbie getting ready for his sleeps[/quote]
He is gorgeous! What unique markings!
These are my little terrors
They are very peaceful until the hours of 4.30am - 9am

PenelopeP1tstop · 01/07/2021 23:42

There's some right nutters on this thread

It's a cat. The only sensible advice is to pop her downstairs and shut the door instead of giving her human attributes. She will be fine. Food, water, blanket. Ignore her

And yes I love cats and have one that I consider spoilt! But it's crazy to try and 'train' one as they're too stupid.

Or just put up with it. I'm agog at the husband sleeping downstairs with one for months on end. Madness

TheSaucepanMan · 01/07/2021 23:54

One of mine has always stomped all over me between 3 and 5am, the other comes in at 4am singing his 'I've had a poo' song then zooms around the house before settling down for his 15 hour nap. They never disturb dh only me, the idiot slave.

TroysMammy · 02/07/2021 06:09

@ScottishNewbie thank you. Your two are beautiful.

dancemom · 02/07/2021 06:26

2:45am I got woken last night! They are new so I'm trying to be tolerant and hoping they settle down once they are used to the place 🙏🏼

FakeColinCaterpillar · 02/07/2021 06:59

Mines usually quite good but he has nights he wants to get up at 4am. I throw him out and he will stop that for a few weeks.

Nyfluff · 02/07/2021 07:06

One of mine has been at it for months now. I'm waiting for him to come in (needs door not catflap) so I can actually get some sleep 😴

Somuddled · 02/07/2021 08:19

Moe do this. They don't realise it but what they are really after is cuddles.takes a bit of coaxing but I get them settled by my side. I've perfected doing this without opening my eyes. If I drift off and stop stroking them, they give me a helpful reminder. I actually love it. If one of us wants a proper lie in we tag team it like you would with children

Original poster

AllotmentJam · 02/07/2021 09:29

oh dear! So many others with this issue! I know her previous owners tried to shut her in kitchen. She scratched the door so much she damaged it so they tried putting tinfoil to discourage scratching and she scratched so much her paws were bleeding . So I am not so convinced with the poster who said she will be fine locked downstairs.

Also, I adore our nighttime cuddles. The little routine of her coming to say hello when we brush our teeth and walking with us to bed then having some cuddles before getting up when we turn the light off to go sleep in her own little bed. It’s like clockwork. If I can’t get her to lie-in I think I’d rather put up with early mornings than lose that.

Our final tactic is to setup a tablet with one of those bird videos - like plonking a toddler in front of tv. My DP reckons he can do it with a timer. She has occasionally launched herself at a tv playing those videos so we will see how it pans out !

OP posts:

ScottishNewbie · 02/07/2021 11:15

We used to lock our boys downstairs at night, but then we moved and didn't have an area to out them with a door. So we shut our bedroom door but they scratched that.
So, we let them in.
And honestly, they are so much happier and more bonded to us. Yes it's annoying to be woken up, but it's also so lovely how they want cuddles and they aren't frenzied anymore to get upstairs. They can go anywhere they like at all times and it's really changed their personalities.

Judystilldreamsofhorses · 02/07/2021 21:32

Forgive me if this is a stupid question, but does she sleep in a (cat) bed? Ours always has, but used to come and mither for breakfast about 5am. Pre-pandemic that was okay because she would cuddle in with us for an hour or so. With WFH we are up a lot later, and started picking up her and her bed, and shifting her to the kitchen at nights. I felt horrible about it, but she was fine, and is still in bed when whoever gets up first goes through in the morning. She has a litter tray in there but prefers to toilet outside. Now if she is out late and comes in for bedtime (she is never out overnight) she hops straight into it!

PhilSwagielka · 03/07/2021 10:17

@AllotmentJam

My mum's old cat was like that - we couldn't lock him in a room because we would know ALL about it. He'd scratch and cry and wouldn't stop until someone let him out - I found that out the hard way once when I shut him in the kitchen and he howled his head off. Some cats just hate being locked up, unfortunately.

Babdoc · 03/07/2021 10:29

Madam the Verminator is out terrorising the local field mice at 5am. She never disturbs me before 8am, unless she’s had a failed hunt and will then curl up on my bed and wait patiently until I get up anyway, to feed her. She has her own bedroom (unless my adult DDs are visiting) but will sleep on my bed in the winter if it gets below minus 5C or so outside.
It’s nice not to be pestered early, but the downside is the assortment of mouse body parts on the hall floor, which is her abattoir of choice…

crimsonlake · 03/07/2021 10:46

I have had two of then on the bed all night, impossible to stretch out as they were in the way. During the night one always wants to lie on top of me, even when I am lying on my side. The other wants to be up close to my face, everytime I turn away he climbs over my head so he is near my face again. He also has the loudest purr!
I bit the bullet and decided to shut them both out and wear earplugs all night. One spends time trying to reach the handle, the other howls like a baby for a short while then wanders off.
In the morning when I open the door they literally fall through the door.
I do still occasionally let the youngest sleep with me as now she sleeps better and on the whole wont disturb me all night. The odd night she wants to be close and be cuddled up in my arms and fully stretched out like a baby.

GenitaliaNotGender · 03/07/2021 15:56

I am seriously considering hiring myself out as a night nanny but for cats People wouldn't get woken up at 5am, and I would get to cuddle cats and be paid for it!

Any takers?

GenitaliaNotGender · 03/07/2021 15:58

I could do sleep training but for cats!

Does anyone remember the controlled crying/SWWNBN saga? Straps cats to rockets

ScoopyDoo · 03/07/2021 16:06

You need a partner who is a) a lighter sleeper than you and b) daft about the cats. Mine mither him nightly at various hours, I sleep through it all. On the nights he is away working, the cats have discovered that a single claw near my eye, or once, pulling up my nostril, will wake me up but it’s usually much later than they would bother DP so I assume they have been trying different tactics before that single claw comes gently out.

PixieKitten · 03/07/2021 16:09

Our cat is now no longer allowed upstairs at night, he has the kitchen and back room or he can go outside, we often leave the garage door open too

PinkSparklyPussyCat · 03/07/2021 18:07

I just came on to post about Harry doing this as I thought it was better to ask on here than carry on my Google research and worry myself!

He's been a nightmare recently, waking me up with the song of his people at about 5am every morning. If I feed him or let him out he's fine but doesn't exactly come back in quietly through the cat flap! We live in a flat so I can't shut him downstairs and I don't want him damaging the doors if I close them.

I suppose I just have to put up with it until the dark mornings are here again!

70isaLimitNotaTarget · 03/07/2021 18:59

Our male walks over us at 5am , noticed it more since the lighter mornings . Our bedroom door is always open

He was so shy when he came to live here -still is but improving- we thought it was sweet to see his little face as an early call .

He usually pesters DH so I don't mind that
He sleeps on or under our bed so thinks it's his anyway .

dancemom · 04/07/2021 15:59

I had a very acceptable alarm call at 6:45am today, much better than the previous days. They even napped on my bed from then till 8am, it was very civilised

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