My roommate leaves her light on all day for her cat. Am I being unreasonable to ask her not to?

Question

She leaves her lights on all day when she's out of the house, and all weekend she's out of town. She says this is because her cat doesn't like being left alone in the dark.

But I know that cats have excellent night vision. They can see up to 50 times more in the dark than humans. So whether a light is on or not is really irrelavent to a cat!

I just want her to turn off her lights when she's not home, because it wastes electricity and contributes to our shared electricity bill. I know its not that much, but it does add up over time. There's no reason to waste electricity.

Am I being really anal and unreasonable here? Or do I have a legitimate concern? I tried to be nice about it when I asked her, but I think she was just annoyed.

Answer 1

tell her to get an LED nightlight that turns off when it is sunny out. They are fairly bright (they are brighter if you remove the shield) and you won't waiste energy. You do have a right to ask her because you are BOTH paying the bill. You do have a say.

Answer 2

To all the people here concerned about the cat's needs...if the situation was that the roommate likes to leave her light in her bedroom all night because SHE HERSELF can't sleep in the dark, then what do you say?

My mom's friend had a daughter whose roommates were annoyed at because she would do this. She's scared of the dark. She couldn't sleep with a night light because it wasn't enough. She needed all the lights on in the bedroom, every single night. Was this fair to the roommates? Eventually the girl was asked to move out because she was causing them to have larger electricity bills and refused to pay more than the 1/3 she normally paid.

I have a cat too, and she has no problems being in the dark. In fact, I've noticed that she often prefers dark places (under the bed, in the closet, under the coffee table) when she wants to be alone. You roommate's cat won't get traumatized being in the dark, and as someone who pays half the rent and utilities, you have every right to speak up. Offer getting a night light that only turns on once the sun goes down (I think it's sensitive to shadows or something like that).

If she refuses to be reasonable, then the next time the electricity bill comes, don't just split it down the middle- pay 1/3 of it and have her pay the rest. After all, technically the cat is using the lights, so the cat counts as an extra "roommate", right? Why should you pay for the cat's use of electricity? Have the roommate pay for her cat's share.

Answer 3

If you're paying half the electric, you have a right to request (demand) common courtesy. She's not showing you the least bit. A nightlight for a cat? Gimme a break. I have a cat whom I adore, but no lights on so the cat can see. B.S. Never mind they can see better in the dark than we can see in the light!!
(I DO leave the TV on for the dog when I go out. Yes, I know it's weird, but I have to put him in his crate and I don't want him bored stiff. And yes, I know I'm weird - but I also pay the entire electric bill.)
I'd try again with the roomate - they're hard to find. Just be a bit (a lot) more forcefull and point out that she's showing the cat more respect than she's showing you. If she doesn't even ATTEMPT to change - start looking.
P.S. Turn off HER lights when she leaves. Unscrew the bulb for the nightlight. Pay 1/3 less when the next bill comes. She's wackier than I am - and that takes a lot!!

Answer 4

I don't think you're being unreasonable at all. The cat is a cat (and you're right about their vision)--not a child. Her cat won't get "scared" or "lonely" from sitting in the dark for a few hours at night by itself. If I were you, I'd tell her just what you told us--she's wasting electricity and you're tired of paying for half of the bill when she's the one who's using much more electricity by leaving the light on 24 hours a day.

Answer 5

You both have good points. It is using up a lot of electricity. But the cat has a right to light - just because you can see a little in the dark and know where all your furniture doesn't mean you want to walk around in the dark every night. Yes, cats can see better in the dark than humans - but they can see even better in the light! ;)
If the cat is housebound, it especially needs access to natural light and air, just as much as a human.

Ask for a simple compromise. Either leave the shades open in the rooms the cat inhabits, so it can get natural light instead of electric light, or install motion sensors or timers on the lights. That way the cat will have light whenever it wants to move, and darkness whenever it sleeps. Or offer that lights could stay on (or shades stay open) in some rooms but not others, so the cat can choose between light and dark and you can cut down on energy.

Just wait till winter. I used to leave the heat on for my elderly cat, and that cost WAY more than lights!

Answer 6

Well, you room mate doesn't know very much about her cat, does she? From what your saying. Cats like dark places. You are correct in what you stated. The poor cat must be begging for some place dark to sleep, just to get away from those bright lights. Not so sure about seeing 50 times more, but you are certainly on the right track and she IS wasting electricity too. Explain to her that she isn't doing the cat any favors etc. since cats love dark places to sleep and since they sleep most of a 24 hour day, what is her point? She shouldn't be annoyed, you saving her the money too. Right?

Answer 7

I don't think you are being unreasonable. But you might want to sit down together and figure out about how much it is really costing, before you decide whether to push it any further. (If you had to get a new roommate, would you end up spending more?)

http://www.sdge.com/residential/lights.shtml

This website discusses things like that. It says that lights are about 12% of your electric bill. You can probably figure out by the wattage, how much it is using to leave a light on for the cat.

If it's a significant amount, maybe she would pay that extra cost, for the comfort of knowing that her cat doesn't feel deserted. Yes, they can see in the dark, but I think they are sensitive to the loneliness of a dark empty room.

I♥♫→mia☼☺†

Answer 8

Your concern is legitimate. Since you share the electricity bill, you are in effect paying for this cat's royal treatment. The cat will be fine in the dark. I don't think my cat can even really tell the difference.
I suggest that if your roommate refuses to just turn the lights off, your roommate can pay the WHOLE electricity bill. Its only fair. Its obvious that the roommate is burning up a majority of the electricity anyway.

Answer 9

She thinks she's being a good cat owner. She's not. Leaving a cat alone all weekend is cruel. Cats do not need lights on in the day and they can see well at night. If you are around, why not turn off the lights and keep the cat company.

Answer 10

I think that one light on in the house or apartment is not going to add up that much more on your electric bill over a year period of time. I would not get my nickers in a wad over something so trivial. I promise you won't go broke over one light being on. I think your over reacting and being very unreasonable. Chill out and go with it. Remember your both living together and if this is the only thing that gets under your skin be grateful.

Answer 11

She does it because it makes her feel better about leaving her cat at home. I leave the TV on for my parrot (although he does get pissed off when I keep it off).Yes, I think you are being unreasonable-because you probably do a lot of stuff that annoys her too. I know my roommate does crap that annoys me. You can ask her to contribute a few dollars more to the light bill if you really want to be petty about it. My suggestion is try to live in harmony and just let it go and accept it as her eccentricity. When she is gone and you are home keep the light off...