Sleeping problems, cat is crazy, please help...

[MonkeyCatMama]

Warning!! Very long, kind of amusing post ahead...

My cat will not let my boyfriend or I sleep through the night.. She comes in the room, cries and cries, headbutts me while I'm sleeping, licks/chew on my hands, face, feet.. We pet her or push her away, then she finds the one piece of paper or plastic bag we didn't hide and licks/rustles them.. We throw things at her(socks, lighters, coins) and that does nothing, so we get up and hide the paper/bags, and then she goes over and scratches the walls next to our heads- you know, like fingers on a chalkboard, cept kitty nails scratching our paint..

Kick her out you say? Well, we kick her out of the room and she scratches at the door.. We lock her in the other bedroom or bathroom and she scratches at THAT door.. And we can still hear it.. No other doors cept the basement, which I would love to lock her down there if there wasn't already a kitty door for her to escape through..

She's 4 years old and has done this off and on for a while, but it has gotten worse lately. I make sure to feed her at night so its not that she's hungry-she's got a full bowl of dry food downstairs. We did just move back in May, so it may be the new place, but this is ridiculous.. I spend nights away from home for business, and she torments my boyfriend while I'm gone and is twice as bad when I get home. You see she's very attached to me, I come home and she's at my side, crying..

I've had her since she was 4 weeks old when I found her in a field with two huge gashes on her tummy, flea and worm infested, and starving. She has been my little munchkin since and has moved around with me-this is our 4th house.. She has always lived with my dog who she loves, and has lived with two other cats in 2 seperate homes.. Her behavior seemed better with the other cats, so I think maybe she needs a friend, but right now my boyfriend hates her and laughs when I mention getting another one.

Another issue that has come up lately and I think its the lack of a kitty friend: She will pee on our bathmat.. Not anywhere else, which I'm thankful for(because I can just wash the bathmat), but it is kind of annoying.. We've added a litter box upstairs in addition to the one in the basement.. She will still go into the bathroom and pee if the mat is down.. Lately we've been picking it up and she uses her box like a good kitty.. When she was two and we lived with my brother(and no other cats) she also did this a couple times.. The other two houses(her first and third) had cats and she did not have this behavior.. Now on our fourth house, no cats, and the peeing is back... I again mentioned a new kitty to my man and he laughed.. We definitely don't want to get another one and have it start peeing where it shouldn't too..

So I apologize for the lengthy post, but I hope you all got a good laugh from my kitty woes, and I do hope that someone has some suggestions as to what I can do to stop this behavior.. Also if anyone has any opinions whether I should get another kitty, I would love to have some ammunition to go up against my boyfriend with next time.. Maui(my kitty) doesn't seem to like most cats nowadays, she's very dominant, but she loved the two she lived with when she was younger.. So I think she might just fall for a kitten and finally let my man and I get some rest.. Anyone? Thanks in advance!! :)
Jessica

[MonkeyCatMama]

Thanks again.. I will definitely try the water... I do cut her nails every couple weeks.. I do not agree with declawing unless its a tiny kitten or there's a baby on the way. I would never declaw my girl. The reason I think its spite over stress is because when the bathmat is up off the floor, she will use her litter just fine.. I have spoken with my boss(a vet) and he thinks its spite as well, because I have not had the time for her that I once did. She is otherwise a very healthy girl.. Anyways, thanks for your suggestions and I will let you know.. Funny enough, the past couple nights she's been quiet as a mouse, so no opportunity to try the spray bottle. Figures. Anyways, take care!

[PrettyKitty1]

Don't get another cat until you know exactly what her problem is. Have you tried talking to the vet about her behavior? As a vet tech, you may already know that cats are excellent creatures who disguise pain and stress sometimes. She may be stressed and you don't even notice it, and her way of showing you is by peeing.

About Soft Paws, you're right. I've heard some bad stories about it. My cat was getting too destructive for me to handle and so I declawed him, only the front, with no side effects. He is a normal lil cat who runs and jumps everywhere. He is indoors 100%. Mind you, I would not recommend this to anyone because I know how a lot of people feel about declawing, so I don't even think about recommending this to any owner.

I guess the other option would be to trim her claws if you don't want to use Soft Paws. An owner used soft paws on his cat once. He was confident the product would resolve all his issues. The cat ended up in the emergency animal hospital for surgery as her claws grew into the skin and it became too painful. The vet had to declaw that poor cat. So yeah, I totally understand your point of view about Soft Paws. It requires supervision.
Try the water and let me know how it goes.

Good Luck.

[Tigereye1]

Thanks for your replies! Yes, she is spoiled *blush*, totally my fault.. I'm not a fan of the soft paws myself.. I've tried them before and they just irritated her-she chewed her toes to bits trying to get them off.. I do however put them on my dog's back feet so she won't kick and tear up the couch and they work like a charm.

I haven't tried water yet, it might work, but she also loves water(she sleeps in the sink and bath just waiting for a drip).. A spray as opposed to drips might deter her enough though.. Will definitely try that. Bathing her is easy, but I have the opposite reaction.. Instead of getting sleepy she gets crazy.

I do think her peeing is purely out of spite for lack of attention.. She may be a lil stressed, but she handles stress so well normally. We do have stray cats outside, but if it was a territorial/stress thing I would think she'd be peeing everywhere- not JUST on the bathmat.. That brings me to spite.

I forgot to mention I'm a vet tech and have had her worked up- she got the all clear from my boss..

She definitely craves attention, but if I get another cat, I don't want it to start peeing on the bathmat or in the house either, or if it backfires and Maui gets jealous and gets worse with her behavior.. I just can't decide whether getting another one is the answer for me or if it will double my problems. Thoughts?

Thanks again :)

[JoyRenee]

I agree with everything PrettyKitty said. Also, another kitty MIGHT help cheer her up, give her attention, etc. She sounds like she craves a ton of attention and obviously we can't always give our pets our attention 24/7. I think you should see a vet about the urinating and behavior problems FIRST, see what they say. And if the little one checks out okay, adopt a cat from a shelter!

[PrettyKitty1]

Well, I must say, you have a spoiled lil girl. It does sound like she has behavioral problems, some of which can be assessed by a vet, and some you can get rid of.

For her scratching problems I'd get Soft Paws or cat repellent. If she gets too destructive, then get her Soft Paws and you can even put some nail polish to make it more girly girl. You also need to trim her claws and make them as round as possible. Very sharp claws will destroy everything easier and faster.

Your lack of sleep may be solved by spraying her with some water. Whenever she starts misbehaving in the bed, put her down and spray her with water. I know I don't have to remind you not to use hot water but room temperature.

Her peeing may be dominance over the rest of you all.  If she isn't fixed, consider doing it although some fixed cats will still spray in the presence of other cats wondering around the house, stress or loud noise which you may not even be aware of. It sounds like she may be a bit stressed. You've been moving her around a lot. I don't know if she lets you bathe her, but I've found that bathing my cats creates a "I want to snooze" sensation it's almost too good. They get relaxed after a bath. Don't get another cat just yet.
She could be urinating because of stress or because of medical issues. I’d take her to the vet to make sure your cat has no medical problems.