Frustrated Mom over here

[Callie]

I'm a cat mom, but similar issues!

My cat, which is a year and a half old, DOES NOT LIKE TO FOLLOW RULES.
I've tried a stern NO, and correcting the behavior, a spray bottle, etc. I've given up on the whole, no cats on the counter thing.

But the most recent thing she has started doing is digging feverishly on the bed (more like myself) in the middle of the night. A few times, picking up the cover and letting her under stopped it, but it usually doesn't. The only thing that will is getting up and holding her like a baby for a few minutes.

I've tried kicking her off, telling her no, ignoring it (which is impossible because she just keeps digging on and off, and I can't sleep, and don't want ruined blankets), the spray bottle.

I'm at witts end! I can't keep getting up on demand and holding her.

 

[POOHsie]

My cat (now at Rainbow Bridge) liked to sleep close to me, sometimes on me. But she wouldn't allow me to have my arms under the covers. If they were, she would gently "bite" them to send me a reminder. As soon as my arms were outside the blankets, I used one arm to wrap around her, and everything quieted down. Whatever. Gotta love those cats!

 

[low-key]

your a cat ? how did you learn to type, spell ?

 

[Callie]

I only have a twin, so she doesn't have much space besides sleeping on top of me, or between myself and the body pillow.

Its just so strange that this suddenly started. Maybe because I'm gone more?

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

We are fighting a similar issue with lamps. When our little guy (11 months) sees the sun rise, he thinks its time to get up and starts rattling the lamps.

DH tried the yelling, putting him on the floor, etc. really the only thing that is working is ignoring him. It's taken 3 weeks, but the duration is getting less and less. He only rattles the lamp once or twice and moves on. If your cat gets a reaction it will keep doing it.

Cats are STUBBORN. You have to keep doing something over and over consistently for weeks or months to get them to cave.

I know it's hard when your cat is digging on a blanket on top of you, but if you don't react it will eventually stop. Or lock that cat out of the room and buy ear plugs.

 

[Callie]

We are fighting a similar issue with lamps. When our little guy (11 months) sees the sun rise, he thinks its time to get up and starts rattling the lamps.

DH tried the yelling, putting him on the floor, etc. really the only thing that is working is ignoring him. It's taken 3 weeks, but the duration is getting less and less. He only rattles the lamp once or twice and moves on. If your cat gets a reaction it will keep doing it.

Cats are STUBBORN. You have to keep doing something over and over consistently for weeks or months to get them to cave.

I know it's hard when your cat is digging on a blanket on top of you, but if you don't react it will eventually stop. Or lock that cat out of the room and buy ear plugs.

Its just hard to ignore because she keeps doing it, and then after I am woken up, I have to use the bathroom before falling back to bed (Its an annoying habit).

I would lock her out, except she would dig a hole in the carpet trying to get in.

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

I only have a twin, so she doesn't have much space besides sleeping on top of me, or between myself and the body pillow.

Its just so strange that this suddenly started. Maybe because I'm gone more?

It does sound like a self-soothing behavior. Is she kneading or digging? Our other cat is a year and a half, and she has a blanket that she kneads and sucks on the corner. She was separated from her mother and litter at a super young age and this is a comforting behavior for her.

 

[Callie]

It does sound like a self-soothing behavior. Is she kneading or digging? Our other cat is a year and a half, and she has a blanket that she kneads and sucks on the corner. She was separated from her mother and litter at a super young age and this is a comforting behavior for her.

Its a dig. Like she does in the tinker box, or when she is trying to get into a closed door.

She does knead on me, and this is much much more violent. She needs a lot of attention. Always in my lap, or crying for some love.

 

[sonnyjane]

Unfortunately the way to fix this involves some tough love...

You need to kick her out when she starts doing it. I am a "cat mom" too and I know that it stinks to lock your kid out of the room, but if you want the behavior to stop, you have to let her know what behavior will and won't be tolerated. If she starts digging, you pick her up and lock her out of the bedroom. That's pretty clear communication. "If you want to be in bed, you can't do this behavior". That's the 10 second version. Ideally you should reward incompatible behaviors instead, such as having her sleep in a cat bed in your room or giving her treats for NOT doing the scratching but for doing something else instead, but since the action is happening while you're asleep, the easiest and quickest way to deliver the message is to remove her from the room.

And I will say that picking her up and holding her like a baby is the WORST thing you could do right now. That is 100% reinforcing her bad behavior. If she is digging at night to get your attention, you are absolutely letting her win by picking her up and giving her that attention in the middle of the night.

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

Unfortunately the way to fix this involves some tough love...

You need to kick her out when she starts doing it. I am a "cat mom" too and I know that it stinks to lock your kid out of the room, but if you want the behavior to stop, you have to let her know what behavior will and won't be tolerated. If she starts digging, you pick her up and lock her out of the bedroom. That's pretty clear communication. "If you want to be in bed, you can't do this behavior". That's the 10 second version. Ideally you should reward incompatible behaviors instead, such as having her sleep in a cat bed in your room or giving her treats for NOT doing the scratching but for doing something else instead, but since the action is happening while you're asleep, the easiest and quickest way to deliver the message is to remove her from the room.

