please please can someone help me. My kitty Merlin is becoming a nitemare, he wakes up between 2 and 4 in the morning and wont settle! which as you can imagine doesnt give me much sleep. its not just that he doesnt settle, he will scratch, wanna play, scream the place down etc.
we only have a 1 bed house so if i lock him out of the bedroom he will sit out side and scream and scream until i let him in. i know he doesnt like being on his own when someone is in the house, but this is doing my head in!
is there anything you can suggest? i put him outside about 4.30 in the morning, but dont really wanna put him out any earlier as its still dark (and he is pure black, and i get worried that he may get run over).
please help me (and the bags under my eyes!).
thanking you in advance for any help that you give........
RE: awake with the dawn
Periwinkle.
Sorry to hear of your problem with Merlin. It sounds as though he likes to be with his mum:D
With him being Black, and you worried about cars, all i can really suggest would be putting a reflective collar on him at night and putting him out. The collars are really good now, you can even by some which flash different colours and would make him really noticeable.
Hope this helps a little.[sm=hug.gif]
RE: awake with the dawn
Bless, sounds like hes a proper toddler! How old is he now?
Hmmm no suggestions just yet, I'll have to think about this one. I did once know a puppy that wouldnt settle so we stuffed a loud clock into a teddy bear (loud as in the tick tock noise) and put it in his bed (in the hope that the puppy thought the ticking was a heartbeat). It worked cause the puppy would sleep happily in his bed but then the bear had to come everywhere after that........
RE: awake with the dawn
thanks for the replies.
yes he has got a collar like that, but....i still worry! think i mite have to cut the apron strings!
Merlin is 9 months now, and yes acting like i child! he dont like it if he dont get his own way! im at my wits end now tho. think i mite have to bite the bullet and let him out at nite. (but then he stands under the bedroom window and screams until he is let in! so im in a catch 22 position.
oh one thing is that he stays in all day, as we dont have a cat flap (and unable to put one in) and cuz he is a very poorly cat he needs to come in when he wants to, to rest or eat/drink. plus he gets picked on as he is so small (cuz he was poorly when he was little). But.....do you think letting him out all day will sort of 'tire' him out so he will sleep? or will it just be the same do you think?
i worry to much me. i know he isnt that fragile but i cant help worry.
RE: awake with the dawn
I dont blame you for worrying, I am always worrying about my boys and have worst case scenarios constantly running around in my head, I think its just part and parcel of pet ownership!
Do you have a secure garden? Would it be possible to leave a window slighty open for him that he could jump in and out of?
Do you have a garden shed or something where he could hide from the elements that you could put a cat flap in? If you put a bed in there and some water, food, toys etc then it could be like his own personal room. Not sure if it would work but it might be worth a try?
RE: awake with the dawn
Just a thought Sarah,
Obviously cats are nocturnal creatures so it's a bit different, but when I had my dog Muffin, in June, he used to come bounding up the stairs to wake us up at 4 am. Eventually, I got black-out curtains for the sitting room where he slept and we were able to sleep till a decent hour.
I hope you work this out.
Love,
Judy
RE: awake with the dawn
Oooohh Judy, what a good idea!
RE: awake with the dawn
i have tried all of the curtain black out things, but nope hes still there at 2 in the morning wanting to play! (bless him!)
Doogle, we dont have a secure garden, and are cul-de-sac is over run with cats (well it seems like it) and they are 'friendly' little things, always coming into your house etc, so leaving a window open is an invite for a cat party!!!! we dont have shed so thats not the answer, so i just dont know what to do. but all i know if i cant go on like this! - i need my beauty sleep you know! hehe.
if only i was like my man who wouldnt even wake up if a bomb went off outside!
what to do ho hum.......
do you think its cruel if we left him out all day?
RE: awake with the dawn
I dont think it would be cruel as long as he had somewhere he could 'hide' (which I'm sure he would find quite happily on his own!).
Perhaps you could trial it and see how it goes, you dont have to make a firm decision, try a few things and see how he gets on. Is there a neighbour that could keep an eye on him for the first few days?
Cats are amazingly adaptable and resiliant. I'm sure if he doesnt want to go out all day he'll soon let you know!
How about a small box thing for him (you could make it or buy a little kennel?) with one of those catflaps that only opens if a cat is wearing a specific collar that way he could have his little peace place that no other cat could come into?
RE: awake with the dawn
That a good idea doogle:) those collars are supose to be really good.
Good Luck Periwinkle, i hope you manage to find a solution.[sm=hug.gif]