Cat seeking attention in the wee hours

[Jackie]

We have a beautiful male cat that was once a stray and is now our precious little family member. He is now about 4 years old. He has recently started an annoying behaviour; he'd wake us up in the wee hours of the morning, screaming for attention. Only when we get up to spend time with him, he quiets down. I'm at a loss of what to do to stop us losing sleep over this; help!

[ForeverGabe]

My cat does the same thing and I have to admit that I'm getting exhausted. No, I don't want to pet you at 4 am. I don't want you to rub against my hand and purr obnoxiously loud in the middle of the night. I'm tired!

And yet, you can't help but melt, no matter what time it is!

[Kidless]

I have two that used to do the same thing.  It took a couple of nights but being consistent, I was able to keep pushing them back down to the floor till they quit jumping up and demanding attention.  They now have their own sleeping spots in the house and usually sleep until I get up in the mornings.  It just takes being stubborn I guess.  I had some sleepless nights but it sure has been worth it. 

[Jackie]

He has now stopped acting up so much but it still happens some nights. I have been being stern with him and shouting 'No!' at him when he screams; it seems to be working although I feel really bad doing this to him.

[Stitcher]

You have to be firm with him. And consistent with it. Don't get angry, they can feel that, just be firm. Put him outside if you have to until he gets the message.

[GrownChildMother]

When we first got our girl, Luna she would jump in the bed with us wanting to play in the middle of the night. I think her previous owners had made a very spoiled kitty out of her and they would play with her any time, day or night. But after putting her out of the bed and closing the bedroom door a few nights, she finally got the message that we were not going to play after bedtime.

[Lyndish]

I feel for you, believe me. The kitten has decided that 3 a.m. is playtime. For whatever reason, as she started to grow up she stopped sleeping through the night. Luckily she bothers the older cat, not me and gets pawed for her troubles!

[Quiet Abode]

Did you have him neutered?  If not, that's the first thing to remedy.  Play with your cat before bed so he doesn't have as much energy to burn.  Feed him right before bed so he doesn't wake you up to fuss over food.  Both those things when done consistently should solve the problem. 


If he's still bugging you at night, add a treat box or food ball or some quiet toy that will hold his interest, so that he can self soothe without bothering you.  Most stray cats have had a hard life.  He might be making racket at night because he's upset.  It's sweet of you to give him attention instead of getting angry, but you're teaching him that his night time disturbance is the correct way to get noticed.  My favorite cat blog is wayofcats.com which has been beyond helpful in my own situation with cats.