The question of whether or not bengal cats are nocturnal is commonly asked among new bengal owners.
Bengal cats have a tendency to be up at night and asleep or napping during the day.
It is normal for all cats to be up at night since that is when they would naturally be hunting if they were not fed food and living in a home.
Cats are predatorial animals and will still feel the need to hunt even if there is not any prey or lack of food.
In the wild, cats commonly hunt during the night. This is because they can see without the need for as much light as other animals and most of their prey is active during nighttime.
Most cats actually are not nocturnal, but rather crepuscular, meaning they naturally are awake and active in the hours right before sunrise and right after sunset.
During the day, cats will usually sleep, although their sleeping schedules can be altered.
Bengal cats are the descendants of the Asian leopard cat, so they have more aggressive traits and are more inclined to be active at night than other domestic cat breeds.
If you interact with your bengal during the day and entertain it when you’re awake, over time your bengal will likely begin following your sleeping schedule, sometimes even sleeping with you.
How Do I Sleep During the Night With a Loud Bengal Cat?
If you have a loud bengal cat that is keeping you up at night, there are several measures you can take to solve this problem.
The first thing to do is to make sure your bengal doesn’t need anything.
If your bengal is being very vocal at night, that may simply be because it wants food.
Bengal cats are the most healthy when they are fed a diet of mostly raw meat, so if you are feeding your bengal food it doesn’t like or that doesn’t meet your bengal’s nutritional requirements, your cat may be expressing it’s disdain during the night.
Your bengal cat may also be keeping you up at night because it wants a clean litter box.
Other reasons may be that it wants access to a room in the house, it wants your attention, or it is lonely.
Before jumping to a conclusion, make sure that your bengal cat is being fed enough food, preferably raw meat, has a clean litter box, and is getting enough from attention from you during the daytime.
If your bengal cat is not meowing and being vocal for any of these reasons, then try to ignore it and over time, this behavior should stop.
If you do not reward your bengal with attention when it meows at night, it will learn to not meow during those hours and you’ll be able to get sleep.
Having other pets for the bengal to play with can also help, but your bengal should begin sleeping when you’re asleep on it’s own if you give it attention during the day.
Adding more cats to the family could possibly just make the problem worse, so it is better to solve the bengal cat being awake at night problem first before possibly adding more challenges to you getting sleep.
