Broken Sleep

[boobookitty]

I took in a cat over a year ago...he ran away from his owners because they got a new dog. They lived down the street. Anyway, this cat likes to go in and out during the night. He'll wake me up at all hours of the night with his constant meowing until I let him out. Then he'll wake me up again later to come in. He jumps on the bench on the front porch, the sensor light comes on and if that doesn't wake me up he climbs on the back of the bench and meows...my bedroom window is right there. I am tired of this broken sleep especially because I work during the day. What can I do to break this habit? I think he did that with his former owners because my neighbor would tell me was out there all hours of the night.

 

[GemsGem]

How about a cat flap/door so he can come and go as he pleases. You can get magnetic cat flap/doors that only allow your cat through. You get a chip to put on his collar to active the flap/door. This stops other cats and animals from entering the cat flap/door.

 

[boobookitty]

I thought of that but both my cats are hunters. I don't want them bringing the mice, birds, etc into the house. Jack doesn't like collars anyway. Every time I put one on him he takes off like a bat out of hell. He always comes home with no more collar.

 

[GemsGem]

Erm.......tough one ! That's one clever cat you have learning how to wake you up Not fun for you but very clever :lol3:
I'm out of ideas but hopefully others will reply soon and they might have some good ideas. Good luck and I hope you find a solution

 

[murr7maggiom]

Jackson Galaxy talked about training your cat to let you sleep on his web site this week. It's a common problem. The hardest part is to ignore your cat's meows.

 

[maple syrup]

Cats are creatures of habit.  Our little guy's daily routine is like clockwork. It is a habit for your little one to go out at night, and you are going to have to take a few days or a week to retrain.  Start it on your weekend when you can sleep in for a couple of days in a row. Make sure he gets out a lot that day if you can.  Wear him out with play in the evening, Then set him up with his cozy sleep place. 

Our Kipper is a sucker for anything furry.  Our kids have a 'Jelly cat' stuffy that lays out like a pillow, and it has this curly fur like hair.  He loves it and has claimed it as his own.  I think he hears it calling him... can't walk by it without kneeding it.  We also have a couple of throw blankets that are fake fur, and it is great if he actually gets into our room at night because he will sleep on it at the foot of our bed rather than on my head! He has a hard time with us not letting him out after supper some days, but usually by 8:30 or 9pm you will be guaranteed to find him curled up on his jelly cat in the kids room for the night.  And he won't start calling to wake us up until 7-7:30 am when he is ready for breakfast.... this was not always so.

Find his weakness and set it up for him and prepare to be howled at for a few nights.  If you have the energy, pick him up from the door and bring him to his bed, to try to reinforce the new nighttime ritual.

I think if you can break the midnight foray from the routine for a few days, he will become less persistent, and start to settle into the new nighttime ritual. Just don't give in... stand your ground... you can do it.

 

[boobookitty]

I've tried ignoring his meows but I end up losing more sleep that way. He's relentless!

 

[boobookitty]

OK, I'll try your suggestions this weekend. I had to laugh when you called Jack my "little one". He weighs almost 20 lbs and I have trouble picking him up. He sleeps with me at night either on the throw blanket at the end of the bed or on one of my pillows. I'm not sure if I can wear him out with playing at night but I'll try.

 

[maple syrup]

How has the retraining been going?

 

[boobookitty]

Thank you for asking but I gave up. He is a very determined kitty. If I was retired I would have more time to retrain him but weekends are just not enough. Of course, if I was retired it wouldn't be as much of a problem since I'd be able to take naps during the day...while he is sleeping!