Cat in the bedroom?

AshwinR

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Jul 7, 2020
Messages
33
Purraise
27
When it comes to this, I think you have 2 categories:
1. Allowed in the bedroom at all times
2. Allowed during daytime, NOT allowed at bedtime.

What do you do?

At the moment my kitten is not allowed in the bedroom during the day AND during bedtime. However my heart breaks when I go to sleep and he start crying in front of the door. He stops after a few minutes and keep quit the whole night, so he doesn't give me any problems.

I am contemplating letting him in the room, so he has more space to roam however. He sometimes lies in front of the door making clear he wants to discover/investigate the room.

I am contemplating option 2, but am afraid he's going to throw a tantrum when I kick him out at bedtime. Who's doing option 2 and how is it working for you?

The reason I don't allow him in the bedroom is hygiene and also no disturbance when I sleep.
 

Columbine

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Feb 27, 2015
Messages
12,921
Purraise
6,224
Location
The kitty playground
My guys are allowed in the bedrooms 24/7. They always have been, and I grew up that way too. I can't imagine anything else:catlove:

We do have rooms the cats are (mostly) banned from these days (office, kitchen and bathroom), but that's more because they create total havoc if allowed in unsupervised :devilcat2:
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #3

AshwinR

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Jul 7, 2020
Messages
33
Purraise
27
My guys are allowed in the bedrooms 24/7. They always have been, and I grew up that way too. I can't imagine anything else:catlove:

We do have rooms the cats are (mostly) banned from these days (office, kitchen and bathroom), but that's more because they create total havoc if allowed in unsupervised :devilcat2:
Yeah, the reason I might want to give him the bedroom as extra space, is because he's not allowed in the toilet and bathroom unsupervised. The toilet already caused a problem as he fell into the water and came out running all wet. It just felt dirty with toilet water all over the floor......

As I live in a appartement, I feel he doesn't have enough spaces. Basically he has the hallway, laundry room, kitchen and living room.
 

FeebysOwner

TCS Member
Staff Member
Forum Helper
Joined
Jun 13, 2018
Messages
22,442
Purraise
33,212
Location
Central FL (Born in OH)
Hi. My cats have always been allowed in the bedroom - all day/night long. As a matter of fact, they all learned to sleep on the bed quietly with minimal disruption. If he quiets down outside your bedroom door, he will likely learn to do so if you allow in the bedroom day and night.

Sorry to ask, but what is your concern with hygiene with him being in the bedroom at night? If you let him in there during the day, mostly the same hygiene issues would apply - as they likely do anywhere else he is allowed to roam about in your home.

As far as the bathroom, unless you have a bidet - putting down the lid to the toilet would resolve any future 'accidents' from that aspect.
 

Caspers Human

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Feb 23, 2016
Messages
2,693
Purraise
4,703
Location
Pennsylvania
For the bathroom, I don’t think you’ll have to worry.
Once the cat falls into the commode and gets wet, he won’t make THAT mistake again.
Falling in and getting all wet is a one-time learning experience for most cats.
(Unless he’s a Van cat... an uncommon breed of cats that actually LIKE water.)

For the bedroom, try putting a sheet or blanket over the regular bedspread. That will give the cat a place to go in the bedroom but you won’t have to deal with cat fur, so much, in bed.

Casper sleeps in bed with his Girl-Human but he’s not as cuddly with me.
He often sleeps in my spot when I’m ready to go to bed. I don’t kick him out, per se. I just pet him for a moment to “make nice” with him then I just crawl into bed like normal and he just moves out.
 

susanm9006

Willow
Top Cat
Joined
Feb 20, 2011
Messages
13,152
Purraise
30,221
Location
Minnesota
If you have ever watched a group of kittens sleep, it is piled on top of one another. Seems to be a built in instinct not to sleep alone. So most cats want to be with their people at night. If it’s a young kitten then there is a safety reason to keep them out at night. And same goes for an older kitten that just won’t let you sleep. But otherwise, let them try to be in your bed or at least your bedroom at night. Some have success with having a designated cat bed in the room and have gotten their cats trained to sleep in their own bed. The rest of us enjoy the warmth of a furry body in our beds.
 
Last edited:

LTS3

TCS Member
Veteran
Joined
Aug 29, 2014
Messages
19,209
Purraise
19,695
Location
USA
This might be helpful:


Keep the toilet lid down at all times to keep the cat (and toys and other things) out. Stick a reminder on the back of the bathroom door as a reminder if needed. Close the tub / shower and sink drains if possible. Put away anything potentially dangerous in the bathroom: hair dryer and other things, household cleaners, medicines, etc. Basically have a boring bathroom with nothing left out.

