I was coming back home from work and my hubby called me. His voice was shaking, so I could barely hear him. I ran home, literally ran! When I got there, he just looked at me and said, “Babe, our cat is sleeping with her head up? What’s wrong with her? Is she going to make it?” He was so scared!
Luckily, I’d already seen her sleeping this way, I’d done my research and knew there was nothing to worry about. I explained to him that it happens sometimes and that he doesn’t have to panic about it, as it’s actually a very common sleeping pose for kitties.
He was surprised that I knew the answer, so I told him I was just like him when I first noticed our Ziggy was doing that. I almost lost my mind. I called a vet, and my friends who have pets, googled it and even found some books about felines. It took me a while, but I found all the answers I needed.
When I saw my partner panicking about our cat’s “condition,” I realized that there are probably many people like him in the world who don’t know why their fluffball is doing that. And they are probably scared and don’t know how to find the right answers.
That’s why I decided to explain everything here. I gathered all the information and put it in this article so everyone who’s scared can read this and sleep peacefully at night. Since you’re here, you’re probably one of the people who need these answers. So let’s take a look at them.
Why is my cat sleeping with her head up
Every time someone does something, there are multiple possible reasons why they decided to do it. It’s the same with kitties. So, if you see your cat sleeping with her head up, you need to know that there are many possible answers to why she’s doing that.
But don’t worry, I prepared the six possible explanations. Let’s check them out together!
1) She’s just taking a quick nap
We all know our cats are really good nappers. Our feline friends take many naps during the day. Some estimates suggest that, on average, a cat sleeps 12-16 hours a day. Most of that time isn’t a deep sleep but rather a bunch of quick naps to recharge.
When you’re napping as much as they are, looking for a bed or a comfy position is not always the most convenient option. Sometimes it’s just easier to close the eyes right there on the spot and snooze for a bit, even if the head stays upright.
2) She was very tired
Every now and then, our feline friends can have a long and busy day that leaves them completely exhausted. And just like us, after such a day, they can’t wait to fall asleep and regain some of that energy back. So when it’s time for sleep, the position or the place doesn’t matter – anything will do.
Occasionally, all that running around the house and playing throughout the day results in weird sleeping postures. Some of those postures involve having their head in an upright position.
It may look odd, but that is perfectly normal for cats. It might just mean your little kitty was too tired to move when falling asleep.
3) Your kitty is ready to save herself
If your cat isn’t very tired but still feels like taking a little nap, you might see her sleeping with her head up. But why? That’s because she’ll obviously get some rest and be ready to play again, but she’ll still be ready to run away or defend herself if some threat approaches her during the nap.
When she’s sleeping in that position, she can easily hear what’s going on around her. But, she can also quickly react if necessary. If she sleeps all curled up then she needs additional time to “uncurl” herself and that might be risky.
The most important thing for cats is to feel safe, and this is one of the ways she makes sure of that. I know that this sleeping pose might look scary to you, but there’s nothing to worry about.
Felines know that there are predators and prey in this world. And they’ll do everything to make sure they aren’t easy prey.
4) She’s stressed
Have you ever been so stressed that falling asleep seemed impossible? Maybe you had a fight with your partner and now you’re just replaying the whole thing in your head? Or maybe you just had a long stressful day and it’s difficult to shut your brain down?
Well, as you probably already know, cats can also get anxious and stressed. So it’s also possible that they sometimes go through the same things before going to bed. Of course, she won’t think about her problems at work.
But maybe something else made your cat stressed, and she can’t sleep. However, she’s still very tired and her eyes close while her head is still up. If you think she might be stressed because of something, you can cuddle or play with her to show that she’s not alone and you’re always there to protect her.
5) It’s comfy
We all have that one friend or a family member whose sleeping positions are just unfathomable to us, but they swear it’s how they feel most comfortable.
The same can be the case with some of the members of the feline society; they might just like weird sleeping positions. Particularly those in which their head is closer to the heat source like the Sun.
You may look at your kitty while she is sleeping with her head up and ask yourself, “Why in the world would she fall asleep like this?” but the truth is – she probably enjoys it.
6) It’s actually just a weird pose
And this final reason might even surprise you a bit. But, sometimes, we spend so much time trying to figure out why is someone doing something when in fact, there isn’t any specific reason behind it. Why does your cat sleep with her head up?
It’s possible that it’s just a weird pose she enjoys for some reason. Maybe it’s a combination of all the reasons I’ve already mentioned to you. But it’s also likely that there’s nothing special hiding behind her new favorite sleeping pose. She just does it because she feels like it.
I’m sure you also sometimes do something without any specific reason. You just felt like doing it at that moment so you did. Like too much screen time, for example!
Final thoughts
Congrats! You’ve just learned all the most common answers to “Why is my cat sleeping with her head up?” Now you won’t have to stress about it when you see her doing that again. And you can also be the person who calms down their friends whose felines do this!
You can either tell them what you’ve learned or even send them a link to this article and let them find out on their own. If your kitty knew that you always try to learn more about her, she would thank you and tell you that you’re the best roommate ever. Be proud of yourself!
