why does my cat think hes an alarm clock?

Question

my cat felix wakes me up every morning at 5 20am he has a cat flap so he comes and goes as he wishes, i put food down for him before i go to bed so he isnt hungry,i offer him to get under the duvet sometimes he will sometimes he wont, he wakes me by bedding with his claws sometimes on my face and it can hurt. so please if you know why he is doing this, please let me know.i would be very greatful for a good nights sleep

Answer 1

I have the same problem with my cat bauer, we wakes me up at 5 in the morning and i feed him but thats not what he wants he basically just wants someone up with him. He just wants to know that we are up and going I have no idea why. its so very irritating it's gotten to the point where on the weekends when I want to sleep in, I wear earplugs so that I can ignore him. We can't shut the bedroom door cause if we do he just sits out there and howls. so if Ignore him for a while he finally calms down and just lays with me and goes back to sleep but it can take up to an hour sometimes. very frustrating. as for the claw situation, my cats are all declawed but for those who do not want to declaw their animal a safe alternative is a item called SOFT CLAWS google it, they sell it at major pet store such as petco and petsmart, they work pretty well we used them for a while before we got bauer declawed. At least that way you could save from getting your face scratched up. Bottom line the only way I have been able to deal with it is by ignoring it but as far as I know there is no real solution.

Answer 2

Tracie L, cats are creatures of habit. The fact that your cat wakes you up every morning at nearly the same time proves that your cat has already had this habit ingrained in him. I cannot know the precise reason why this came to be, but I think that what needs to be done now is to de-habit your cat. For starters, I think it would be wise not to let Felix in the room while you're sleeping. Didn't you know that a cats' paws contain germs? Will you still feel comfy knowing that Felix is clawing your face with a dirty paw, no matter how clean it may look?

You might find the link below very interesting. You may use this link to contact Pam Johnson-Bennet, who is a very skilled feline behaviorist. I think it's best to ask her your question, because cats are such fickle creatures that no one really knows what they're up to. The reasons and solutions are just too many. Anyway, hope this helps.

Answer 3

It sounds like you have a good friend here.

Make sure that you do not feed him right away when you wake up. Some cats will try to wake you up whenever they want because they know that you will feed them. Also, as humans, we tend to move around a lot more at the end of our sleep. He may think that you are actually awake and is just saying good morning to you.

Another trick is to clip his claws every week. This will keep his claws from hurting you, and the less intense the pain, the more likely you to fall back asleep.

Answer 4

Hi, Do you respond to him when he wakes you at this time. Do you get up everytime he does this? My cat Bobbie bites the top of my head and pulls my hair if i oversleep, it's a weird feeling. He knows that i will get up when he does this. If he does this on a Sunday when i am not in work i push him away, and put my head under the covers so he cant get at me, cat's are very clever and they soon get the message and it dosent take long before he settles back down. If need be close your bedroom door so he cant get to you, i don't know if you live in a bungalow but if you don't close your doors so he cant get upstairs. Hope you get a goodnights sleep soon.

Answer 5

Cats are just that way. He loves you and wants you to be part of his day, which starts at 5:20 a.m.

It might be a good idea to close up the cat flap and put him in another room for the night. If he gets noisy, a soft radio might help. Or you could close the bedroom door if you have one.

Answer 6

block the catflap.... I think you are beginning to wake up at that time and a cat can sense the difference of deep sleep and almost waking... the fact you want to sleep a few more hours is not sensable for him... he just senses you are about to wake up and is coming to help.... he is just glad to see you awake again.... my cat does the same if I give him a chance to come in or stay the night in my room. he will let me sleep until about 5.30... 6.00 if I am lucky.. So now he waits till I am ready to get up... the first week he mewed my ears of at 5.30 but now he is used to the fact that I don't get up until I get up thank you very much.... I on the other hand also do not wake him if he wants to sleep...

Answer 7

My cat does this. Just this morning he came into our room, sat on my husband's chest and meowed until he got up. Which was lucky because my husband forgot to set the alarm clock! Cats get into a schedule, and if they think we are getting off their schedule then they will remind us! Just like that person said above, cats own us!! You may want to shut the door to your bedroom so that he can't wake you up in the morning.

Answer 8

My baby does this too. He often feels the need to wake me up at 5:30, but I usually just grab him and make him lie down on the bed next to me. He usually gets the message and falls back asleep.

Answer 9

Cats are very independant creatures but when they want attention.. they want it instantly!!! I used to have a cat that would sit in one of my potted plants,he would tear the plant out and sit in the dirt, finally had to throw the plant away!!! He would also wake me up but usually with a fur ball...ewwww gross, just be happy that your cat likes you, some dont, play with it for awhile and maybe it will move on and let you go back to sleep!!! Good luck!!!

Answer 10

I generally take the alarm clock and throw it across the room but I guess this is not a good option for you.

Maybe you could put an "Alarm lock" on the cat flap. The alarm would be set to only allow the cat in when it is time for you to get up? .... or not.