March 6, 2010

Dear Obie,
I am an indoor-only cat named Sterling, and sometimes at night I like to run around the house like a maniac. My humans get annoyed by this behavior, and I can't explain to them why I do it. Can you help?
Signed, Sterling
Salem, Oregon

Dear Sterling,
I'll do my very best to explain to your humans, and to all human cat owners, why we cats get a case of the "nighttime crazies." The "nighttime crazies" is the phrase I use to describe those times when we as cats play wildly during the night.

In many cases, cats with the "nighttime crazies" run around the house, knock things off the counters, or even jump up on the bed and paw at their humans ears or face, trying to get them to play along. Understandably, this action can annoy a human who is trying to sleep. So why do we do it?

One theory held by many human animal-behaviorists is that we are acting on instincts passed down to us by our wild feline ancestors. In the wild, most cats hunt at night, when our superior eyesight can combine with the nocturnal habits of our prey to bring us a meal. That natural instinct has been handed down to us over the centuries, in spite of our relative domestication, and we just can't help ourselves.

Another theory, loosely tied to the one I just mentioned, is that domesticated, indoor-only house cats don't get enough exercise during the day. Strenuous exercise during the day would help us to overcome our nocturnal instincts and let us sleep at night. Unfortunately, for most of us, our humans work during the day, and the boredom of an empty house leads us to sleep in the sun, and when night arrives...BAM! We're wide awake!

One thing humans can do to help us sleep at night is to play with us in the evening. Exuberant play time in the evening will help us to burn off some of the energy we've built up during our long day of napping, and will make it more likely that we will sleep at night, and allow our humans to do the same!

When you do play with us at night, though, remember to stop the play about an hour before you want to go to bed. If you get us all wound up and then try to slip between the sheets, we'll still be full of energy and we probably won't let you sleep for a while.

I always suggest an hour of vigorous play, then an hour of petting and snuggling. Help us to relax. Then, when you want to go to bed, we'll be more likely to leave you alone.

Sometimes, though, a cat is so boisterous that it must be confined to a spare bedroom or other room at night. This is fine so long as you provide a room big enough for your cat to move around in, and you provide plenty of food, fresh water, a bed to sleep in, and a scratching post. And remember, once you start this arrangement, stick to it. Kitty might meow to be let out, but don't give in! Remember, we are creatures of habit, and eventually we will become used to being placed in our own room.

Most importantly, always remember that we as cats do not get the "nighttime crazies" simply to annoy humans! Being active at night is in our blood and our basic nature. Like humans, we require both recreation and sleep, and it is up to you as humans to help us coordinate our schedules to match yours!

Your friend,
Obie

*****

"We should be careful to get out of an experience only the wisdom that is in it and stop there, lest we be like the cat that sits down on a hot stove-lid. She will never sit down on a hot stove-lid again, and that is well; but also she will never sit down on a cold one anymore."
-Mark Twain