Lifestyle

5 Funny Things My Cats Do When They’re Falling Asleep

By Angie Bailey

, September 18, 2014

I love watching my cats as they’re making their way to Snoozeville. You know, kitties like to think of themselves as dignified creatures, tidy and proper in every way. When they’re drifting off and midway between states of awake and asleep, they sometimes lose that sense of dignity and engage in weird cat behavior — they do things that they wouldn’t dare do otherwise.

Here are five of the funny things my cats do when they’re falling asleep:

1. Sleep-standing

Even though cats sleep most of the day, there are times when they fight it. They want to stay awake and be a part of the scene, but just can’t manage to keep their eyes open. This situation is especially hysterical when they’re standing up and drifting off. Not only do they look silly and adorable, they often begin rocking back and forth, looking like they’ve had one too many drinks. They usually don’t do this for very long because my laughter or the sound of the camera shutter wakes them up.

2. Falling off things

Again, when kitties are sleeping or falling asleep, they usually lose a little control of their bodies. You know cats: They like to balance on narrow or oddly shaped surfaces, which works in their favor when they have their faculties about them. However, when perched in a precarious position and sleepy, they’re likely to roll right off of the surface … and then emerge like nothing ever happened. Dignity retained! At least that’s what we let them think.

3. Becoming untucked

Most cats tuck themselves pretty tightly when they’re sitting or standing. When they’re loafed up, they fold their little paws under their fuzzy chests, and there they’ll stay. Usually. When my Phoebe is really tired and getting ready to saw some logs, she quickly loses some of that tidiness and sometimes her paws pop out and no longer look so pristinely tucked. I think it’s silly and fun — she’d probably die if she knew I saw her come undone.

4. Making funny noises

Just as my cats drop off to sleep — when they’re ready to give it up and commit to that nap, they sometimes make the cutest little noises. Sometimes they’re sighs, other times they’re squeak-sighs or purr-sighs. Whatever the case, they sound so cute that I just want to reach over and squeeze them, but that would rip them out of their precious naps. Oh, well, at least I’d probably get to hear the little noises again when they drifted off again.

5. Twitching

When I’m falling asleep, I sometimes find an arm or leg twitching, and it’ll jolt me back to wakefulness. I notice this also happens to my cats as they’re nodding off, and they look way cuter than I do when it happens to me. A back leg will gently jerk or a front paw will get jazz-handy for just a second or two. An eyelid might briefly pop open, but then it closes and they’re back to Dreamland.

Does you cat do any of these funny things when they’re falling asleep? Tell us about it in the comments!

Let Catster make you laugh:

Read more by Angie Bailey:

About the Author: Angie Bailey is an eternal optimist with an adoration of all things silly. Loves pre-adolescent boy humor, puns, making up parody songs, thinking about cats doing people things and The Smiths. Writes Catladyland, a cat humor blog, Texts from Mittens (birthed right here on Catster) and authored whiskerslist: the kitty classifieds, a silly book about cats wheeling and dealing online. Partner in a production company and writes and acts in comedy web series that features sketches and mockumentaries. Mother to two humans and three cats, all of which want her to make them food.

Tags: Behavior, Humor, Pix We Love

Angie Bailey

Angie Bailey, an award-winning writer, podcaster, and humorist, is the author of Texts from Mittens and Whiskerslist: The Kitty Classifieds. She’s written cat humor for over a decade, and lives in Minneapolis with her fiancé and two cats — Phoebe, a sassy senior and Janet, a teenage kitty with tons of tortitude.

Comments