We have recently adopted a one-year old cat from a neighbor who let him stay out all night as a kitten and did not spend time playing with him or training him. This cat is very hyperactive and wants constant attention and petting. We try to play with him and give him plenty of exercise outside but he seems to want to play 24 hours a day at times! He jumps on the bed in the middle of the night and starts pawing at our faces. What can we do? Should we ignore this behavior or be patient and give him the attention? When I try to close the bedroom door, he literally bangs on it relentlessly, making it more difficult to sleep. HELP!
Cats are naturally nocturnal animals. Your cat is seeking your attention. He is used to playing at night because he was an outside cat.
Playing or being active at night is a normal behavior of young cats. All cats have some amount of pent up energy that needs to be released at some time during each day. If the daytime environment is quiet or boring, the cat may sleep for most of the day and then play at night. Some cats are very noisy at night or persistent in trying to awaken their owners. This often occurs in households where the owners are away for most of the day. When you are trying to sleep, your cat is wide-awake and seeking attention, even if it may be in the form of being yelled at or being chased. What is a perfectly normal behavior for your cat may not be acceptable to you.
The key element to solving this problem is increasing your cat's daytime activity level. Secondarily, some behavior modification techniques may be in order as well. Since your cat's nocturnal activities are natural and normal, there is specifically no indication to use medications. The goal is to get the cat to be more active during the day so that his energy level will be lower at night. This is difficult to do if you are gone most of the day. You might try one-on-one playtime before and after work, promoting a variety of exercise activities. Exercise is a great way for your cat to release energy and stress. Some toys that cats enjoy chasing and hunting include fur mice, feathers on a string, laser pointers, waded up paper -- the possibilities are virtually limitless. Be careful with toys that your cat may accidentally swallow, like strings. They can cause obstructions and require surgery to remove.
Feeding a larger portion of the daily feeding at bedtime may help make your cat sleep at night. If you find your cat sleeping during the day, wake him up and try to entice him to play with a catnip mouse or other cat toy. The more energy he burns during the day, the less there will be to keep you awake at night.
I assume that you only have one cat. Sometimes getting your cat a playmate will give him an outlet for his attention-seeking behavior, and help him burn energy too. Some cats, however, do not take well to a new cat in the household, so this should be undertaken carefully. You should also realize that there is a possibility that they will both play together at night. Two cats can make much more noise than one. I would recommend that you discuss this with your veterinarian if you decide that this is a good option for your family.
Proper behavior modification is important and will help also. It is important that you not get up when your cat tries to wake you in the middle of the night. If you do, this will just reinforce his behavior. The more attention you give him at night, the more he will try to get from you. In order to train him not to bother you at night, you should try to ignore him. If this is not possible or does not work, you can place him in a room away from where you are trying to sleep so that his playing in the night won't wake you up. Once he learns not to wake you at night you may be able to let him back into your bedroom. Some specialists recommend using a water pistol to deter pet cats from engaging in bothersome behavior at night. You should be careful not to overuse this as it has the potential of making your cat nervous or skittish.
As your cat gets older, he will likely settle down and sleep more during the night. If your cat doesn't, you should have his thyroid gland checked by your veterinarian. An overactive thyroid gland (hyperthyroidism) can result in hyperactivity as a symptom. Your veterinarian can check for this disease using a blood test if it is suspected from the history and physical exam findings.
Good luck with your new cat. If these recommendations do not work for you, you may want to discuss your cat's behavior with a veterinary behaviorist. These specialists can be found at teaching hospitals or through your regular veterinarian.
05/04/06
