Five Popular Feline Sleeping Positions, Explained

Research into the sleeping habits of felines has revealed what cat owners intuitively know: if your cat sleeps in your bed, your comfort is a secondary consideration⁠—if it’s a consideration at all. The five most popular feline sleeping styles are as follows:

The Sprawler: Takes up more of the bed than should be physically possible. Defends their territory with claws or teeth.

The Too-Cute-To-Move-Er: Similar to the Sprawler, but asserts their territorial claim through cuteness, which makes disturbing them unthinkable.

The Inconvenience Maximizer: After you have fallen asleep, the Inconvenience Maximizer settles themselves between your knees when you’re sleeping on your back or in the crook of your bent legs when you sleep on your side. Upon waking up with aching muscles from being in the same position too long, many cat owners will endure intense discomfort rather than disturbing their pet.

The Pillow Hogger: Claims the pillow as their sleeping space and dares you to argue. In these cases, it’s usually best to retreat to the couch or a guest bedroom unless you fancy a trip to the Emergency Department for stitches.

The Lullaby Singer: Lulls you to sleep with rhythmic purring, the combination of sound and vibration being a surefire cure for insomnia. Don’t be fooled. Singing a feline lullaby is a calculated ploy so the cat can gain permission to sleep in the bed. In the course of the night, the Lullaby Singer often morphs into the Too-Cute-To-Move-Er or the Inconvenience Maximizer.

Lisa Timpf’s speculative writing has appeared in Lorelei Signal, NewMyths.com, Polar Borealis, and other venues.