Im Starting To Understand Why People Rehome Pets (cats Waking Me Up)

[Furballsmom]

Hi again.
So just to sum up and see if I've got most of it, there's a new baby, you're working a lot, you've tried more food and her crying is increasing.
I'm so hoping the music helps, it might even help the baby.

I'm wondering if she needs to go to the vet. If they say it's behavioral at least you'd know she's not sick.
Can anyone give your kitty more attention/playtime during the day?

 

[Kflowers]

When you take her to the vet tell him/her what's going on, how long it's been going on. In fact you might print out your posts and send them to the vet in advance so s/he can concentrate on the cat while he's there.

 

[ItsMaryann]

ive tried all the articles and suggestions. i completely ignore her hour long meowing and scratching as i try desperately to sleep.

i paid 140$ to buy automatic feeders that will give them treats in the middle of the night. This worked for two weeks.

im a pretty patient person, i can handle her occasionally pooping outside of the box. Which she has done since she was a baby. i get that having a pet is a responsibility and i take it very seriously.

but im the kind of person that when something loud wakes me up, it gives me a massive headache. makes me feel like crap the rest of the day. i already have to wake up at 5 am drive 1.5 hours to work, be there 9 hours, and then drive 1.5 hours home. i have fallen asleep for a moment while driving.

i need my sleep.

i had this moment of insanity as i sat in my bed from 5 am - 6am (with my cat shrieking at the door) this morning where i wondered if there is any surgery that can remove a cats voice box (like the adam sandler movie with the dog that couldnt bark lol).


ignoring her (i tried this for so long never made a difference), throwing water at her (todays desperate solution), giving her treats at night. not sure what else i can do at this point.

P.S. I would never actually rehome them. lol They may be bratty and drive me to insanity, but they're my babies.

 

[Maria Bayote]

It must be really difficult on your part. I have a street cat right now which I am feeding outside our house, but she keeps meowing just outside my bedroom window, leaving me sleepless at most nights. I cannot bring her anymore inside as I have rescue cats and I fear also for my two adopted budgies that could probably get attacked when nobody's looking.
Try to buy her these battery-operated toys so in case you are too tired to play with her you can just leave her with these stuff. Don't give up on her. I am sure you can work things out, and hopefully soon.

 

[Furballsmom]

Maria Bayote --not to hijack the thread--but, really quickly, would there be any chance she's not really feral, that she might be ok inside, are you able to approach her? Can you bring her inside and keep her away from your birds? The post in this link might help;
The Mega Pawsitive Fundraiser

 

[ItsMaryann]

We don’t want our two cats in the bedroom at night. I lay a strip of foil on the floor in front of the door before going to bed and remove it in the morning. I’ve read cats don’t like the feel of aluminum foil. It has worked for us. I don’t feel bad since they do have each other and the run of the house. They’re only four months old but I’ve done this in years past with an older cat that would not quit scratching on the door early in the morning. I taped a strip of foil to the bottom of the door at night.

 

[Maria Bayote]

Maria Bayote --not to hijack the thread--but, really quickly, would there be any chance she's not really feral, that she might be ok inside, are you able to approach her? Can you bring her inside and keep her away from your birds? The post in this link might help;
The Mega Pawsitive Fundraiser

@ Furballsmom she is a streetcat but is a very friendly lady. I will try to look for a home for her as what I have done with the previous cats I have had. For now she lives just outside our flat, and my husband is considering setting up a roofed small dwelling for her. I have currently two cats - one is very friendly but the other one (in my profile pic) is a grumpy lady and since I leave for work everyday I am afraid they could hurt each other. I also have two budgies which my two cats are already familiar with and never dare to touch, but if I introduce a new adult cat I cannot guarantee they will be safe when I am not around.

 

[Furballsmom]

Maria Bayote bless you and your husbands' hearts!
To the OP, how are things going?
I got to thinking, for you at least so you can hopefully get some more sleep since you're driving, can you try Mack's earplugs? They're a little easier to sleep in...

