You adopted a kitten for the first time. And you are very excited about your pet until it’s nighttime. Now it’s very simple for the first-timer pet owner to get confused and ask questions like should I leave a light on for my kitten at night?
It’s not necessary to leave a light on for your kitten at night. Cats can see better than humans in the dark. However, you can leave a dim or night light on for your kitty to adapt to its new home. Leaving dim or night lights will prevent you from unintentionally stepping on the kitten in the dark.
Adopting any pet comes with great responsibilities. You need to properly take care of them. In terms of sleep, cats appear to love sleeping very much.
Their sleeping patterns can change because of their age and health. Since cats are categorized as crepuscular, they are more active at dusk and night. Cats even have a natural ‘night vision’ which helps to see them clearly in the dark.
Do Cats Sleep Better With the Light On or Off At Night?
Even though it’s not important to leave a light on at night for your cat. But there may be exceptions too. Most cats prefer to sleep in the dark. While some cats may get scared in dark. Since sleeping is significant for their development. You need to carefully handle this matter wisely.
We know cat eyes are designed to improve night vision. They are also better in motion sensing, night vision, and peripheral vision. So keeping the lights off will probably be the best idea for your cat.
Although cats may sleep better with the light off at night. But I better suggest you first find out whether your kitty or cat likes to be in dark or not.
It’s because different cats prefer different things. If your cat loves to sleep in the dark then don’t leave any light on at night.
But somehow if your cat doesn’t like to be in dark then try to put a little dim light on at night. In this way, you will be able to find out whether your cat sleeps better with the light on or off at night.
How Many Hours a Day Cat/Kitten Sleeps?
You may wonder how many hours a day cat or kitten usually sleeps? This actually depends on the cat’s age and other factors. Most kittens seem to sleep 12-16 hours a day.
Your lovely kitty with 4 or 5 weeks old will need to sleep in excess of 20 hours per day. It’s very essential for your kitten since it will help to develop their accurate growth. The highest amount of growth hormone is released when the kitten is in its deepest state of sleep.
That’s why kittens sleep more than adult cats. As they began to age, they drastically reduce their sleeping hours around 15 to 17 hours per day.
Cats actually don’t sleep sixteen hours straight. They like to take a nap throughout the day. You may notice your cat sleeping in various spots around the home.
Senior cats tend to sleep around 18 to 20 hours per day. Passing the age of 12, you will get to fully understand their sleeping times, habits, and favorite places they like to take naps.
The table below shows the average sleeping times of some popular cat breeds:
| Cat Breeds | Average Sleeping Time |
| Bengal Cat | 12 to 15 hours |
| Persian Cat | 15 to 20 hours |
| British Shorthair | 18 to 20 hours |
| Maine | 16 hours |
| Siamese Cat | 12 hours 15 hours |
How To Help a Kitten Sleep At Night?
Most kittens are normally very hyper and have good night vision.
You will notice that they tend to love sneaking in the dark at night. Here are some tips to help your kitten sleep better at night:
Arrange a Safe and Comfortable Sleeping Area for Your Kitten
Try to find a cozy and safe sleeping area for your kitty. Avoid too many narrow places and fireplaces or poisonous plants near the place you chose.
Provide them with a soft and warm kitten bed or high perch. You can fill it with warm blankets, pillows, and other calm bedding. For placing the bed, you can either select a different room or a place close to your bed.
Try to avoid a room with full-length curtains as a kitten will run up to them and perch at the top.
You can also use a calming diffuser to help your cat relax and have good sleep at night.
Fix Playtime for Your Cat
Cats love to play. They are very active and full of energy, especially at dusk, dawn, and half a night.
You can fix a time in the late evening for the playtime with your cat. Better if you chose the playtime about an hour before bedtime.
Also, try to increase the playtime of your cat. It will help to fully exhaust your cat, thus soon your cat will eventually fall asleep well.
Changing the Feeding Time of the Cat
It’s better to feed your cat before going to bed. It will help them since they will get enough rest after eating as they are going to sleep. Since they won’t feel hungry, your cat will sleep well through the night too.
Develop Your Cat’s World
You can add more stimuli to your cat’s environment. You can choose cat videos, toy mice, feeding puzzles, ping pong balls, perches containing bird feeders, etc.
These will help your kitty to get exhausted and make it easy for the kitty to sleep at night.
You can also arrange some calming music for your cats to make them calm and sleep well at night.
Remove Noisy Toys from the Kitten’s Reach
You must remember to keep away the noisy toys from your kitten at night.
In case they want to play, only leave the quiet and soft toys for your kitten to play.
Give Your Kitten a Predictable Schedule
Make a time schedule for your cat’s feeding, grooming, playing, and exercise.
Don’t try to give them too many surprises as they hate it. This will help to improve your cat’s behavior, well-being, and sleep.
Try to ignore your cats even if they wake you up in the middle of the night. Doing this frequently will help the kitten leave you alone at night.
Remember To Get Your Kitten Sprayed
You must get your kitten spayed. If you don’t then this may lead them to be hyperactive.
According to most veterinarians, six to eight weeks old kittens are suitable for getting sprayed.
This will help your cat to prevent from being too much aggressive. So don’t forget to take your kitten occasionally to the veterinarian to get sprayed.
How to Get Your Cat to Sleep with You?
Usually, cats love to sleep with their owner. So it will be great if you let your cat sleep with you. But you must be aware that if you have any allergies or compromises, don’t sleep with them.
You can really get some benefits from sleeping with your cat. You will be able to share the warmth of cuddling, reducing stress, and building the bond between you and your kitty.
Sleeping with your cat can also build up trust between your cat and you. You can try some tricks to encourage your cat to sleep with you, such as:
- You can put some of your clothes into their bed. It will help them to be familiar with your smell. You can either make a blanket for them from your used clothes which will smell like you to them.
- Remember that cats love to play. Try to be friendlier to your cat. Spend some quality playtime with your cat. Gradually they will be happier around you and will sleep with you too.
- If possible you can also spray the scent or perfumes but avoid incense odor. This way your cat will be much familiar with your scent. Then eventually they will be comfortable enough to sleep with you.
Sleeping with your kittens or cats can have some positive and negative sides:
Positive side: Cats’ purr can help us to reach a state of relaxation and peace which will let us fall asleep more easily. Sleeping with them can lead to greater emotional stability for both of us.
Negative side: Sleeping with your cat can be dangerous by transmitting diseases between your cat and yourself. Such as the most common feline disease like fungal infections, Lyme’s disease, ringworm, scabies, infections, etc. You can also transmit external and internal bacteria which can stimulate the encounter of allergies or asthma.
Final Thought
In short, cats actually don’t need light on at night in order to sleep comfortably. Keeping the lights off will help stimulate your cat’s natural melatonin production which in turn will help them to fall asleep.
It will be best for you to provide your kitten with a safe, quiet, and secure sleeping atmosphere. Also, I recommend you encourage them to adapt to a proper sleeping pattern. Although for any kind of safety measures keeping a little extra light won’t hurt your cat.
Lastly, you should take your cat to the veterinary for regular check-ups every 6 to 12 months. Through an back passageysis done by a specialist, you can have a decent schedule for vaccinations and periodical deworming.