Cat keeps bashing cat flap at night

krambambuli

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Can anyone please help? Since christmas our cat has starting sitting at the cat flap and continually hitting it open with his paw at around 5-6 in the morning. We live in a fairly small flat so the bedroom door is close to the front door so it wakes us up everytime. He never used to do this and we don't know why he has started or how to make him stop but I am at my wits end finding it harder and harder to function during the day because of getting disturbed sleep every single night. He sometimes does it during the evening or day but mostly a couple of hours before my alarm goes off. I don't think its for attention because as soon as he hears one of us go to get out of bed he just goes out. But if we don't go to get out of bed and try to ignore it he will not stop doing it. I would greatly appreciate any suggestions, we have both spent quite a bit of time searching this problem on the Internet but have not come up with a way to phrase it that brings up any information on it. Thanks
 

mani

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I'm intrigued!  He just sits there and hits it so that it goes back and forth?  I'm wondering if it's a game he's playing... was there anyone  there at Christmas who could have introduced him to the game of 'swing the cat door'?  


Either that or he's learnt to use it to get you out of bed.

Perhaps you could wedge it open slightly so that it doesn't swing back .. it wouldn't take much to place something outside the door to hold it.. he could still push it outwards.

Welcome to TCS!
 

jcat

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Either that or he's learnt to use it to get you out of bed.

Perhaps you could wedge it open slightly so that it doesn't swing back .. it wouldn't take much to place something outside the door to hold it.. he could still push it outwards.

Welcome to TCS! :wavey:

My guess would also be that he's discovered a way to get you up and is taking full advantage of it. Our cat does that with cabinet doors, but that's easily remedied with child locks and felt. Obviously you don't want to simply lock the flap, because he wouldn't be able to use it at night.

Wedging it as described above might help. It wouldn't have to be permanently, just long enough to break this habit. The cats at our local shelter have access to catios via cat flaps, and we usually tape a small cat food can to the frame to wedge the flap a bit until the kittens have learned how to push it to come back inside. Something like a small Nerf ball might work even better.
 

catwoman707

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Or even velcro.

Or velcro with a little latch hook attached so when you go to bed at night it can be stuck on there and hooked to the eye hook on the door.

Shoot even duct tape for that matter! Just to break his fun new habit :)
 
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krambambuli

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Hi, thanks for the replys and welcome. I don't think he is doing it to get us out of bed because he just goes straight out before we can even place a foot on the floor so it's not like he gets any benefit from it.
It's a microchip cat flap so it doesn't really swing back and forth, he just pushes it open and then it slams shut, it can't swing back because he keeps his head far enough away so that the little tab to stop other cats coming in stays up. I don't think we would be able to wedge it open because next doors cats would use that to hook their claws under it to open it and get in and they are the reason we had to get the microchip cat flap in the first place. I have considered locking it, either locking him out or in, but he doesn't understand when things are locked and he will keep hitting it, making the same amount of noise, until it breaks.
Someone suggested it's because we have a new mirror in the hall and he thinks it's another cat so he's hitting the cat flap to warn it off but we tried covering it to no avail.
He originally would hit the cat flap if one of next doors cats was looking through it but he would also hiss at them and now when he does it at the same kind of time every morning there isn't anything the otherside, we have checked and also he doesn't hiss.
 

jinkstar

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My cat is doing the exact same thing, and we also have a microchip catflap.  He gets in ok, and that is when the cat flap is reading his microchip, so I'm not sure what the problem is with him getting out.

We have had other cats around and we wondered whether that was the cause, but still confused and getting more so from lack of sleep!
 

dinkster

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I don't think he's doing it to get you out of bed. My guy used to do it all the time, even if I was outside I could hear him banging on it. I did have a cat who found it throughly entertaining to stick his head under the microchip reader....wait for the "click" to open.....then wait for the"click" to close....then start all over again! 
 

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Could you tape or glue some fabric or a cushion to the flap, to reduce the sound?

Or put a box against the door, with openings on each side, to contain the noise?
 
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krambambuli

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I think our cat is probably doing it because he is paranoid about next doors kittens although they have been out and about for well over a year now and unable to get into our flat for about 10 months. In the end I forked out for a dual scan catflap and put it in backwards so it won't open at all and consequently can't swing without him being scanned to come or go out and because we put it on backwards he has to stick his head through the tunnel for it to register him from inside so it's harder for him to hold his head by the sensor and bash the flap. He still tries to push it occasuonally but it's no where near as noisy and he doesn't do it as much. Or sometimes he will sit with his head in the tunnel and stare out making the latch click a few times but that's not as bad either. Expensive solution but (fingers crossed I haven't jinxed it!!) seems to have allowed me to get some sleep!
 

rosie40

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I am having exactly the same issue with my cats & microchip catflap at 4am each morning. I don't remember the last time I slept through the night & once awake can't get back again. I've just been in tears now. I googled it & found this thread. I'm going to try your solution this weekend. THANK YOU!
 

janepawsten88

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Can you put a box in front of it at night that completely covers it? I'd even put a pillow on top and make it a little perch for him.
 

dustycat

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Hello! I have just joined in order to reply. Our cat is doing it right now. She has recently has an encounter with a new cat in the area and she isn't a mixer [emoji]128522[/emoji]. My thoughts are that she is banging the flap to let other cats know that she is there and thinking about coming out. To avoid another unpleasant encounter?!
Can anyone please help? Since christmas our cat has starting sitting at the cat flap and continually hitting it open with his paw at around 5-6 in the morning. We live in a fairly small flat so the bedroom door is close to the front door so it wakes us up everytime. He never used to do this and we don't know why he has started or how to make him stop but I am at my wits end findi


ng it harder and harder to function during the day because of getting disturbed sleep every single night. He sometimes does it during the evening or day but mostly a couple of hours before my alarm goes off. I don't think its for attention because as soon as he hears one of us go to get out of bed he just goes out. But if we don't go to get out of bed and try to ignore it he will not stop doing it. I would greatly appreciate any suggestions, we have both spent quite a bit of time searching this problem on the Internet but have not come up with a way to phrase it that brings up any information on it. Thanks
 

jojob

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Hi there,
I have no solution but my cat does this too. He does it for hours at a time. Early evening, when we go to bed, at 4 am and during the day. I'm a deep sleeper so I don't hear the night time session but my husband does. We have wondered if it is because foxes are outside but genuinely think he just likes the noise.
 

raela

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Hi, I've been googling and came across this thread. My cat does this I have a microchip cat flap too. It doesn't bother me and I don't hear her if she's doing it at night. But was intrigued as to what she's up to. She's quite a confident cat so I don't think she's worried about going out. I thought maybe she's sent marking?
 
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