Have you ever found yourself awake at the crack of dawn to the sound of your cat pouncing on toys, racing around the house, and nudging and miaowing at you for attention? Then you’re not alone. While this behaviour is not unusual for cats due to their nature and instincts, it can be very disruptive to their owners. So, why do cats like to wake up at 4am? And what can you do to try and prevent it from happening?
About the Cat
To understand more about why your cat likes to wake up at 4am, you need to understand their natural behaviour and instincts. Cats are a crepuscular species, which means they are by nature most active at dawn and dusk, and sleep and relax in the middle of the night and during the day. Humans are diurnal, meaning we are most active during the day, and sleep at night. As you can see, there is a natural mismatch in our sleep patterns, especially during the early morning. This mismatch results in that during the time we are still sleeping, your cat will be feeling awake and eager to start their day. There are, however, some steps you can take to try and get your cat more adjusted to your own sleep schedule.
Hunger or Thirst
When your cat wakes up, they may feel hungry or thirsty. Naturally, they would also hunt for food during dusk and dawn, so while it’s annoying for us that our pet cat looks for food in the very early morning (meaning wake us for food), it’s natural to them. While you might be tempted to get up and feed your cat, this does reward the behaviour and makes it more likely for your cat to repeat. Instead, try to address the problem by ensuring your cat eats enough during the day, and give them a satisfying snack or meal right before you go to bed. When you feed your cat in the morning, try to leave a gap between when you get up and feeding time, so they don’t associate wake-up time with being fed their breakfast. If after some time of trying this doesn’t seem to help, you could also consider an automatic feeder in the early morning.
Routine
Cats are creatures of habit, and keeping a routine won’t just help you with not being woken up in the early morning, it is also beneficial in reducing stress in your cat. To set a routine, maintain mealtimes around the same times each day, for example in the morning after getting dressed. This way, your cat will generally know what to expect during the day. Changes in routine or environment, may result in early wake-up calls from your cat again until they have settled into a new routine.
Boredom
Boredom during the day, and the insufficient burning of energy, can result in nightly or early wakings in your cat. By giving them access to a good variety of toys and providing them with enriching activities, you can help your cat sleep better at night and prevent early wakings.
So what to do when your cat wakes you in the early morning?
The first step is ensuring that your cat really doesn’t need anything and is physically healthy. Have a filled water bowl available for them at all times, and give them a filling snack or meal before bed, or have food available for them when they wake up. Play sufficiently with your cat during the day and leave toys out for them to access. Make their space comfortable and give them plenty of warm hiding places to sleep. If you are sure all of the above is set, the next step to resolve the issue is to shut off any attention or potential reward they receive from the behaviour and ignore them. When doing this, the behaviour of waking will get worse before it gets better, and it’s important to not give up and in. They will eventually realise that there is no benefit from waking you up and will go off and settle. It may take up to two weeks to see improvement.
Conclusion
Cats are crepuscular animals, meaning they are most active at dusk and dawn. This can lead to early wake-up calls from our pet cats, for things such as food and attention. To try and prevent your cat from waking you, there are several things you can try. The first step is ensuring your cat really doesn’t need anything, such as water, attention, and food. By providing your cat with plenty during the day while you’re awake, you can help your cat feel satisfied. The following step is ignoring the wake-up calls, as this will reward the behaviour. Important to keep in mind, is that behaviour usually gets worse before better, and it can take up to at least 2 weeks to see improvement.
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