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- Mar 7, 2018
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Hey guys!
I have had a five-year old furball for about 2 years now, and lately in the last couple weeks she has gotten a habit of meowing up a storm in the early morning, around 6-8 AM roughly. Even after ensuring she had plenty of food and a clean litter box, my sleep still gets interrupted around dawn by this persistent meowing or steady whimpering.
Usually, in the past I would expect Calley to be fairly active at night, and curled up in my bed asleep by the time I get up. She has her own special blanket that she always likes sleeping on, and over time she adapted slightly to my sleep cycle. However, recently she hasn't been using it as much, or just sleeping in it a few minutes before wandering off. This has been especially true since I washed the blanket, which not only was covered in cat hair, but also she vomited on at some point. But since I washed it, she hasn't been interested in using the blanket hardly at all.
From what I can tell from research online, cats are naturally more active around either dawn or dusk, although that doesn't help me figure out how to mitigate it. Some were suggesting that she may not be getting enough activity before bedtime, and so becomes board and wants attention. That would seem plausible, judging by how she doesn't run around as much at night as she used to. I have tried buying her a bunch of things to play with, such as mice and balls, and most recently I got her a large cardboard box (which she really seems to enjoy). It does seem to slightly improve her behavior, but so far hasn't made the meowing stop. But in general, she doesn't seem that interested in playing around before bed, she mostly seems as eager to rest as I am, until dawn.
Similar issues sometimes happen during the day, when Calley wakes up and I'm not in the room, she starts meowing as well. In those situations, I can just call out her name and tap on my lap, and I can guarantee the furball will be jumping up to snuggle, and calm down. Sometimes, this works when I'm trying to sleep as well. When I hear her meowing around 7 AM, I can call out her name and tap on the bed, and sometimes she will run up on the bed and settle down. However, this isn't as effective as it is during the day, as she will often jump back off the bed after a few minutes, or flat out respond to my calling with more meowing.
One thing I have been trying, when all else fails, is a kind of "punishment" to instill this behavior is not accepted. When she is still crying and I've tried everything else, I will then escort her into the guest bedroom, then close the door on her and the door of my own bedroom. Behind two sets of doors, I can no longer be disturbed by her meowing (or she suddenly stops meowing, I'm honestly not sure). After recovering whatever couple of hours I lost sleep to, I will then immediately open the doors again and give her some cuddling. I find after doing this, she doesn't seem to be upset or anxious in any way, but I find her just chilling out on the guest bed, having come out of whatever spell she is under at dawn.
Are there any other suggestions of things I could try to do, to handle her morning crying and get more sleep?
Thanks,
Nathan
I have had a five-year old furball for about 2 years now, and lately in the last couple weeks she has gotten a habit of meowing up a storm in the early morning, around 6-8 AM roughly. Even after ensuring she had plenty of food and a clean litter box, my sleep still gets interrupted around dawn by this persistent meowing or steady whimpering.
Usually, in the past I would expect Calley to be fairly active at night, and curled up in my bed asleep by the time I get up. She has her own special blanket that she always likes sleeping on, and over time she adapted slightly to my sleep cycle. However, recently she hasn't been using it as much, or just sleeping in it a few minutes before wandering off. This has been especially true since I washed the blanket, which not only was covered in cat hair, but also she vomited on at some point. But since I washed it, she hasn't been interested in using the blanket hardly at all.
From what I can tell from research online, cats are naturally more active around either dawn or dusk, although that doesn't help me figure out how to mitigate it. Some were suggesting that she may not be getting enough activity before bedtime, and so becomes board and wants attention. That would seem plausible, judging by how she doesn't run around as much at night as she used to. I have tried buying her a bunch of things to play with, such as mice and balls, and most recently I got her a large cardboard box (which she really seems to enjoy). It does seem to slightly improve her behavior, but so far hasn't made the meowing stop. But in general, she doesn't seem that interested in playing around before bed, she mostly seems as eager to rest as I am, until dawn.
Similar issues sometimes happen during the day, when Calley wakes up and I'm not in the room, she starts meowing as well. In those situations, I can just call out her name and tap on my lap, and I can guarantee the furball will be jumping up to snuggle, and calm down. Sometimes, this works when I'm trying to sleep as well. When I hear her meowing around 7 AM, I can call out her name and tap on the bed, and sometimes she will run up on the bed and settle down. However, this isn't as effective as it is during the day, as she will often jump back off the bed after a few minutes, or flat out respond to my calling with more meowing.
One thing I have been trying, when all else fails, is a kind of "punishment" to instill this behavior is not accepted. When she is still crying and I've tried everything else, I will then escort her into the guest bedroom, then close the door on her and the door of my own bedroom. Behind two sets of doors, I can no longer be disturbed by her meowing (or she suddenly stops meowing, I'm honestly not sure). After recovering whatever couple of hours I lost sleep to, I will then immediately open the doors again and give her some cuddling. I find after doing this, she doesn't seem to be upset or anxious in any way, but I find her just chilling out on the guest bed, having come out of whatever spell she is under at dawn.
Are there any other suggestions of things I could try to do, to handle her morning crying and get more sleep?
Thanks,
Nathan
