how can i get my cat to sleep in her new cosy bed?

Question

She refuses to sleep in her new bed for some strange reason. Its lovely and warm, soft n cosy and half enclosed. At first i thought it might make her feel suffocated but i find her sleeping in really tight dark corners all the time. She's also quite old (18yrs) so i thought she might not like new things but when i placed a new cushion next to the bed she preffered to sleep on the cushion than inside the cosy bed! I don't understand? why doesn't she like it? It was bought to keep her warm at night as she suffers from arthritis but she just isn't interested. We've had it for over a month now and its caught all the homely smells so still can't imagine why she wont curl up on it?

Answer 1

Ha ha, she's just being a cat! Seriously, I've bought my cats beds and blankets over the years, which, like yours, have been ignored! I still have these beds but I have one cat that prefers to sleep on the draining board, one that sleeps on the floor on the landing, and one that perches precariously on the back of a chair! You can't win with them.

Try the cat treat or cat nip thing that other people have suggested, it might work.

Answer 2

I have a kitten who is almost 3 months old now and I had similar problems, so I moved her bed into my room next to my bed so I could put my hand down in the bed and she would cuddle against it. I also bought a stuffed cat that looked like a real cat and put that in the bed too, so when I move my hand she can cuddle with the stuffed kitty. Her bed cant get more comfy though since its a feather pillow with a silky pillow case...Yeah I know spoiled rotten lol Only other things I can suggest is to move her off of your bed everytime she gets up there or keep your door closed, and never put catnip where a kitten can get it, I had heard and read from many sources that catnip is bad for kittens. Well it kinda acts like a kitten repellant when they are really young.

Answer 3

This may sound weird, but it could be a "smell" that you can't detect that keeps her from going to it. Does she still react to catnip? If so - I've done this before with moderate success - try taking some natural catnip leaves (not crushed or torn up) and rub them around the inside of the bed to attract her there. The oils on the leaves will deposit on the bed and might just be enough to at least get her to "play" in it and then over time that "play" might turn into sleep.

Answer 4

cats are stubborn. Try some catnip if she like the stuff. If not then let her have the cusion. I am sure she keeps herself warm with all that fur

good luck

try the sweater thing from the answer above mine. It will have your scent on it rather than a strange pet store scent. It should help her feel more comfortable with that farmilliar smell

Answer 5

my cats the same, we bought a cosy bed and he loves to sleep on the floor, window seal, our son bought a pair of shoe and he got in the box and sometimes sleeps in there.
we have tried everything and now have decided he must be happy and contented where ever he chooses to sleep.
the most important thing is he is in a loving warm home not like most other cats.
let him sleep wherever he feels comfortable to himself.
god bless xx

Answer 6

I dunno why they do that? I have a 3 yr. old cat all white with blue eyes part siamise and I bought him a bed and it was nice it had a reversible pillow soft on one side and silky on the other and he would just not sleep in it until I dropped three of his favorite treats onto his bed and he slept in there and ate the treats! And now he sleeps in there all the time! So just put some of her favorite treats in there and see if she'll sleep in there.! Good Luck!

Answer 7

It might still smell like dye and store, etc. to her since cats have more sensitive smellers. Rub some catnip on it.

Also keep in mind that cats do what cats want to do and we usually have to go with the flow...

But she might decide all of a sudden "discover" it one day, my cats do things like that all the time. And yes, sometimes they "discover" things... I think they do that so they can appear to have thought up the idea for themselves.

Answer 8

This might sound a little silly, but wear an old sweatshirt for a day and toss it in there. She might like that...or, try putting a little catnip inside or tossing a few treats in the back of it (after showing them to her).

Good luck!

Answer 9

i too have an old cat she is 15, we have given her beds, blankets allsorts, she know sleeps on the paper recycling bin on old newspapers and she loves it, cat have the choice of sleeping where they like unlike us difficult humans who require a bed as and when available, cats are cats and as a cat lover which we both clearly are, unfortaunately their most interesting characteristic is their superiority and non conformity having to sleep in a bed you have provided would mean conforming!

but try the cat treat thing you never know!

Answer 10

its no consolation when you've treated her to a lovely bed, but at 18 years old she will decide for herself where she wants to sleep and there very little you can do about it! i have 2 oldish cats, one sleeps on the fifth stair up (and trips us up most nights) and the other sleeps on a TINY basket on the window sill and believe me, she is NOT tiny herself! We gave up on buying them beds WE liked a couple of years ago!