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| © Provided by Best Life |
By Morgan Greenwald, Best Life
If there were such a thing as the Nap Olympics, there’s no doubt that
a cat would emerge victorious. On average, felines sleep for 15 hours a
day, and some can snooze for as much as 20 hours in a single 24-hour
period. The only question is: Why do cats sleep so much?
The answer lies in the domestic cat’s ancestry. According to the National Sleep Foundation, cats
are crepuscular animals, meaning that they snooze during the day and
become alert between dusk and dawn (just like lions and other large
cats).
“On average, cats sleep for 15 hours a day, a trait they inherited from their wild ancestors,” explains Dr. Danielle Bernal,
a veterinarian with Wellness Natural Pet Food. “While household cats
are largely domesticated, they may still have a wild streak in them and
may show primal instincts of hunting during these twilight hours.”
So, why do cats sleep so much if they live indoors? Of course, most domesticated cats aren’t exactly being forced to go outside and hunt for their food, but that doesn’t mean that they
know that. And since hunting inside the house is out of the question,
cats will get this built-up energy out by prowling and playing around
the house (typically around the time that everyone else is sleeping, to
the dismay of their owners).
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| © Provided by Best Life Commute cat nap sleep |
If there were such a thing as the Nap Olympics, there’s no doubt that
a cat would emerge victorious. On average, felines sleep for 15 hours a
day, and some can snooze for as much as 20 hours in a single 24-hour
period. The only question is: Why do cats sleep so much?
The answer lies in the domestic cat’s ancestry. According to the National Sleep Foundation, cats
are crepuscular animals, meaning that they snooze during the day and
become alert between dusk and dawn (just like lions and other large
cats).
“On average, cats sleep for 15 hours a day, a trait they inherited from their wild ancestors,” explains Dr. Danielle Bernal,
a veterinarian with Wellness Natural Pet Food. “While household cats
are largely domesticated, they may still have a wild streak in them and
may show primal instincts of hunting during these twilight hours.”
So, why do cats sleep so much if they live indoors? Of course, most domesticated cats aren’t exactly being forced to go outside and hunt for their food, but that doesn’t mean that they
know that. And since hunting inside the house is out of the question,
cats will get this built-up energy out by prowling and playing around
the house (typically around the time that everyone else is sleeping, to
the dismay of their owners).
