Most cats sleep during the day for one main reason, they are crepuscular animals most active during the twilight hours. However, this is not the only reason why cats are less active during the daytime. Different environmental and health factors come into play. If you’ve just adopted a cat that doesn’t let you sleep at night or suddenly seems very restless at the end of the day! don’t worry, in this article, we’ll talk about the causes which explain this behavior and offer some tips to help you resolve.
Why is my cat not sleeping at night?
1. The cat is a crepuscular animal
The cat is a crepuscular animal meaning it is most active at dawn and dusk. They prefer hours with less light to go hunting, feed and perform other activities.
Although some domestic cats have managed to adapt their sleeping hours to those of their human companions, many still retain their natural behavior and are more active at this time of day.
This, as well as a series of factors we will detail further on, can make your cat not sleep during the day.
2. They do not like their bed
It’s no secret that cats are much more precious animals than dogs, not having a comfortable and safe bed can be the reason your cat doesn’t sleep at night.
To choose the right product, it’s essential to observe the animal and pay attention to its preferences. In general, cats prefer beds which provide warmth and security and which is just the right size for them as beds which are too large aren’t always so cozy.
If you notice your cat has a predilection for your bed or sofa and never lies down on their own, it’s possibly because they don’t like it and you should change it.
3. They don’t like to sleep on the floor
Many cats prefer sleeping up high if they are prohibited from access to high places in the home at night they may only sleep while you’re away.
If you suspect this is a reason why your cat doesn’t sleep at night, place shelves at a suitable height to which they have access or even find some special cat trees with several levels and observe their behavior.
4. Lack of activity and exercise
Cats which don’t usually do any type of exercise have a greater predisposition to being active during the night due to accumulated energy.
The lack of play also produces a heightened state of boredom. This may result in the cat becoming destructive towards furniture or other objects in the home.
It’s possible this is why your cat doesn’t sleep at night and meows to try and get your attention.
5. Spending too much time alone during the day
In relation to the previous point, cats which spend many hours alone during the day and don’t have the right environmental enrichment often take advantage of sleep.
This means by night time they are totally rested and ready to enjoy your company. If they try to play with you but don’t succeed, they may run around be destructive or meow around you.
6. They are hungry
If your cat doesn’t sleep at night and goes to your bedroom to meow at you for attention, they may be asking for food.
If you wake up to provide what they’re asking for, the animal learns that this is a way to get what they want. They don’t consider the fact that bothers you or your sleep, they’re simply more concerned about the desire to have something to eat.
Without realizing it, you may be reinforcing behavior which is bad both for the cat and for yourself.
7. They are in heat
A cat’s heat period is more intense than that of dogs leading them to despair if they don’t knit. During this period, both females and males are more active at night producing loud moans and meows which disturb our sleep.
The suffering is such that their instinct can lead them to try to flee from home to find a suitable partner.
If your cat doesn’t stop meowing at night disrupts your sleep is restless and is over 6 months of age, it’s likely to be due to their heat cycle.
For this reason and many more, sterilizing the animal is recommended by veterinarians to be best for their health.
8. They are sick or in pain
If you’ve already ruled out the previous cases but continue to ask why your cat doesn’t sleep at night and meows constantly, don’t hesitate to go to the vet to check to see if they have a health problem.
Although excessive meowing is usually related to a mental issue, they can also emit these vocalizations to let us know they’re physically in pain or otherwise don’t feel well.
How to help your cat sleep at night
As you’ve seen, there are several causes which explain why your cat doesn’t let you sleep at night. It’s even possible there is some combination of them.
If your cat prefers to sleep during the day for whatever reason, we need to find out the cause so that we can address the problem and help your feline friend to have a better quality of life. The following tips will help you do just that.
1. Physical activity
As we’ve said, physical activity is very important to keep your cat stimulated and tire them out.
This way at night they will feel more exhausted. It’s also best to play at different times throughout the day, especially in the afternoon.
2. A comfortable warm and safe place to sleep
A comfortable warm and safe place to sleep is keys who do not skimp on providing the most suitable bed for your cat.
Especially if you spend many hours alone during the day it’s essential you have toys and objects to keep your cat stimulated and entertained.
You can choose different types of scratching posts, cat trees, food dispenser toys, intelligence games and even use all factory stimuli such as catnip.
3. Feed them before going to bed
As we’ve indicated, feed them before going to bed to ensure they don’t go hungry during the night and can sleep.
4. Incorporate a new member into the family
If the cause is a lack of activity and you can’t provide the hours of clay they need, it may be a good idea to incorporate a new member into the family.
This is not a decision to be taken lightly so analyze your cat’s character and only choose a new feline tenant if it’s suitable and carry out the correct introduction between the two of them.
5. Sterilize the cat
With the heat cycle being a major cause of restlessness, choosing to sterilize the animal may be the best solution for male cats as well as female.
Besides both you and the cat getting more sleep at night it will reduce the suffering they go through from being so frustrated at not meeting.
Sterilization has other advantages such as reducing breast cancer-reducing the development of behavioral problems avoiding uterine infection and avoiding marking in the home.
If you still can’t find the cause of your cat not sleeping at night and this is causing you difficulty in sleeping and we advise you to visit a professional.
Finding a veterinarian who specialized in ethology will be able to provide analysis as to why they aren’t sleeping as well as advising you on what to do about it.
Does your cat not let you get to sleep at night? why do you think this is the case? Let us know by sharing your experience in the comments.
