Where Your Cat Sleeps Reveals A Lot About Their Personality
A cat's sleeping habits indicate how they feel about their living situation and owner.
Rafa Beladiez Martinez | Shutterstock Are you a side, back, or tummy sleeper? Cold room or warm room? Do you keep it simple with one pillow or do you need a mound of 47 of them like some people? (Me, I'm talking about me.)
We all have our own specific preferences for optimal sleeping arrangements, and it turns out cats do too. And they have their reasons, just like us humans.
Where your cat sleeps reveals a lot about their personality and how they feel about their environment.
The cat experts at The Cattery, a cat rescue in Corpus Christi, Texas, recently shared insight into how your cat's sleeping preferences aren't at all random. They are often carefully made choices based on their instincts about their environment, safety, and even you as their owner.
If you're the type that is always wishing your cat could just speak their mind and tell you how they feel, you're in luck — to a point anyway. Because it turns out, "sleep behavior for cats … can gauge how your cat is doing mentally," according to The Cattery.
Cats that sleep out in the open feel safe and trusting.
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Given how temperamental cats can be, the idea of a "trusting" cat might seem a bit far-fetched. Yet it turns out that cats who sprawl out in the middle of the living room floor for a nap trust you as their owner.
"If your cat likes to sleep out in the open, whether that be the middle of the room, out on the sofa, or whatever," The Cattery said, "that means they feel very secure and safe in their environment."
This is because, as with most animals, sleepytime is the most vulnerable a cat can be — that's when predators are most likely to attack, after all. "So a cat that just naps wherever feels like you're gonna protect them and watch their backs," she said. Good cat parenting on your part!
Cats that like to sleep up high are tapping into their natural animal instincts.
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Is your cat the type that likes to sleep up on a high shelf, windowsill, or in the penthouse of their cat tree? It's not because they have a penchant for luxury cat real estate. They're actually going off of instinct.
The Cattery says, many cats feel more safe and secure from higher vantage points where they can get the lay of the land.
Sometimes this means they're a bit nervous, she said, but most often cats just like the way they can, say, watch for vermin or the dumb dog next door or whatever it is cats are always looking at when they stare out the window plotting their next escape from your home. You know, cat stuff.
Cats who hide to sleep might need a bit more alone time, just like some humans.
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The Cattery says this is also totally normal behavior and doesn't mean your cat's mad at you like it would if, say, your partner crawled off to sleep in a closet with their back to you. Don't worry!
"Cats are sensitive and can easily feel overwhelmed or stressed," The Cattery explained, "and being alone and hidden helps them decompress." OK, so some of them are just introverts who recharge through silence. Just like many of us!
"It doesn't mean that you've done anything wrong at all," she continued. "Some kitties just prefer that extra security measure." Same, kitty. Same.
Cats that sleep next to you or with other pets feel secure or protective of you.
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Unlike those reclusive cats that like to sleep behind the refrigerator or whatever, cats that sleep right alongside you — or even on you, as so many cats love to do — are open to more companionship even while sleeping because they feel safe and secure with you.
"They not only love you but they trust you," The Cattery said. Instinct also comes into play here, too. "Sleeping in a group is safer, not just for your cat, but for you too." Because, of course, there's strength in numbers if a wildebeest comes along or whatever.
It just might be the case that the hairball who only seems to care about you at mealtime is actually standing sentry for you all night long. So take that, people who say cats don't care about their owners as much as dogs!
John Sundholm is a writer, editor, and video personality with 20 years of experience in media and entertainment. He covers culture, mental health, and human interest topics.