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It’s nothing unusual for cat owners to know that their cats sleep in a weird, confusing angle. And that they sleep a lot. Estimates say that on average, a cat sleeps 16 hours out of the total 24. Which amounts to two-thirds. That’s two-thirds of the day sleeping. For reference, if a cat ends up being at a ripe old age of twelve, then they’ve been sleeping for eight total years. That’s insane! No wonder they’re so grouchy all the time, we probably ruined their nap.
Considering how often they actually do pass out everywhere, it stands to reason that cats have figured out exactly how to nap in the best possible way. Do you think their mind evolved to let them sleep regardless of comfort or their body evolved to be comfortable regardless of state? Who knows, really? Cats are mysterious, mythical creatures that have perfected the art of sleeping and there’s no way they can get any cuter.
The site of all things related to Sleep, said;
Cats are crepuscular animals, which means that they’re most active between dusk and dawn. They’re natural predators, so they’re hard-wired to chase and hunt at night, much like lions; in the wild, cats also have enemies, so it behooves them to spend extended periods during the day in quiet, still sleep. While the felines you love are domesticated, they still share that wiring and may spend the overnight hours prowling, pouncing, and playing. All of that hunting requires immense amounts of energy. And sleep allows cats to build up their reserves so they can run and stalk as they need to.
While cats sleep about twice as much as humans and prefer to get their rest through short and long naps instead of one big chunk of slumber at night, they experience similar sleep stages. Cats typically fall asleep quickly, presumably after a burst of intense energy. They slip into slow-wave sleep at first, and then move to REM sleep. This is when cats may dream just like humans do—often, you’ll notice their tails, paws, and whiskers twitch when they’re in the REM stage.
It may seem that cats are out cold when they snooze, but, actually, their senses are still sharp—especially those of smell and hearing. That’s so they can spring into action at a moment’s notice when they smell or hear a mouse nearby, for instance. While most cats either curl up or stretch out while they sleep, some prefer to snooze sitting up; in that case, their muscles stiffen to keep them upright. And, like their owners, cats tend to sleep more when the weather is cold, gray, or drizzly (perhaps that’s why your kitty curls up with you for rainy-day movies).
What about you? Does your cat ever sleep like this?
