Cat Chat Feline Forum

Hi,

I was wondering if I could have some advice please. My cat is 4 years old but the last few weeks he has been spending all day indoors and sleeping. He goes out at night but then he keeps waking me up around 6 wanting to come back in. It is driving me crazy to be honest. I am getting fed up with having to get up early every morning having to let him in. He is very vocal and I can't seem to sleep through his meowing. I feel he is sleeping a lot to say he is still quite young. I was wondering if anyone else's cat seems to sleep a lot in the day?

I am not sure what to do. It is getting me down to be honest as its disturbing my sleep and it is leaving me tired during the day and it is putting me in a bad mood. I can understand an old cat wanting to sleep most of the day but its not like he is 15.

Can you not instal a cat flap?

If you don’t want a cat flap then I would train your cat to go out when it suits you. For example, I could let my cat in and out all day, but when she first arrived at mine she started chasing the ferals who’ve lived in my garden for years. The 2 lads stood up to her, but the female runs off. So I had to work out rota or I’d have had to find her a home. I just let her out on a morning, and she nips in and out until about 12pm and now she will come in herself and take herself off to bed, and she stays in the house until the next morning. She sometimes gets a bit restless about teatime, but we have a play with the ping pong ball and her other toys for about 15 minitues and she settles down again and will sit with us at night on the sofa and come to bed with us when we go. She doesn’t usually go to the door to go out until I’ve fed the ferals the next morning. I don’t like letting my cat out at night anyway, and the ferals get a bit of piece the rest of the day and night. So it works well.

I wish I could have a cat flap but that isn't possible. The bottom of the door is glass and one time when I asked the landlord if I could have a cat flap he said no that isn't possible.

As for letting him out when it suits me I don't think that would work. If he doesn't want to go out then he will just meow to come back in. Is it normal for a young cat to be sleeping most of the day? I could understand it if it was cold and him wanting to stay in but it's not like it's cold at the moment. I don't make him go out at night but it is a case of when I go to bed and around half an hour later he is meowing wanting to go out. I just feel really tired at the moment, I am not sleeping well and it is doing my head in

Is there a window you can secure slightly open for him? The alternative is to keep him active for most of the day and the evening with fun games and activities, but cats are naturally crepuscular, hunting at twilight and dawn, and it can be hard to dissuade them when the nights are mild. It is certainly safer o keep him in at night if you can, but if you have a cat used to hunting it can be hard going.

I normally leave my back door or back window open slightly when they are out and don't want to come back in at night.

Almost invariably they are back in and on the bed just when I've settled down, and have to get up and close the door again.