Do you find your cat watching you sleep?
if yes, why do they do that?
Well, This article will be all about why does your cat watch you sleep.
Let’s get started
Ever wonder why cats stare at you while you sleep? Well, cats are naturally curious about everything.
But sometimes this curiosity becomes a little creepy, most especially when there are times that you are sleeping, and you feel like there’s someone or something that is staring at you while you are sleeping.
We always find these fluffballs as cute and cuddly creatures during the day, but when night time comes, they do spend a lot of time staring at you while you sleep.
Some say that cats probably watch you sleep because they like you. Fascinating!
This behavior sometimes causes their owners to joke around saying that their cats are just trying to be playful.
And it is difficult to ignore this behavior seeing your cat stares at you intensely without even blinking.
Why Does My Cat Watch Me Sleep?
So, Why Does My Cat Watch Me Sleep? Your cat watches you when you sleep, probably because of anxious or hunger. They might be looking for something or bored, and out of curiosity, they keep watching while you’re sleeping.
Related:
Nothing to be bothered about cats stating at you at night
Cats see their humans as family, and a part of socializing with their family members is by watching them.
When they feel your presence, they feel calmer, most especially if you are looking at them. They will feel like you are strengthening your bond as a family.
They are also like us; they like to monitor your behavior when they are looking at you. They naturally want to check up on you and see if you are fine and what you are up to because it cares about you.
They believe their family members are defenseless when they are sleeping, so they want to protect you from any danger.
But then again, based on a study by Dr. Kathryn Primm every cat is different. They are usually staring at you because they feel attached to you.
They think they are most protected when next to you, so when night comes, they do the same and protect you from any harm that might occur during your sleep.
Related:
Reasons why your cat is wide awake at night
Keep in mind that this behavior Is pretty much normal to any cat. Sometimes humans tend to train them to think the way we think and give them human personalities and motives.
But it would be undoubtedly weird if you have a human roommate who was wide awake and watching you sleep the whole night.
However, that’s another story for cats. And this sort of behavior is reasonable for them.
Cats tend to act more alert at night as they are often classified as nocturnal hunters. Based on their feline instincts, protecting their families from predators that mostly occur at night is what makes them alert during the wee hours.
It might feel different for us humans but for the cats, our darkrooms would just seem another bright day for them.
Regardless of the cuteness and jokes their humans think, cats are watching over you at night. This is a sign of protection.
It would be nice if they aren’t staring intently while you sleep, but it’s cats. They’re just plain adorable.
Other reasons why your cat is watching you
Of course, other than feeling close to you, which gives them a sense of security, cats also have different reasons why they keep an eye on you. Listed below are a few examples:
A) Your cat may be anxious. Sometimes cats tend to be glued next to you as they feel inferior or insecure over some things. This happens most, especially if you put them in a new environment, and it would always just probably want to stick beside you. Since family makes them safer, they could be watching you with plans to wake you up if it senses something is off or if something freaky might happen.
B) Your cat may also be hungry. Some cats might be coming to your side to look at you because it wants to say and for you to know that they are hungry, and they wanted you to get up and give them food. Since a lot of owners feed their cats early in the morning, these cats just watch and wait for their humans to wake up and give them their food
C) Your cat may just be bored. Since these observant furballs love to feel the world around them, it is explained that they can resort to a “stalker-like” behavior, most especially if they are curious about something. If you would notice, this usually happens during the day when they decide to sit on the porch or your window and just straight stare at the neighborhood. But at night, if it keeps staring at you, they think you are one of the most exciting things around them.
D) Sometimes cats stare at you so they can get your attention. Watching you and making eye contact with you is another sign that your cat is comfortable with you. This also actually shows that they think a lot about you.
E) Cats love pillows. They might spend a lot of time on that pillow you are using while you sleep when you are away, and they might just want to take it back for themselves.
Obviously, cats are subjective to non-verbal communication and they may be using your appearance to them choose how to respond well.
