Cats often cover their faces when sleeping.
It does look like cuteness overload. This sleeping position can be attributed to a few reasons.
Read on to discover the answer.
Reasons Why Cats Cover Their Face When They Sleep
Why Do Cats Cover Their Face When They Sleep?
1. For Warmth
Cats cover their faces when sleeping because it provides warmth.
During the day, they often seek out warm, comfortable places to take a good nap.
By covering their face, they can trap in body heat and can sleep deeply and sleep soundly.
Plus we go awwh, look at the kitty, he is so cute.
Cats lose more body heat when sleeping, especially from the ears, the tip of their noses, and their paws.
When cats curl up, they can reduce the lost heat, which ultimately gives them warmth.
Sometimes, you might see some cats curl up sleeping face down. It’s a way to trap their body heat.
Your cat is particularly likely to be curled up in this way, in the cold weather. In summer, you’re most likely to see them stretched out.
2. For Comfort
Cats feel comfortable curling up and covering their faces while sleeping.
Even people find it comfy to curl up and sleep, the same is true for felines.
The more comfortable a cat feels, the better it sleeps.
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3. For Safety And Security
Cats also sleep, covering their faces to feel secure. Although cats are predatory animals who hunt mice and other small rodents, they are also prey to much larger animals.
Domestic cats are both predators and prey so to be ready for an attack they will often sleep at a high vantage point. This helps them to feel more secure from a sudden attack and protected while they sleep.
Cats are most often vulnerable prey to predators when they are asleep. Even when the cat falls asleep, they are always in a ready position to move quickly if a threat comes their way.
A cat’s face is one of the most vulnerable parts of its body, which if attacked, will reduce its chances of survival.
Natural instincts make cats cover their faces when sleeping.
4. To Block Out Light
As cats, sleep more during the day, they cover their faces while sleeping as a way of blocking the light, which could distract them from deep sleep.
Although cats love to sleep all the time, they still prefer to have ideal conditions while napping.
It means that they also prefer sleep in the dark, as people do.
5. To Block Out Noise
Another reason that cats may cover their face when sleeping is to block out external stimuli.
Cats spend a lot of time sleeping, and they need to be able to fall asleep and stay asleep in order to get the rest they need.
By covering their face, cats can block out sun rays, sudden noises, and other distractions that might otherwise wake them up.
Light is not the only thing that distracts a cat’s peaceful sleep though. Just like people sleep in a quiet place and often use blackout curtains, cats also prefer to sleep without noise or distractions.
A cat covers its face as a way of blocking noise while sleeping. When the ears are covered, the cat blocks out much of the surrounding noise.
Although you might see a cat that looks asleep, it will wake up at the slightest sound. It’s especially true with wild cats rather than the domestic cats.
A cat’s sleeping instincts are linked to survival, where sounds might mean predators are lurking nearby. The cat wakes if there is danger in its surroundings, and it needs to flee quickly.
6. Cats In Deep Sleep
Cats tend to cover their face when they are in Deep sleep. Just like humans, cats go through different deep sleep stages, including slow wave sleep and REM sleep.
During rem sleep, cats may curl up into different sleeping positions and cover their face to get a more peaceful sleep
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7. Due To Exhaustion
Your cat’s behavior may be covering its face due to pure exhaustion.
When cats are awake, they spend time chasing prey and running away from predators and in modern terms, playing with toys and owners. All of this take a toll depending on the age of the cat and makes it tired.
8. To Avoid Being Disturbed
Sometimes, your cat may want to be left alone.
In such instances, cats don’t want you to come to them, nor do they need your attention. The best thing to do is to leave your cat sleeping to enjoy its nap and return later.
Final Thoughts
Cats cover their faces when sleeping for many reasons, including comfort, safety, warmth, and to block out light and noise.
Whether it’s to create a sense of security, block out external stimuli, keep warm, or simply get a good nap, virtually all cats exhibit this cat sleeping position at some point.
