How to get my cat to grow up?!?!?

Question

I'm having probs with my cat. She's nearly 6 months old so still quite young. She has a bed which she sleeps in when I'm watching telly etc. Thing is that when I go to bed, she insists on sleeping in the bed with me... IN the bed (like, under duvet)

I don't personally think this is very hygenic and I've tried to get her out but I fall asleep and wake up to find she has sneaked under duvet again.

I've tried shutting her out of my bedroom but she meows and meows until it resembles a heart renching scream and I have to let her back in again.

I've also tried keeping her cat bed in the bedroom on the floor but she won't go near it if she knows I'm in the bed. Argh!

just to update, i live in a first floor flat so i cant put her downstairs.. she is being kept as a house cat.

she is adorable yes. follows me everywhere though.. i have to leave the bathroom door open when i take a bath as she screams her head off on the other side of the door until i let her in..


cute that she jumps into bed with me but im worried ill roll over and squash her or something!

another adition to my question for your info,

my cat is female, has not been neutered yet but has appointment for 29th January.
My flat is kept quite warm at all times.

Answer 1

your kitty loves you!

Mine used to do that too - he used to tuck himself in the bed, his head on the duvet and body inside (just like people). It was hilarious to watch.

Then when he was about 6 months old, I bought him a teddy. It was a really good quality fluffy beige thing that looked a bit like him. And he started cuddling and sucking its tummy every day, as if it was his mum.

I placed the teddy next to his own bed, and he would just follow wherever the teddy went and stay with it. And if he was naughty, i would "punish" the teddy - give it a pat on the head - and my cat would get a bit upset but understand that it was being told off. It was just so that i didn't have to punish my cat directly.

So, six years on and my cat is still with his teddy - he still sucks and cuddles it every day, and he is very well behaved and now sleeps either in his own bed, or on my duvet (but not inside).

Answer 2

I had exactly the same problem as you and I had to do something about it when I would be sound asleep and suddenly feel a warm and furry purring companion in my bed.

I have a 2 prong solution. Firstly make her bed appealing. I didi this by getting her a really nice warm sheepskin bed and putting it by the boiler (which was nice and warm). I would leave some on her favourite cat sweets in the area.

Secondly make your bedroom unappealing - this was a bit harder, but what I ended up with was a kid's room guard (mine was Buzz Lightyear from Toy Story). What this is a movement sensor which makes a loud noise when something comes near your door. So for 3 nights good old buzz would scare away the cat when she came near my bedroom door.

After a few nights she had learnt that her bed=good and my bedroom=bad.

I don't think you can ever rest on your laurels cos cats have good memories and if mine sees the door opened (eg if you get up to go to the loo) she's straight in there, but so far its working well and I haven't heard cat crying or Buzz for about 3 weeks now. Good luck!

Answer 3

This is a common problem and although easily solved , takes some determination.Take the cat to one side and sit it down, talk to it like an adult ( no baby words ) tell it that it is a big Girl/Boy now and has to sleep in its own bed, don,t show weakness, be strong explain that all the other cats do and that they will call her names and take the piss if she carries on, or kick it out the door at night and don,t let it back in till morning.

Answer 4

I personally think that people that live in flats should NOT keep pets, unless its a goldfish! I live in a complex where pets are NOT allowed, yet I have two neighbors that have cats! These cats always come into my flat! scratch my furniture! jump on my kitchen counter and mess in my apartment! ultimately me not being able to open my sliding door, have to keep my windows and front door shut at all times! Why should others have to live as if in fort knox because unabiding tenants cannot control their pets!? move into a house or give the cat to someone with a garden, where pets ARE allowed. my apologies if this sounds rude, but I have had enough of hearing about CATS!

Answer 5

Oh thats so sweet. If you want to lock your cat out of your room, place her in another room with some of her favorite toys and her bed. Keep a spray bottle handy for when she starts meowing and/or scratching at the door. You may be up some of the night spraying her, but if you keep this up, she'll soon settle down.

Good Luck!

Answer 6

Scientificly speaking, your kitty has bonded to you, and thinks you are its' mommy and doesn't want to be separated from you, as you are the object of its' safety and welfare. Not that it really matters, you didn't say if kitty is a male or female, or whether you have had kitty neutered or not. Nor did you specify what the enviornment in your domicile is like, whether you keep your place on the cool side or not, as to whether kitty is looking for a warm place to sleep, or whether it just loves you.
Bottom line is, most cat people would, and do, love this kind of attention from their furry "children" and aren't concerned with living with it. Irritating as it may be with your "Chinese Obligation", you'll just have to wait until kitty grows up some more and mellows out as he or she does and becomes more self reliant and, as some cat people wish they wouldn't, more self centered and aloof as they do mature.

Answer 7

Trust me, you won't squash her. You're more likely to end up with a claw in your butt.

She wants to be close to you as much as possible. Was she very young when you got her? You've become her surrogate mummy!!!

As for hygienic, as long as she hasn't got fleas or worms I can't see a problem with it. One of mine sleeps curled up by my legs, and another (the one in the picture) sleeps with his body under the duvet and his head on the pillow next to me. And he's HUGE. And he snores. It's worse than having a man in my bed.

Seriously though, try putting her cat bed in the bed with you (I know it's not very comfortable, but bear with me...) and then gradually moving it out from under the duvet, eventually ending up on the floor. By the time it gets to the floor it will smell of you and she might be more inclined to sleep in it. Or, if you really can't bear the thought of having her bed in your bed, try putting an old UNWASHED tshirt or jumper in her bed. Again, it's the smell thing.

Good luck with her... she sounds like a princess. xxx

Answer 8

properly... Cats never end, they improve for the time of their finished lives, yet they do decelerate somewhat between 8 months to a year and a a million/2 of age. then after a year, year and a a million/2, you will see them no longer starting to be so speedy.

Answer 9

Theres nothing wrong with your cat wanting to sleep with you! Nothing "unhygenic" about it, if anything, your not as clean as your cat is. Your cat is now your "child" as you should treat it like one, just think of your cute little kitty waking you up in the morning when its time to eat. If you dont like its hygenic or you didnt want a cat in your bed, then you shouldnt have gotten one

Answer 10

Take a hint - SHE LIKES YOU

Some people would be very flattered that a cat was that keen to spend time with them. It would be good to get her spayed - she may calm down a little but if she's bonded to you she's still going to want to curl up. Enjoy the company.