New cat mom finds herself waking up at 4:30 AM every day thanks to her clingy rescue kitten and seeks advice from fellow cat lovers

Hey friends, gather around for a tale that every cat parent, especially the sleep-deprived ones, will understand all too well. A first-time cat mom recently turned to the internet for advice after finding herself in a very familiar situation. Her newly adopted rescue kitten, sweet and snuggly during the day, had developed a very persistent habit of waking her up at exactly 4:30 in the morning. Every single day.

What began as innocent early morning purring and gentle pawing quickly turned into a full-on routine of pre-dawn interruptions. The kitten demands cuddles, playtime, or simply sits and stares until she wakes up. Strangely enough, he only does this to her and not to anyone else in the household. She is clearly the chosen one.

In her post, the original poster shared how much she loves her new little companion but admitted that the lack of sleep is starting to take a toll. She asked fellow cat owners whether this is normal behavior and whether it is acceptable to close the door at night to get some rest. Responses from the cat-loving community poured in, filled with support, advice, and plenty of knowing smiles. He may be a tiny menace, but he is clearly loved. Welcome to the club.

Author image for kalila courban kalila courban
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  • THE SCOOP FROM OP: 

    Hey everyone,

    We rescued our cat over a month ago and have been loving him, but he wakes me up at 5:30 every morning to eat. I usually let him meow until 6 and then feed him once my alarm goes off. However, over the past few days, he’s started waking me up even earlier—sometimes at 3 AM, 4:30, or 5. He doesn’t bother my boyfriend at all, probably because I’m the one who feeds him. If neither of us gets up when he starts meowing, he crawls over me and purrs in my face. It’s sweet, but not at 4:30 in the morning, especially when I went to bed at midnight.

    He’s definitely doing this to eat, and we’re currently in the middle of switching his litter (from clay to pellets since they’re cheaper and have fewer chemicals), which I think might be contributing to the problem. I’m feeling really run down and losing patience. My boyfriend will feed him too, but the cat still only climbs all over me and meows in my face.

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  • CONTINUED: 

    I really do love the bond I have with him so far, but I’m wondering—would it be awful of me to make him sleep in the (very large) bathroom where his litter box is? There are built-in shelves he can curl up on, and of course, I would give him food and water in there. I just feel like I’m suffering right now.

    I’m hoping that once we can afford an automatic kibble dispenser it will help with the issue, but I’m not sure. He seems to love the routine of waking me up, getting his wet and dry food, playing, and then watching me make coffee.

    Also, if I go back to bed after feeding him, he meows non-stop because he wants to keep playing. This is part of why I think an automatic feeder might not fully solve the problem—it’s not just the food, it’s the whole routine he loves.

    Should I change the routine we currently have? And if so, how?

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    Long-Nature-6281 OP 1d ago Also last pic is him getting ready to pounce on me bc I was doing my homework in a different room than his dad was in Imao.
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    Long-Nature-6281 OP 18h ago Update!! . Thank you everyone for your advice, I am 100% going to stop feeding him right when I wake up, and plan on getting an automatic feeder. I have an automatic toy and we will stick some wands in between the couch cushions at night but if yall have any recommendations for that let me know!
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    Nearby Atmosphere656 · 1d ago It can cause anxiety if you keep a cat confined to a single room. Some are OK with it, but others will stop at nothing to get out. It is in a cats nature to explore and be free in their space. Closing yourself in a room at night might be a better idea. Also, stop feeding them as soon as you wake up. Wait about an hour or as long as you can if you don't have an hour. They associated you waking up with food.
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    Evening Influence624 1d ago • Disclaimer before my comment: I still get a face full of cat some mornings, so take this with a grain of salt, but what's helped me is doing night time play sessions! If he's younger he may need more than one daily play session, but he's probably excited for both food and play in the mornings, which could contribute to why he's so ready for his human to be awake! We also have an automatic feeder in the morning (one portion at 5am and one at 6am seems to work). But h
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    Paul_MuadDib . 1d ago We close our bedroom door at night because our cat likes to do zoomies on top of us, and he'd wake me up 4-5am.
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    Far-Grapefruit-6342 1d ago Why not have the cutie sleep outside the bedroom and see what happens? I close my door at night some cats cannot come in because otherwise I'd never get sleep
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    Long-Nature-6281 OP 1d ago Oh and lastly, he doesn't really sleep in the bed much during the night bc my bf and I are both wild sleepers so I don't think not sleeping in the bed would affect him too much. Idk
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    xpoisonvalkyrie . 1d ago you could just keep him locked out of the room? that way he has free roam of everything except the bedroom. i also second the suggestions of an automatic feeder, that should really help with the morning schedule.
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    ilovefurby333 1d ago I kennel my cats at night in the laundry room (along with food, water, plenty of beds, and litter robot). I say try it out! I was just talking to my husband how much our lives changed for the better once we got automatic feeders because the cats no longer associate us with food. They have a crazy good internal clock and will position themselves by the feeders up to an hour ahead of schedule to get dibs on the first feeder. It's good for animals to have routine imo and there'
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    ⋅ usernamejj2002 1d ago I personally free feed my cats dry food. Have since they were kittens with no problem. I know some are against it but it's worked so well for us. They then get fed wet food 1-2x per day. They've never once woke me up because they were hungry. I get my sleep, they have their food, everyone's happy. Now, if the bowl happens to be empty which happens every so often they'll let me know lol. Both are healthy weights (both are small under 9lbs) and regulate themselves. Maybe gi
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    • Patient_Kangaroo_667 1d ago I lock my cat in his own room at night. He actually will not sleep ANYWHERE except his own room he has automatic feeder, toys, water fountain, litter box, furbo camera with treats. Loves it there. I have my toddler who still sleeps in bed with me and my husband AND we both have demanding jobs and can't be woken up and sleep deprived with kitty. He goes in his room overnight and in the morning we let him out he's happy as a clam and never showed any signs of distress
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