When it comes to this, I think you have 2 categories:
1. Allowed in the bedroom at all times
2. Allowed during daytime, NOT allowed at bedtime.

I do a different way: not allowed in the bedroom when I am not home. In the past this was because I had pet gerbils then later pet mice kept in the bedroom so the cats were not allowed in the bedroom unsupervised.

Cats don't care much for horizontal space so they do pretty well in small apartments. Vertical space is more important. Do you have a cat tree or window sills?

What hygiene concerns do you have? If the cat has access to other parts of your home, loose fur and tracked litter are pretty much everywhere. I'm not sure how keeping the cat out of the bedroom at night is hygienic :headscratch:
 

Mamanyt1953

Rules my home with an iron paw
Staff Member
Forum Helper
Joined
Oct 16, 2015
Messages
31,182
Purraise
67,770
Location
North Carolina
I don't sleep well unless my cat is curled up on the bed with me. And I've found it VERY handy, as well. I awakened, several years ago, to her hunched at the end of the bed, snarling. I heard something right outside the front door, and called 911. A look by the police showed where someone had tried to jimmy the door. Hek heard it when I couldn't.
 

minish

minish first..
Alpha Cat
Joined
Nov 21, 2016
Messages
385
Purraise
887
I think there is no right or wrong in this matter. I didn't allow minish in the bedroom when I went to sleep when she was kitten since she bit my toes crazy hours. She cried at first then found her night spot:my couch still warm. About 8 months old I let her in but never gave in to her attempts to wake me for play at 5 a.m. My being a heavy sleeper helped. After a few months I got myself a well behaved cat who lounges near my feet as I slept and waited patiently until I woke up. Except winters when she sleeps on my quilt (chest). Since I like it, no p.
 

chickpea616

TCS Member
Adult Cat
Joined
Dec 28, 2017
Messages
122
Purraise
164
As others have said, no right or wrong here - just preference I think. We personally use option 2 - allowed during the day but not at night. I started it with all of them when we first brought them home, otherwise I think it would have been too hard to change. So right from the very start we decided we wouldn't let them in the bedrooms at night, and so now that's all they know. Hope that makes sense.
 

tabbytom

Happiness is being owned by a cat
Staff Member
Mentor
Joined
May 12, 2016
Messages
19,674
Purraise
36,876
Location
Lion City, Singa-purr
My boy has all access pass to the whole house and that’s his privilege and he’s entitled to it all :thumbsup:
 

Neko-chan's mama

TCS Member
Super Cat
Joined
Jul 13, 2019
Messages
1,002
Purraise
1,764
Location
New Jersey
Neko-chan had the run of the apartment 24/7. I don't sleep well if she's not curled up next to me. As a kitten, she got kicked out a few times for pouncing on my feet and biting my toes. She learned pretty quickly that if she didn't behave, she didn't get to stay with me. Now, she lets me sleep and didn't start whining for food until I'm out of bed.
 

ladytimedramon

TCS Member
Super Cat
Joined
Apr 29, 2020
Messages
808
Purraise
772
Delilah is allowed in the bedroom when I'm home and awake. Bedtime we have a ritual. I clean her litterbox, give her bedtime snuggles and snacks, and then she's not allowed in the bedroom until morning. I have enough trouble getting used to a cpap. Having her in bed is one thing too many.
 

Krienze

Officially a cat lady now. No regrets.
Super Cat
Joined
Feb 2, 2020
Messages
988
Purraise
1,787
Location
Louisiana
I've always let my cats sleep in the bedroom with me.

Was a bit of a headache with CiCi, who liked to sleep ON my hip and knead the ever living stuffing out of me, but other than that I never had any problems for the most part.

As long as they have access to the litter box & water (not locked in), I don't see what's wrong with letting them have access 24/7
 

ToruPop

TCS Member
Young Cat
Joined
Jul 15, 2020
Messages
41
Purraise
26
I actually have allergies so I keep Toru out of my bedroom. He is a Russian Blue so he doesn't shed much, and I make a point of grooming him and vacuuming frequently (well, I got a robot vacuum to do it anyway!). I also take allergy medicine. It's quite manageable. However Toru hates it not being able to go into my room. He doesn't like me disappearing inside my room. I need air flow so I actually have a mesh barrier so I can keep the door open, which allows him to see inside a room he can't enter... it frustrates him quite a bit. If I even cough while I'm in bed he'll hear it and start howling at me.

The main thing I need to do is keep Toru off my bed. For all the other steps I take this is probably the one thing that would make the allergies unmanageable. I'd actually love to let him enter my room IF I could keep him off the bed, which seems like a mission impossible. If I could figure out a way to reliably do that I would.
 