 

[terestrife]

Cats only meow to communicate with humans, so if she's meowing, there is more than likely a reason. You just have to find it. Sorry, I know that's not very helpful, but cats have a reason for doing everything they do. Coming to understand whatever she's trying to communicate to you is the key.

You said there's a new baby in the house? That might even be it. Has she always done this, and if not, when did it start? Maybe that will help you pinpoint the issue.

Maybe even a behavioral expert could help you, if you can find one in your area.

shes always done this. when my mom was alive she would go into my moms room and walk all over her. she knew if she did this she would get food in the middle of the night. its now a habit i cannot break with her.

Hi! I didn't see than anyone posted this, maybe there's something here;
Also, try some music - it's known to help relax cats. There's the app Relax My Cat, Musicforcats.com or classical harp music.
How To Stop My Cat From Waking Me Up At Night (step-by-step Plan)

i'll try that, thank you!

Hi again.
So just to sum up and see if I've got most of it, there's a new baby, you're working a lot, you've tried more food and her crying is increasing.
I'm so hoping the music helps, it might even help the baby.

I'm wondering if she needs to go to the vet. If they say it's behavioral at least you'd know she's not sick.
Can anyone give your kitty more attention/playtime during the day?

my sister is with her all day long. shes not working right now. so i know kitty is not lonely.

When you take her to the vet tell him/her what's going on, how long it's been going on. In fact you might print out your posts and send them to the vet in advance so s/he can concentrate on the cat while he's there.

shes been doing this since she was a baby, i dont think its medical. shes just very needy.

It must be really difficult on your part. I have a street cat right now which I am feeding outside our house, but she keeps meowing just outside my bedroom window, leaving me sleepless at most nights. I cannot bring her anymore inside as I have rescue cats and I fear also for my two adopted budgies that could probably get attacked when nobody's looking.
Try to buy her these battery-operated toys so in case you are too tired to play with her you can just leave her with these stuff. Don't give up on her. I am sure you can work things out, and hopefully soon.

i'll look around for toys, thanks for the support =)

We don’t want our two cats in the bedroom at night. I lay a strip of foil on the floor in front of the door before going to bed and remove it in the morning. I’ve read cats don’t like the feel of aluminum foil. It has worked for us. I don’t feel bad since they do have each other and the run of the house. They’re only four months old but I’ve done this in years past with an older cat that would not quit scratching on the door early in the morning. I taped a strip of foil to the bottom of the door at night.

i'll try the foil trick, but knowing my crazy cat i dont see it working. lol shes very determined.

Maria Bayote bless you and your husbands' hearts!
To the OP, how are things going?
I got to thinking, for you at least so you can hopefully get some more sleep since you're driving, can you try Mack's earplugs? They're a little easier to sleep in...

ive started leaving out frozen food for her. on the nights that she remembers the food is there, she cries a lot less. she still cries but not as desperately. but most nights she forgets it is there. i will go to give her breakfast, and she'll do a double take at the night time food, and start eating it, like she didnt know it was there.

i can only use the earplugs in the weekend. i dont wake up naturally, and depend on my alarm =(

im starting to think its a mixture of wanting food and attention. i try to give her attention, but it never seems to be enough.

im starting to think shes possessed by a demon. shes been sent to punish me for all my earthly mistakes.... thats what it feels like when i hear her screeching at 3-5am.

my sister suggested sticking her in the garage, but unfortunately i love the dumb cat and dont want her stuck in there overnight.

i dont think its anything medical. she has always been overly needy ever since she was a kitten. the only difference is that my mom would give in and feed her at night.

my cat knew she could sneak into my moms room and wake her up. for allergy reasons my cat is not allowed in my room.

just being in the house gives me nose bleeds, and allergies. i only get relief from my allergies when i am out of the house, or in cat free areas of the house.

i guess i just need to learn to deal with this until i can afford my own place.

i plan on isolating my room in some way so she wont be able to go anywhere near my door. i just need to find patience somewhere in my soul....

