Cat demands food at all hours of the night

[Pretzels38]

Hello! We have a 5 year old cat who is extremely cuddly, playful, and sweet, but we are reaching a breaking point with her behavior at night which has been a problem for years. In the past, at around 4 am, she would start bopping our faces, aggressively nuzzling us, etc to wake us up for food, this now happens at 2 am. If we refuse to feed her and lock her out of our room she yowls and repeatedly throws her body weight into the door trying to get in. We have tried splitting up her dinner can of food so she gets half at around 5/6 and half right before we go to sleep around 10. We have tried filling up feeder mice toys so she can access some treats in the night. Nothing seems to work. Any advice so we could get a good nights sleep would be much appreciated!

 

[verna davies]

So annoying for you and it can become a habit for the cat.
Have you looked at a timed automatic feeder, it might work.
Cat Feeder Automatic with Timer, Automatic Pet Feeder with LCD, 3L Dry Food Dispenser & Feeding Bowl, Operates on Batteries or Electricity, Programmable Portion Control for up to 4 Meals : Amazon.co.uk: Pet Supplies

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. I would say that she wants a different feeding schedule than what you want!!!! Is she eating all of her food at 5/6 and at 10? If she doesn't, do you remove the food rather than leave it out for her to finish?

There are also motion activated feeders if you would prefer that over a timed one.

 

[ArtNJ]

I'd try the feeder, but my concern is that at this point, it may be as much about attention and/or ritual as it is food. And the only solution I know for *that* is cold turkey, which can be very difficult with a cat this forceful about things!

 

[danteshuman]

I think your cat needs to sleep in another room while you run a fan in yours for a few weeks. Feed your cat at midnight or give them a very small bowl of dry food at night. Also get a special alarm on your phone for feeding time or feed her breakfast after you start your coffee machine.

This is a well formed bad habit that will take months to undo. My guy gets fed 1/2 a 3 oz can for his meals. Cats are bubblers. I feed my twerp at midnight because I hate mornings (& he has a small bowl of dry food available 24/7.) He lets me sleep in. Often I wake up at 6 or 7 to pee, feed him & go back to sleep! Last night I was late and fed him his late night snack at 1:30 am (I’m nocturnal) & this morning he let me sleep in until 10!!!! That late night snack and a small bit of dry food works wonders!!! Oh and I never ever ever reward him with attention for waking me up! (Which is why it will take so much longer to untrain your cat! Give your cat cuddles as you get your morning coffee or after they eat

 

[Caspers Human]

I've seen videos, online, where a cat hears an automatic feeder dispense food then dashes off to the kitchen. Hilarious!

I think your cat would be a good candidate for an automatic feeder. I bet, if you used an one, she might learn to come to the sound of the machine instead of waiting for her humans to feed her.

Cats often like the fussing associated with mealtime (Casper sure does!) but it's also about timing. Cats like to eat, mostly, in the early morning and late evening but, sometimes, snacking during the day. Probably, the reason why your cat pesters you for food so much is because your feeding schedule doesn't match when she wants to eat. I think a feeder would help solve this problem.

Set the machine to dispense a few small meals throughout the day. At least one of them should be during the night.
Maybe you could set it to dispense only at night and feed her, yourself, during the day.

 

[sidneykitty]

My beloved girl Amber went through a period of doing this, too! She was super affectionate but she got quite insistent about it to the point of scratching my poor partner on his nose though I think it was sort of unintentional.

Do you feed your cat dry food at all?

We used to feed Amber dry food in the AM, wet food in the PM/left out overnight. When we switched to giving wet food AM and dry food PM/overnight, this behavior stopped completely. she liked overnight nibbling. I also moved her dinnertime back, so instead of feeding PM meal at "human" dinner time (like 5-7), I put it out more like at 8-9pm before I went to bed.

If you don't feed your cat kibble, can you re-portion her meals? Is she getting hungry overnight so you could try feeding a larger portion before you go to bed, leave it out overnight, then feed her a smaller portion in the morning to balance it out? So basically you could feed 2/3 at night, 1/3 during the day?

Just a couple ideas for you. Best of luck with your kitty!!

 

[sidneykitty]

Whoops also could be worth taking her for a checkup if this is brand new behavior and you can't think of any changes at home or with her diet that may have triggered it. Just for peace of mind.