|
|
 | |
auctions - advertising rates -
site news -
help -
contact
| |
|
Thursday Chats: 9 PM ET Behavior - Pet Loss 10 PM ET Cats Let People Talk - Long Term Illness Support - 11 PM ET Cat Talk
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
auctions - advertising rates -
site news -
help -
contact
| |
|
Thursday Chats: 9 PM ET Behavior - Pet Loss 10 PM ET Cats Let People Talk - Long Term Illness Support - 11 PM ET Cat Talk
|
Posted by PHMadameAlto on September 21, 2002 at 11:13:57:
In Reply to: Help! I need my sleep! posted by Strawberry on September 19, 2002 at 18:51:18:
:How do I get my cat Misty to stop waking me up at 5 am every morning? Having my sleep interrupted all the time is making me crazy! I need my sleep! Whether Misty is in the house or outdoors, she wakes me up. If she is inside, she meows and scratches my bedroom door frantically. If she is outside, she meows and scratches the back door frantically, and the backdoor is right next to my bedroom, so I hear her loud and clear. And a couple times, when she's inside, I have left my bedroom door open so she won't scratch on it, but in that case she comes into my room, walks on my head, and meows right in my face at 5 am. And there seems to be nothing she needs. She always has food and water available, as well as access to her litter box. She doesn't need or want anything when she does this except ME, apparently! I can't take it anymore! If she could only wait two more hours, until 7 am, it would be fine. But I can't handle 5 am! How do I get her to stop???
:
First, does Misty calm down after a few scritches, and can you go back to sleep? This would be the easiest way out. Just let her wake you up in bed, pet her a bit and when she quiets down, roll over and get some more sleep. This may not be the best solution for you, however. The other option is to retrain Misty not to annoy you at 5 am. This will not be easy since cats are notorious for waking their humans in the early morning hours. As late as possible the night before, play with Misty for about 15 minutes. Give her a tasty treat or two after the play time. Then the next morning, IGNORE her completely. Let her scratch, holler, whatever. I would recommend keeping her inside, and letting her scratch at your bedroom door or walk on you, because she could be in danger outside if she is too noisy. Also being outside is stimulating and will make her less likely to calm down and leave you alone. I know this will be annoying, but when she sees she gets no response, she will stop. At your regular wake up time, get up and fuss over her and give her another tasty treat. You will have to keep doing this day after day. You will lose a lot of sleep at first, but the behavior will extinguish. It may take as long as a month or two, however. An alternative is to find a room like a bathroom or utility room and put her in there with only a litterbox and water (no food) as soon as she begins her morning wake-up call. Do not pet her or talk to her. Just scoop her up and place her in the room and shut the door. When you are up in the morning, reward her by letting her out and fussing over her and giving her a treat. Again this will take some time, but it may be worth the effort now to know that you will be able to sleep later. Good luck! My cat walked on me this morning at my usual wake up time, but since it is Saturday I wanted to sleep a bit longer. He then decided to chew on my hair. I pulled the sheet over my head and said, "NO!" and turned the other way. He sat down and went to sleep because he knew from previous experience that nothing further was going to happen. We both got an hour and a half more rest!
There are two ways to go here, because obviously Misty is demanding your attention at 5 am! 