 

[catalinacat]

Would sleeping earlier so that you will be okay with waking up earlier be an option for you? Or would they still disturb you anyway?

 

[terestrife]

Would sleeping earlier so that you will be okay with waking up earlier be an option for you? Or would they still disturb you anyway?

i get home from 6:00-6:30 pm depending on traffic. that gives me less than three hours to do everything i need to do for myself, and the cats, and then try to force myself to sleep by 9:00 PM. i dont think i could force myself to sleep at 8 pm lol

 

[Kflowers]

I found this worked with the one I had that wanted to get up in the middle of the night. (since the others didn't he may have passed the word.) Point one, I don't mind them walking up and down me, just not waking me up.

When he got on the bed and walked up my length for the second time and the pawing started, I'd grab him and stuff him under the cover. Three times and he was over that. Didn't want to get close enough to be grabbed and stuffed again. Since we weren't near the bed during the day, he remained just as friendly as ever.

 

[maggie101]

My old cat would chew on foil. Partly because she was always hungry. Make sure first she won't do that!

 

[terestrife]

My old cat would chew on foil. Partly because she was always hungry. Make sure first she won't do that!

poor baby.

my sister tried the foil trick to deter the cats from her sofa... the cats gingerly jump on the spaces without foil and would still sit on the sofa.

 

[ampmarini2018]

I feel your pain. My lil guy has been waking me up religiously between 3:38 to 4:30 depending how late he eats the night before (I try to stretch it out but sometimes it doesn't work). He is the same way, meow. I pet him, he calms down but then starts walking back and forth on me (he is not a small cat). I tell him to go play with his toys, when he realizes he is not going to win he does. Then comes back and it starts. I've learned since I wake up at 4am for a bio break it is just easier to feed him and go back to sleep. He eats, comes back and curls up at the bottom of my bed and let's me sleep til whenever. SO I am assuming it is a result of his previous owner (He is a rescue). It's not big deal I have found a work around and it works for me. I've tried locking out of the room when he does this, he's only well behaved for a couple of days then back to the routine.

 

[Kflowers]

If they didn't love you, they wouldn't mind not being in your bedroom.

 

[terestrife]

UPDATE:

I've continued giving her the frozen meal overnight. By morning half of it is gone. Even with food she still wakes us up. So this week, i started giving her 10 minutes of play time before i go to sleep, along with a snack.

During the week, the extra attention allows me to sleep a full night. but now she expects her second portion of food at 5 am. So in the weekends she will wake me for her second portion.

My sister is starting to get annoyed. Once the cat has had enough with waiting, she screeches at my door, and then screeches at her door.

You know how your alarm is a sound you dread? Her meow has become a sound i dread, since it reminds me of her waking me up over and over.

My sister has already suggested sticking Kitty in the garage overnight. I feel guilty and am trying to figure out a way to avoid that.

I dont think theres anything wrong with her. She is just needy and likes her routines. She used to have both me and my mom home with her all day. She knew she could go into my moms room. My mom would feed her at 4 am just to get rid of her.

My mom slept odd hours because of her health issues.

Im thinking of trying the canned spray that scares away cats. but im doubtful it will work. ive also thought of getting a wet feeder to control when she gets breakfast, rather than leaving out the frozen food in her feeder.

I really wish they would start selling the Catsomat in the US. I really think it would help if she stopped associating me with food.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi! Could you set up a timed feeder, that would open and give her access for that early AM feed?
If that's what the catsomat is, there are other brands...

 

[terestrife]

Hi! Could you set up a timed feeder, that would open and give her access for that early AM feed?
If that's what the catsomat is, there are other brands...

i can try ones with ice packs. the catsomat is a machine sold in another country that keeps the food cold, and then warms it. without ice packs.

 

[Furballsmom]