Scratching at Night

runawaywaltz

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My boyfriend and I recently got a kitten (about two weeks ago or so) whom we named Loki. During the day, he is sweet and cuddly and a perfect angel. At night, though, he takes after his namesake. He wakes us up at least three times during the night by pouncing on us, biting and scratching. I know that he isn't doing this to be malicious, he is just playing. But I am going crazy! My arms and legs are covered in scratches, and this morning, my boyfriend got clawed in the eye. We are desperate for some help!

The obvious answer would be to put him outside of our bedroom, right? But the problem with that is, we live in an efficency apartment. One long giant room with our bed in the corner, so we can't shut him out. We've tried playing with him at night in order to exhaust him, but that doesn't work. I dunno if he is just overactive or being a normal kitty, but this is a problem! We never played with him using our hands and feet, so I don't know if he is just using the behavior that he learned from the rest of his litter. But this mischevious rascal is making me worried. If this keeps up, we probably will have to get him declawed, which is something that I absolutely loathe to do.

Help, please!
 

cearbhaill

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He's a normal kitten- no reason at all to be mad at him or consider permanant consequences.

What worked for us was to keep them awake all evening- from say 4 PM til bedtime, then feed very last thing before they/we go to bed.

Also, I cranked the A/C down a bit so I could sleep under a thicker comforter to dull the teeth and claws. And try not to wiggle in the night


It will calm down as he gets older. No need to even consider declawing over this for 100 reasons, the most obvious of which is that he can still bite you.
 

pami

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That is normal kitten behavior .... mine did it too ...... and although it is frustrating ........ it passed with mine ........although I am always awakened at night by one of them ... for one reason or another .....

Cats in the wild hunt, eat and sleep ............. have plenty of interactive toys he can play with during the day ....... kittens especially need alot of playtime ....... they are very active ........ then feed him before you go to bed ........ and perhaps he will sleep more sound ......

or get another kitty that he can play with .....
 

urbantigers

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Hi - welcome to TCS!

I agree - this is just normal kitten behaviour and it comes with having a kitten. If you want the cuteness and fun of having a kitten around you also have to contend with the playfulness and mischief too
He will calm down as he grows older (to a greater or lesser degree - all cats are different!). Please dont' even consider declawing him - if his scratching (of you or your furniture) gets to the point where you feel you cant cope with it and you've tried other options (trimming claws, soft paws etc) then consider rehoming him instead.
 

natalie_ca

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Originally Posted by runawaywaltz

My boyfriend and I recently got a kitten (about two weeks ago or so) whom we named Loki. During the day, he is sweet and cuddly and a perfect angel. At night, though, he takes after his namesake. He wakes us up at least three times during the night by pouncing on us, biting and scratching. !
Cats are nocturnal and all he's doing is playing.

You need to get him onto your schedule so he's awake during the day and sleeping at night when you are.

On a day when you are home such as a Saturday or Sunday, whenever you see him sleeping during the day, go and wake him up and play with him, cuddle him (but not to the point he falls asleep), and generally do what you have to do to keep him awake. By the time night comes when you are ready for bed, he will be so tired that he'll be practically falling on his face when sitting up, and he will sleep all night.

I do this whenever I get a new kitten or cat. It may seem cruel but you aren't hurting them. They are just a little sleep deprived for one day
 
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