When the 3:00 A.M. Zoomies Strike
It’s 3:00 a.m., and you’re awakened by the loud, horrible sound of a meow coming from your cat. This is a sound you have never heard before.
Jumping out of bed, eager to check out the strange sound, you suddenly stump your big toe on one of the two cat trees in your bedroom. As you soothe your throbbing toe, which feels like someone hit it with a hammer, your mind is still focused on that horrible sound coming from the living room.
As you make your way toward the door, you hear one of your cats playing a tone with a plastic ball against your door. Another cat is clawing at the antique wood along the bottom of your door, while yet another cat turns the doorknob.
Then you hear the sound of a chorus line of “meows” at your door.
You open the bedroom door, only to discover that they have literally pushed the door open.
All of this was caused by early-morning zoomies and a lack of food.
You can’t even believe what just happened as you continue to soothe your throbbing toe.
“This has got to stop!” you say to yourself.
Now you’re being followed down the hallway by seven hungry cats. One cat shoots in front of you, nearly knocking you over. Not only will you have a throbbing toe, but you might also end up with a leg injury.
“Why do I continue to fall for this? This happens every morning around 3:00 a.m.!” you ask yourself.
Barely able to open your chocolate-brown eyes, you gather all seven bowls to feed the cats. You’re still half-asleep, walking around like a zombie in a nightmare movie.
Before you can even put the food into their bowls, each cat gobbles down whatever food they have received. They’re behaving as if they haven’t been fed in four days.
“Are you guys really that hungry?” you ask the cats in a sleepy tone of voice.
Suddenly, you get a light-bulb moment.
You think of a possible solution to your problem. You remember what the cat counselor advised. In your head, you can still hear the advice:
“Give your cats food-enrichment toys. Allow them to hunt for their food instead of simply giving it to them through free feeding. Have at least two 15-minute-or-less sessions with your cat through interactive play.”
You remember saying, “I don’t have time for a 15-minute interactive play session. I have to get up early in the morning to go to work. And when I come home late, I’m tired.”
You slightly smile as you watch your cats eating their food and think to yourself:
“Well, I need to make time. These early-morning zoomies are making me more tired than I feel when I come home from work.”
After a change in your perspective, so too did the routines in your household.
No, maybe you’re not able to do two 15-minute sessions. And let’s face it, after dealing with traffic and the hustle and bustle of getting to and from work, you’re pretty tired.
But at least the extra food-enrichment toys, cat-food dispensers hidden throughout the house, and two 10-minute interactive play sessions are better than nothing at all.
You’re on your way to creating improvement for both you and your cats.
Things became much smoother in the morning and throughout the day. There were no more early-morning zoomies, no more playing with the toy ball against your bedroom door, no more clawing at the bottom of the door, and fewer boredom-related behavior problems.
You’re now able to enjoy your weekends, taking your cats out for a stroll in the stroller or going outside with them on a harness.
That’s much better than being awakened at 3:00 a.m. and feeling tired throughout your workday.Because one way or another, you’re going to pay.
The question is: Would you rather pay for a little extra enrichment and playtime—or pay for the consequences of an exhausted cat household?
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