Top 3 Reasons Why Cats Are Better Than Alarm Clocks

By PetMD Editorial on Sep. 21, 2009

Ditch the Alarm Clock, Get a Cat

Alarm clocks are an evil necessity of life, right? Especially when you work a 9 to 5 job. But those of us who own pets are in the know. And what we mean by that is cats are in themselves often better than alarm clocks.

Here are top three unequivocal reasons why:

#3 The Fur 'N' Purr Factor

Sure, your alarm clock is a piece of refined machinery, designed to tell you the time and wake you up at the most (in)opportune time of the day. But seriously, think about it. Can your alarm clock snuggle up to you on a cold morning? Is it cute, furry and, more importantly, can it purr?

We seriously doubt it!

Cats love to wake you up about five minutes before the alarm goes off, anyway. Whether it’s because they care about you getting to work on time or for other more nefarious reasons, we don’t know, but, if you asked us to pick, we’d definitely take the cat.

#2 Nocturama

Sometimes alarm clocks fail. We’ve all been there … woken up with that horror movie-like feeling that everything is wrong. And suddenly, it is. You’ve just slept through your alarm for the umpteenth time and thus missed the most important meeting of the month. All because you accidentally set the alarm for 6 p.m., not 6 a.m.

This never happens if you have a cat.

With a cat, it doesn’t matter if it’s an early meeting that can make or break your career, or a holiday where you can sleep in until 2 p.m. You can always count on your cat waking you just before the crack of dawn.

Why? Because they’re nocturnal creatures and they like to play. In fact, they’re favorite time of day is around five o'clock in the morning. Which means you’ll never miss a meeting a day in your life.

#1 Feed Me, Seymour

Unlike your cold, merciless machine of an alarm clock, a cat needs to eat. They work hard all day -- keeping your house free of mice and your windows looking glamorous while they lie there, drawing the sun into your home (this is a fact, ask any cat!) -- and never expect anything from it, except for a nice meal.

What the woman at the animal shelter didn't tell you, however, is that sometimes (most of the time!) they decide they need to be fed at five o'clock in the morning.

It might seem annoying when you’re trying to squeeze in a few minutes more sleep, but your cat is actually doing this for you.

Kitty knows she can wait until your alarm may or may not go off to get sustenance, but she doesn’t want to take the risk.

By meowing very loudly at your head, standing over you, or even swatting you with her paw to wake you (and thus get you to feed her), she knows you’ll be able to get to work on time.

So there you have it. The very tippy-top reasons why a cat is better than an alarm clock.

Image: Dmitry Kalinovsky / Shutterstock


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