FeebysOwner

TCS Member
Staff Member
Forum Helper
Joined
Jun 13, 2018
Messages
22,442
Purraise
33,212
Location
Central FL (Born in OH)
The main thing I need to do is keep Toru off my bed. For all the other steps I take this is probably the one thing that would make the allergies unmanageable. I'd actually love to let him enter my room IF I could keep him off the bed, which seems like a mission impossible. If I could figure out a way to reliably do that I would.
What about an enclosed cat bed/playpen? It could be placed on a chair near the bed, where he is close to you and can see you, but would stop him being on the bed itself? He might meow for a while as he gets used to his enclosed bed, but probably would feel comforted being closer to you. Worth a try!
 

ToruPop

TCS Member
Young Cat
Joined
Jul 15, 2020
Messages
41
Purraise
26
What about an enclosed cat bed/playpen? It could be placed on a chair near the bed, where he is close to you and can see you, but would stop him being on the bed itself? He might meow for a while as he gets used to his enclosed bed, but probably would feel comforted being closer to you. Worth a try!
I could look into that. I guess I'd have to keep my bed covered with plastic or something when I'm not using it. It's hard to say if he'd like being kept in an enclosure or being kept out of one better (in a way I've turned my bedroom into an enclosure for me!).
 

danteshuman

TCS Member
Top Cat
Joined
Mar 27, 2017
Messages
5,030
Purraise
6,077
Location
California
Years ago I had a cat named Dante who was the hyperest little kitty punk I had ever met. My x-hubby didn’t want to let him sleep with us. Then when he was around 2 years old I ignored my x-hubby’s protests and let him sleep with us. Half of his problem behavior disappeared overnight! I felt so guilty! I had no idea that being separated from his human (me) bugged him at all, let alone that much!

So with my punk jr Jackie (who is half siamese) I reached a compromise. Provided Jackie didn’t wake me up, he could sleep with me. But if he woke me up; I kicked him out for the rest of the night ⭐Except his I’m hungry feed me an hour early morning bit.

If you train your cat, set up a cat room with litter, food, water, a toy & a bed. Also a loud fan works great to block out meowing and door rattling. If you can set him up in separate room that gives you 2 doors between his temper tantrum & your bed.

Jackie has a bed on my bed by my pillow. When he was a baby he used to drag all his toys into my bed while I was sleeping. Now as a juvinelle/ teenager he has mastered the art of waking me up by walking over me in an annoying way. I found that if I fed him at midnight he let me sleep in until 8 am sometimes.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #20

AshwinR

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Jul 7, 2020
Messages
33
Purraise
27
The bedroom is your call and your choice, and there is no right or wrong here. You could always open up more vertical space in your apartment to increase the territory without having him in your room.
How To Make Your Home Bigger (at Least For Your Cats)
Hi. My cats have always been allowed in the bedroom - all day/night long. As a matter of fact, they all learned to sleep on the bed quietly with minimal disruption. If he quiets down outside your bedroom door, he will likely learn to do so if you allow in the bedroom day and night.

Sorry to ask, but what is your concern with hygiene with him being in the bedroom at night? If you let him in there during the day, mostly the same hygiene issues would apply - as they likely do anywhere else he is allowed to roam about in your home.

As far as the bathroom, unless you have a bidet - putting down the lid to the toilet would resolve any future 'accidents' from that aspect.
I dont know, I just think my bed is next level. I put down my face to sleep on my pillo and I would like to know my cat did not put his butt on there.

This might be helpful:

[/URL]

Keep the toilet lid down at all times to keep the cat (and toys and other things) out. Stick a reminder on the back of the bathroom door as a reminder if needed. Close the tub / shower and sink drains if possible. Put away anything potentially dangerous in the bathroom: hair dryer and other things, household cleaners, medicines, etc. Basically have a boring bathroom with nothing left out.




I do a different way: not allowed in the bedroom when I am not home. In the past this was because I had pet gerbils then later pet mice kept in the bedroom so the cats were not allowed in the bedroom unsupervised.

Cats don't care much for horizontal space so they do pretty well in small apartments. Vertical space is more important. Do you have a cat tree or window sills?

What hygiene concerns do you have? If the cat has access to other parts of your home, loose fur and tracked litter are pretty much everywhere. I'm not sure how keeping the cat out of the bedroom at night is hygienic :headscratch:
Just a feeling about the bedroom being a "safe" space. Also not having toilet accident.
As others have said, no right or wrong here - just preference I think. We personally use option 2 - allowed during the day but not at night. I started it with all of them when we first brought them home, otherwise I think it would have been too hard to change. So right from the very start we decided we wouldn't let them in the bedrooms at night, and so now that's all they know. Hope that makes sense.
Yeah, so no crying in the evening in front of the door? I might go option 2.
 
Top