# Help with cat attacking me while I sleep, please.



## Kali (Sep 13, 2014)

She was feral, but has been well adjusted to domestication for years. After we moved cross-country, she began attacking my feet when I'd get in bed. I thought it was the new sheets and put the old ones back on, but no.

After a while, she'd settle down.

Now, like a year later, she not only attacks my feet when I'm getting in bed, but also while I sleep. This is a problem because I wake up sometimes and can't fall back to sleep. Also because she breaks the skin and I'm allergic, so have to take a Benadryl and am hung over the next day. The cream just doesn't cut it - has to be systemic Benadryl. I tired that other stuff. It didn't work.

It's a little better if my feet aren't under the covers, but it sometimes gets cold here in the winter and my feet will be under a thin blanket.

Also...and I hope it's okay to post this...I've been seeing someone for several months. If he ends up spending the night here at some point, I'd rather he not be attacked. 

I've tried water but it doesn't bother her much and it leaves the bed soggy. I've tried yelling, but she just doesn't care. She gets so worked up that if I try to move her, she nips me. I've also tried throwing a blanket over her, which stops her temporarily and is cute and fun to watch as it moves and she pokes her head out, lol, but she actually seems to enjoy the blanket, too.

I think she thinks my feet are mice or something.

Keeping her out of the room is not an option. I can't fall asleep with all the howling and scratching, which will go on for hours at least, plus my bedroom door is right off the great room and I don't want it all scratched up, as company sees it.

If anyone read all this, thanks!!

She's kind of a bad cat, has some odd habits (even for a cat) and not the kind of cat just anyone could love...but I love her. She's not going anywhere.

I don't know what to do. Help.

Adding this because it's cute, lol. :kittyball


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## ~Siameseifuplz~ (May 6, 2007)

I'd try and tire her out before bed, really tire her out. Play with her until she is DONE, then get ready for bed (gives her time to cool down after playing) and then go to bed. If you could actually feed her dinner after play time that would be ideal as it's natural for cats to be active, then eat, then sleep. Or RIGHT before you climb into be lay down a little scavenger hunt of treats throughout the room (I like to do this on my cats' cat tree) so she is busy while you get into bed and also has the play, eat, sleep pattern. Hopefully she'll start sleeping at night instead of wanting to hunt your feet.

If she dislikes being banished from the room you can use that as a punishment. If she claws your feet she has to go outside the room for a minute or so. Then she can come back in. Of course if she's nipping I don't know how easy that will be or if you have any non physical way to shoo her out, you don't want to cause an aggression problem. 

If she ONLY does it when the covers are on you could throw off the covers when she does it or is about to do it for a minute or so to remove the temptation/interrupt the behavior. But it might just turn into a game where she waits with anticipation for you to put them back on to attack again.

OR you can just start getting her used to being banished from the bedroom. You'll have some loud nights but eventually she'll get used to it. You can buy coverings to protect the door (laminated poster material).


But my guess is she's bored and is at her most playful when you go to bed, so you need to make sure you're providing her with playtime during the day and changing up her internal clock so she's sleepy at night, not full of energy.


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## Sabrina767 (Sep 5, 2014)

They can't stand the smell of peppermint oil. Maybe you can spritz that part of the covers where your feet are. If she goes after bare feet, peppermint foot cream stops that right quick. Lol


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## ~Siameseifuplz~ (May 6, 2007)

That's a good idea^^^^^. My cat once sniffed a jar of peppermint foot scrub (why are all foot products peppermint?) and then proceeded to run around the bathroom shaking his head, sneezing, and spitting. Definitely not a fan of THAT.


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## spirite (Jul 31, 2012)

Siameseifuplz's suggestion of playing with her and feeding her right before you go to bed should definitely help.

Since she likes to attack your feet, try playing the Things That Move Under A Rug game. Just wave a wand toy or something under a small rug (or towel, blanket, whatever). I've never met a kitty who didn't find this irresistible. That might satisfy her urge to pounce on things that she thinks are hiding and divert her interest from your feet to a toy that won't mind being scratched and clawed.


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## Kali (Sep 13, 2014)

Thanks so much for all the help!

I will try playing with her more. She hunts lizards all day long, so it's not that she doesn't get any exercise. But I'll try that. 

Also going to try the peppermint. God, that would be awesome! 

I'd love to feed her later, but she's on a diet and would never shut up if I made her wait until bedtime to eat. She's not that darn hungry or she'd eat the lizards instead of leaving their corpses around my house! But O.M.G., you'd think this cat hadn't eaten in a week, the way she carries on. 

I always wonder if starving when she was young (and that cat was STARVING, you could see all the ribs and spinal bones) made her, like, extra hungry for life. I don't know.

Anyway, thanks so much!!!!!!


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## spirite (Jul 31, 2012)

Kali, you don't need to wait to feed her - just split her meal in half, or even give her most at dinner time, but then keep some reserved for right before you go to bed. 

Hope your feet start to heal soon!


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## CatOutofBag (Oct 8, 2014)

You could not let the cat in your bedroom.

I've also found some cats don't like banana. Maybe mostly the peel?
It's an experiment. Most cats hate water, but some jump right in the tub.

When I was a kid, we had a cat that had been a "little feral." Often, they don't make the sweetest, gentlest cats - depending on how old when they're tamed.

This one was a little older when we got her. She liked to sit in some peoples laps & sleep on a bed at night. But, you'd better not move your foot & disturb her during the night or she'd seriously attack your foot. No playing around.

Some cats like that never turn into a cuddly lap cat, if they've been feral a while (and also have a worse than avg temper).


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## MowMow (Nov 6, 2010)

I agree with the playing before bed. NOt just a quick game of play but get something like Da Bird that gets them jumping and running. Then play until she's panting. Give her 5-10 minutes to recover then do it again. 

I do this with Book and Neelix about 3 or 4 rounds every night. I do it about 1/2 an hour before their dinner. They play HARD for a long time then at and then we go to bed. Neelix has his own room since he's so young and rambunctious. Not to mention he'd irritate MowMow enough that he wouldn't sleep with me and ....we can't have that.

You COULD try this trick. Someone here told me about it years ago when Book was a kitten. Put the vacuum cleaner right outside your door and turn it on. Run the cord in and drop it by the closest outlet to the bed, don't plug it in. Just let it lay on the floor. Now shut the door. When kitty starts howling and scratching then plug in the vacuum. Remember you left it on but unplugged. Let it run for a few seconds and then yank the plug out again.

If they are as afraid of the vacuum then they'll learn to stay away from the door.

If you don't want to do that then you need to bite the bullet and let her scratch and scream. As said above it'll take a few days but eventually she'll learn that it's useless. It'll take a while though, she's already trained you to open the door when she yells so it'll take a while for her to realize it's not going to work.


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