Cats love their humans and look at them with so much affection. Sometimes, when you see them blink slowly for a few times while straightly looking at you, they just say that they love you so much.
Do cats like you to stare back at them?
Hearing something about cats that hate being stared at and see staring as a form of aggressive behavior.
Well, it is true in some instances between two cats staring at each other down. But that’s not always the case when their humans stare at them.
Most cats don’t like it if you got right up close and stare at them directly. They really don’t mind the most part; that is if you’re softly staring, and they have no reason to feel threatened.
You just must give it a try and stare at them from across the room. It’s also not a solution to stop them from looking at you directly because they might get freak out over it. The key point is, you must see the reason behind that stare and try to find what they want.
Do cats love making eye contact?
Cats do love to make eye contact. They use it as a way of communication with the beings around them.
However, you should be careful about what type of eye contact you’re going to use. Cats like the kind of eye contact that humans do. The one not so fierce but can be considered soft and endearing.
Owners sometimes make eye contact with their cats when trying to interact with them, especially during playtime.
This time can be considered as both quality and bonding time. So rest assured that every time your cat watches you sleep at night, sometimes it just wants to play with you or they probably just want to tell you something.
Cats staring at you want to convey something
When your cat is staring at you, a thing to know is that there is a different form of staring meant other things.
As we know, they use their stares to socialize, whether it be with other cats or humans. So, we can say that cat staring at you means they just want to convey an emotion to you.
It’s their way of showing their love and care for you as if saying that they love you, and they treat you as their safe zone.
Although, if you see your cat staring at you intently in the middle of the night while its pupils are dilated, and there’s no sign of blinking, that seems like a less attractive way of staring.
Also, this is considered as if your cat is ready to attack or pounce you at any time. However, it’s not an attack that might scare you.
They are not trying to hurt you, they just want to start a play fight with you.
How to make your cat stop staring at you in the middle of the night?
There are 2 things to remember about keeping your cat busy so they can stop staring at you.
- Schedule playtime for them. Playing with a cat during the daytime can make them feel exhausted before bed. That way, your cat can be left preoccupied and you can both sleep soundly at night.
- Introduce your cat to the world. If your cat is always busy at night, it becomes more restless and stressed indoors. You might want to think of many ways to keep them busy and make sure they have good mental stimulation.
- Make sure your cat isn’t hungry or needs water. This will keep them from waking up at night with an empty stomach and will stare at you until you wake up just for you to feed them.
- You can also keep your cat away from your bedroom. It might be challenging at first since most of them seek attention and will cry outside your bedroom door until you open it.
- Try to give them positive attention when they are outside your bedroom. They might think you like them more there. Also, you can ignore it when they scratch at the door.
- Reduce staring competitions with your cat by giving them something else to relieve their boredom. Many toys can be bat around or have a scratching post you can provide so they can offer valuable stimulation to your pet.
Conclusion
Animals overall function and survive and consider us humans as their safe zone. As an owner, you create a part of their world as a protector, family, and companion.
You may think a lot about why they keep staring at you at night while you are sleeping, monitoring your expression.
So there’s nothing wrong with watching you sleep as these cute little fluffy creepers are protecting you.
Their eyes read in your face to see how well they could respond to your needs and vice versa.
They just want to make sure that you are okay even in your sleep. Your actions may produce something that they want, and they are aware that we give resources for them.
Cats understand your body language just by looking. Take that as a compliment because not every person has a beautiful bond and attention to their fluffballs.
If you see them watching you, be sure that you are also worthy of being watched. Shower them with love and acknowledge them, pet them from time to time so they know that you love them too!
Hi There, AJ Oren here. I am the founder of this amazing pet blog & a passionate writer who loves helping pet owners to learn more about their pets through my articles. I am also the content manager of this blog. I have experience in pet training and behavior, sheltering, and currently working for a veterinary clinic.