My Cat’s Morning Routine

My cat’s morning routine has varied over the years.

But one aspect of it has remained the same. It’s early!!! And without fail, I end up with whiskers in my face!

Growing up I used to poke fun at my Dad when he would get up several times in the morning for the pets. They had their routines and he never varied from them. 2 am, 4 am, 6 am, he was up giving treats and morning meals to a squad of hungry spoiled cats and dogs.

Us kids teased him and said the animals had him trained!  We were convinced that if he didn’t give in to them, he wouldn’t be a slave to their early routine.  He’d counter-attack with “you don’t own the pets, they own you!”

Fast forward many years later in 2015 when I adopted my first cat Grizzabella…….and…..

True to my father’s words she ruled the roost right away!

Our first morning together I was awakened with a dive bomb from the top of the dresser onto my stomach!  “Ughh!” I yelped.  Determined to stay in control I told her “No, stop!” and rolled over to go back to sleep.  A few minutes later “BAM!” another dive bomb from the dresser onto my chest! “Ughhh!”

“What time is it?” I thought.  Checking my phone I found it was around 4:30 am. Again I rolled over and ignored my demanding new cat.

A few more minutes go by…..

“MEOW!” in my face, whiskers up my nose, loud purring, making biscuits on my chest, followed up with more leaping back and forth on the bed.  You get the picture!

It was so disruptive I had to cave and get up and feed her.

Well, I’ve been caving every morning ever since.

However, the morning routines have changed a bit.  For a while, it was a 2 am snack, followed by a 5 am breakfast.  Those mornings included leaping, dive-bombing, meowing, making biscuits, and whiskers in my face.

Much of that routine has remained the same.  However, currently, a few new sly kitty maneuvers have been added to the mix!

What are those sly kitty maneuvers you might ask?

Knocking anything and everything off my nightstand!!  My phone, picture frames, and maybe a book.  Then, if that still doesn’t motivate me to get out of bed and serve my master; scratching the walls is the best approach!

She knows that drives me nuts.  In conclusion, in her mind, it’s the perfect morning wake up!

After dive bombing, some whiskers up my nose, and a few wall scratches, I am up and ready to serve. I drag myself to the kitchen to give her a snack. Then it repeats again at 5 am when I drag myself out of bed and feed her some wet food which is her regular breakfast. As I’m up getting the food out of the cupboard she meows incessantly until she is fed.  I tell her “I know…I know… I’m hurrying!”  She is a demanding master!!

I then trudge back to bed for a few more hours of sleep.  As sometimes irritating as this darling furball can be….she does reward me for my service.  After she eats and makes a quick stop to the litter box, her final stop is back in bed cuddled up, sound asleep for a few more hours with mommy. It’s very sweet.

It helps me forgive the dive-bombing…..

Just a little bit!