Snoozing Kitties

A Sleeping Samson

cat this won’t be that surprising but have you ever stopped and thought about the specifics of this fact?

Firstly let’s take a look at why they sleep that much. If you remember anything from our Cats at Play blog (which you can find here) then you’ll know that a lot of cat behaviour comes from the fact that they are predators by nature. In the wild a cat needs a lot of energy in a short burst to hunt and kill smaller animals. This means that they spend the rest of their time resting so they can have the energy to do so. A tired cat is one that can’t eat.

A Yawning Pekoe

And this predatory instinct actually continues into their sleeping as well. Cats, similar to humans, experience two kinds of sleep: non-REM and REM sleep. During non-REM sleep, which takes up the majority of their sleep cycle, a cat is actually on alert, they will position themselves in such a way as to be able to spring into action if necessary and will be ready for anything.

They then spend a relatively shorter amount of time in REM sleep also known as deep

Luke and Cherry sleeping up a storm

sleep. During this time they will allow their body to rest fully and regenerate. This is when they curl up into a donut of adorableness. You may notice some twitching whiskers or paws and that’s because we believe they are dreaming, just like humans, when they enter REM sleep.

So now you know a little bit more about how cats sleep, but what about when they sleep? Felines are naturally crepuscular, this means that they are most active during dusk and dawn and will sleep throughout the day and most of the night. This is to avoid other predators that may hunt during those times. However it is important to note that kitties are adaptable and ever changing and your furbaby or any of the ones at the CCC might develop other times when they are awake to coincide with play and feeding times.

Well there you have it folks, a quick little insight into the sleeping patterns of our favourite felines. If you have any questions or would like to suggest a topic to look into next feel free to leave that in the comments below.

Taz