Training a Cat to Not Sleep on Your Head

Many cats love to sleep with their owners, however they don't always honor our personal space. Sleeping on our heads may be their way of showing that they care, but it can interfere with a good night's sleep. This is a guide about training your cat to not sleep on your head.

Solutions: Training a Cat to Not Sleep on Your Head

Read and rate the best solutions below by giving them a "thumbs up".

Training a Cat Not to Sleep on Your Head

My cat tried this as a kitten, as well as, waking us to play at all hours of the night.

What I did was get a large (Great Dane sized) dog cage and put a small litter box on one end, a padded stool for him to sleep on on the other end, with water and a bit of dry food under that. I kept it as far from the bedrooms as possible. When he would wake us, I put him in the cage. If I woke again, I would let him out. If he tried to play, I would put him back. This went on for approximately a couple of weeks. Then he got the idea that if he woke us, he would go into the cage. He stopped. When the lights went out, he would curl up at my feet and sleep from then on.

It was an exhausting couple of weeks, but 9 years later he still sleeps at my feet in the summer and at my side in the winter (under a blanket, I guess he gets chilly), but no more waking us.

By Compltlyme from Sammamish, WA

0SharePrintFollow1 Feedback

Lay Your Head on the Cat Instead

Cats think differently than dogs. Dogs want to please us. Cats, by instinct, solve their own problems. Any attempt to change what a cat wants to do is seen by them as an obstacle to overcome. The only way to thwart a cat's plan is to make it so the cat no longer wants to do the thing that is annoying you.

The solution of laying your head on the cat when it tries to lay on you is a good one. You might also wear a glove (if you cat has claws) and grab her paw and not let go until she panics. You must do this every time. Shortly she will stop. My aunt cured a cat from getting on her counters by putting the cat on the counter and not letting it down. She did this several times and the cat avoided the counter.

By Lilac from Springfield, MA

3SharePrintFollow5 Feedbacks

Share Your Feedback: Once you try any of the above solutions, be sure to come back and give a "thumbs up" to the solution that worked the best for you. Do you have a better solution? Click "Share a Solution" above!

Questions

Here are questions related to Training a Cat to Not Sleep on Your Head.

How Do I Train My Cat Not to Sleep on My Head?

One of my cats keeps trying to sleep across my neck. She does it several times a night. I immediately wake up and put her on the floor, but she's not taking the hint. Does anyone have any suggestions? If I shut her out of the room, she tries to get in by clawing through the carpet. There's already a hole in the carpet outside the door, so keeping her out of the room isn't a good option. She's really interfering with my sleep. Help!

By Stephanie from Hillsboro, OR

SharePrintFollow7 Feedbacks

Most Recent Answer

By cs_jag06/27/2011

Thanks all. I had the best success putting my head on top of her when she tried to sleep on my head - only took a couple tries. She's still a pest at night, but at least Izzy isn't sleeping on my head anymore.

Previous: Preventing Cats from Scratching Furniture

Next: Trimming a Cat's Claws