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I hate the night life — they like to boogey
By Gina Spadafori
August 1, 2009
It was no surprise to me when a study suggested that one of the impediments to a good night’s sleep was the presence of pets in the bedroom.
Dr. [John] Shepard [medical director of the Mayo Clinic Sleep Disorders Center] became interested in how pets can disrupt people’s sleep after one patient reported that she frequently got up in the middle of the night to let the dog out and waited up to 15 minutes before returning to bed with her pet.
“After hearing that anecdote, I began to wonder how many of my patients were sleeping with pets and how much the pet interrupted sleep,” he says.
I don’t think I have to wonder much about what Dr. Shepard would say about my interupted sleep. At least the puppy sleeps through the night now, as long as you define night as ending at 4:42 a.m. on the dot.
But the cats … night time is party time.
I simply cannot believe how much noise two cats with a combined weight about 20 pounds can make as they play their crazy cat games in the dark. They sound like a herd of a hundred cats thundering and skittering across the hardwoods and careening off the furniture. Just to make sure I’m paying attention, they’ll chase each other into the bedroom, touch down on the bed and launch themselves back into the rest of the house.
Last night, one of them landed not on the bed, but on my stomach.
The dogs slept through it all. Wish I could say the same.
Image: Ilario and Clara, working on their daily naps. Oh sure, they get to sleep.
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Thank you for reminding me why I’m not a cat person ;-)
My dogs snuggle up and sleep quietly through the night (barring the rare bout of gastric distress). They’ve even learned to enjoy sleeping in late. I practically need a crow bar to get Zip up before 9 am.
Comment by Janeen — August 1, 2009 @ 7:53 am
This is one reason why ONE cat gets to sleep in the bedroom (and sometimes not even that!).
One of the upsides is that - for example - I’m currently enjoying watching two cats who missed each other all night catching up by playing “fighting stallions”. Not sure I’d get to see much of that if they got to do it all night long!
Comment by The OTHER Pat — August 1, 2009 @ 7:56 am
From my many years with animals, it seems they all love to be fed when the sun comes up. The cats settle down around age 10; although they still walk around at night, the party isn’t so hearty. But then (and I found this to be true with both dog and cat) they start getting a little senile around age 13 or 14 and start wanting breakfast at odd hours of the night. I finally had to get the vet to prescribe THEM something so I could sleep.
Comment by Lori K — August 1, 2009 @ 8:06 am
Oh, yes, the wonderful sound of a bowling ball, I mean a 12lb. cat, gallumping down the basement stairs to raid the laundry basket and drag things unstairs in the middle of the night. Or the game of ‘drop-the-jingle-bell-ball-in-the-bathtub-and-bat-it-around-the-oval-track-until-someone-yells’ ‘cause that’s the best game ever!!!
Comment by KateH — August 1, 2009 @ 8:25 am
I always have a “digging box” in the corner of my bedroom — a large, thick, rectangular box with a phone book inside.
My girl bunny lived to be 11 years old, and one reason she was very healthy until the final few weeks is that she was able to exercise when SHE needed to, when she had the burst of energy. Often that was very early in the a.m. … I would wake to the clamor of her shredding the box and the phone book.
This is why I educate rabbit owners to use an exercise pen (puppy training pen) if they must confine their animal. An ex pen will accomodate a large digging box. The more chance they have to dig in and chew their cardboard gym — when THEY want to, 6 a.m. or 2 p.m. or whatever — the less they will do so in the carpet and elsewhere. So many rabbits are caged all day and let out for just a few hours each night. It’s little wonder I see so many overweight and lethargic rabbits, and hear of so many dying at age 7 or younger.
One Sunday morning I slept in. I woke to the pressure of my rabbit’s two front paws on my shoulder. She stood there and clicked her teeth to me. “Wake up!”
Now how cool is that?
Someone in my rescue group adoped out the PERFECT rabbit a week or so ago. I learned yesterday that the family is returning him because he rattles the cage at night. “We’re losing sleep,” they said.
Well that is totally unsolvable, yes. I can’t imagine what a solution would be.
Sigh.
Comment by Mary Mary — August 1, 2009 @ 8:55 am
That’s why the dog gets to sleep on the bed with me, but the cats are locked out of the bedroom at night. That way, Harriet and I get to sleep undisturbed, and the kittens can race and wrestle and play all night.
Comment by Shelly — August 1, 2009 @ 9:13 am
Wake Them Up during the day! Catnip, toys, whatever. Turnabout is fair play! ;-) Mine are out in the yard all day so I don’t have that problem - used to, but now it’s the dogs barking at some unknown leaf rustling critter in the yard in the middle of the night.
Comment by CathyA — August 1, 2009 @ 1:04 pm
I often wake up several times during the night - as far as I know it’s not pet related as my mother, a confirmed pet hater who has none, also wakes up several times during the night.
And what of the women who feel safer sleeping with the sharp ears of a dog on sentry duty?
Comment by Ed — August 1, 2009 @ 7:58 pm