Bad boy!

[myrnafaye]

One of my cats has a BAD habit. Usually some time between 4-5AM (sometimes earlier), he starts to act up. He will do one or several of the following: make restless "chirping" sounds; jump up on the night table next to my bed and look for something to knock off; or jump on on my dresser and look for something to knock off ( he is usually successful at finding something.) If I put him outside the bedroom, he will relentlessly scratch and pound on the door, making sleep impossible. Please do not tell me to take everything off my dresser and table; that is not really possible. I am a light sleeper and though I love Yuki, this behavior is very annoying and sometimes upsetting. Any thoughts, tips or tricks will be appreciated.

 

[maggie101]

My guess is he's hungry. Try a food timer,chew toys trixie puzzle-i cut up treats and hide them

 

[lollie]

Zoomies at 4-5am? Yep. Most cats are active at this time. Try giving him a good playtime to wear him out before bed. Like maggie101 said, you can also try food. I leave a bit of dry out for my cat at night so she can give herself a 4am snack.

Unfortunately, if a cat is determined to be active in your room, you may have to shut them out. It can take some time of completely ignoring their behavior outside the door, before they stop. For some people it can take weeks. You can try ear plugs or a white noise machine to make it bearable. You could also put some type of barrier in front of your door, like a kitty gate, so he can’t get to the door itself, if he’s being destructive.

 

[Furballsmom]

Most cats are active at this time.

I agree. Along with this, we think Mr. Captain (who is around 8 years old, we adopted him about a year ago) had someone he lived with who probably got up consistently quite early in the morning, fed him and then proceeded to get ready for work. In any case, we're retired and while I'll go a long ways for a cat, I decided to try an automatic feeder to help all of us in the household .

Once he figured it out and learned to listen for the sound of it opening, he became a lot more relaxed, and our sleep is (mostly) uninterrupted.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Yep, cats are crepuscular, which means they are most active just around dawn and dusk. This is certainly true of my girl, although I am lucky in that I'm a day sleeper (8 AM to 5PM), so it doesn't disrupt me in the least! I really like the idea of a timed feeder, and your cat will quickly learn that a meal is forthcoming without you moving from the bed. I'd certainly try that first. Other than that, steadfastly ignoring the issue until your cat learns that there will NOT be a payoff will do it...but it takes a LOT of patience and fortitude on your part!

 

[myrnafaye]

I do give all three cats a dry snack around 9 or 9:30. Its hard to fathom that Yuki is really hungry...He may just want to eat. I dont generally like to give them a lot of dry food. And the problem with closing the door is that then I have to shut out all three, or shut 1 or 2 of them in. My older girl likes to sleep on the bed, and that is her "fort". Does not sound like there is an easy solution here except maybe the timed feeder.

 

[Kflowers]

When I had one who ran across my face, I just slept under the sheet/blanket and duvet. That gave me enough protection to keep from being scratched and, apparently, took the thrill out of it. Since the weather is cold, it should be easier to give it a try than in say August. You might want to take a pillow under too, so you can have a little tunnel for air.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

I do give all three cats a dry snack around 9 or 9:30. Its hard to fathom that Yuki is really hungry...He may just want to eat. I dont generally like to give them a lot of dry food. And the problem with closing the door is that then I have to shut out all three, or shut 1 or 2 of them in. My older girl likes to sleep on the bed, and that is her "fort". Does not sound like there is an easy solution here except maybe the timed feeder.

Since there are three of them, I believe that there are timed feeders that respond to a microchipped collar, so that only the "target cat" is able to access the food.