And I will say that picking her up and holding her like a baby is the WORST thing you could do right now. That is 100% reinforcing her bad behavior. If she is digging at night to get your attention, you are absolutely letting her win by picking her up and giving her that attention in the middle of the night.

Also, try playing with her before bed. Super active play, like with a laser pointer or something that gets her to run and jump. It probably won't get her to sleep through the night, but it may buy you a few hours.

 

[sonnyjane]

Also, try playing with her before bed. Super active play, like with a laser pointer or something that gets her to run and jump. It probably won't get her to sleep through the night, but it may buy you a few hours.

Also a great suggestion!

 

[Agri]

I dealt with this even after I got another cat so my first would have a buddy. My cats would constantly jump on and off the bed and get underneath it and tear up the boxspring. I'd kick them out but they'd dig and/or rattle the door.

What worked was letting her into the room until I was ready to go to sleep and then out she'd go. I got a scat mat and after one shock the digging stopped. I had previously tried EVERYTHING - bitter spray, sticky tape, shaking a can with pennies in it. However, one shock at the lowest setting from the mat and neither cat has dug at the doors since. It's not painful at all - it's a surprise sensation, but not a painful surprise.

Now the only time my door rattles is less than a minute after the last morsel in the food bowl has been eaten.

I totally agree that you're only reinforcing her behavior by picking her up. You need to give her attention on *your* terms, not hers.

You might also think about getting a second cat. It greatly helped my first cat having another kitty in the house. My first cat was a kitten that was separated from her mom too soon so she was very clingy and demanding on me. Her misguided behavior cleared up a lot after we got our second cat.

 

[Zandy595]

Is a "tinker box" a litter box? I've never heard it called that before.

I don't have any advice, but my cat does odd things too.
She will rub her chin really hard on sharp edged objects (like the corner of the dishwasher door when it's open). I have to make her stop because she will do it until her chin is raw. She also eats anything she can find on the floor, like bits of lint or a piece of mulch that's tracked in from outside. I can't get her to stop no matter what I do. I've decided she must have some kind of metal problem.

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

Is a "tinker box" a litter box? I've never heard it called that before.

I don't have any advice, but my cat does odd things too.
She will rub her chin really hard on sharp edged objects (like the corner of the dishwasher door when it's open). I have to make her stop because she will do it until her chin is raw. She also eats anything she can find on the floor, like bits of lint or a piece of mulch that's tracked in from outside. I can't get her to stop no matter what I do. I've decided she must have some kind of metal problem.

The chin thing is her marking her territory. She has glands there that rub secretions on the corners. My cats do that too, but it sounds like she is OCD about it.

 

[Agri]

She will rub her chin really hard on sharp edged objects (like the corner of the dishwasher door when it's open). I have to make her stop because she will do it until her chin is raw. She also eats anything she can find on the floor, like bits of lint or a piece of mulch that's tracked in from outside. I can't get her to stop no matter what I do. I've decided she must have some kind of metal problem.

Was she a shelter kitty? One of mine eats everything (or tries to) and I have to keep the food bowl full or she'll gorge herself and vomit whenever she has access to food again. It's a relatively common behavior for a cat that was starved at some point. She might be over-zealously marking for similar reasons.

 

[denisenh]

I agree with a previous poster. Put kitty outside the door. Really, cats are like kids in that any attention is worth it, even if it is a "talking to" scold. I think our cats enjoy being naughty so that they can hear us say "kitty, knock it off!" while getting our complete attention.
its like a game... "i'll do this and they'll do that" thinks the cat.

maybe you can put a sheet of aluminum foil in front of your bedroom door at bedtime to discourage kitty from digging at the carpet to get in.

i put up with a lot from kitties but draw the line when it comes to interference with my sleep.

 

[Agri]

maybe you can put a sheet of aluminum foil in front of your bedroom door at bedtime to discourage kitty from digging at the carpet to get in.

OP, if you try this, DO NOT put kitty on it when you toss her out of your room at night. If you're okay with her being on it she'll know it's safe and nothing to worry about and will happily ignore it and go back to her behavior.

 

[Callie]

I guess my sister and I just call them a tinker box for some reason.

She also eats EVERYTHING. One time she ate tape, and ended up puking that up. So I have to watch it. She wants to eat any human food too! Her food though? She just eats like a normal cat.

I guess I feel awful kicking her out at night. Last night I ignored her, or only gave a soft pet. She was better. I also made sure that whenever I got up to use the bathroom, and she was around, I gave her some love. Also played mouse before bed.

Its just hard locking her out of my room because its the only place she can see outside. My balcony blocks the living room window.

 

[Agri]

Its just hard locking her out of my room because its the only place she can see outside. My balcony blocks the living room window.

She has lots of other times during the day to look out the window, right?

Does she have a cat tree? Even a small one with just some height and a spot to rest and something to do might make her feel like she has her own "zone" to go to when you're asleep.