Cat is relaxing on a chair

Cats are pets that are both adorable and difficult to understand. The unique and cute behavior of this furry animal often makes owners curious.

One cat habit that is often difficult for humans to understand is sleeping habits. Most cats can even spend up to twelve hours just sleeping.

According to Britannica, the average time cats spend sleeping is 15 hours per day. In fact, kittens and older cats can spend 20 hours just sleeping.

However, this habit is not without reason. Basically, cats are natural predators who prey on agile animals. As a result, cats have to jump and run when they prey. This tiring activity makes cats rest often.

Apart from that, cats are also crepuscular predators, meaning that these furry animals are more active at dawn and dusk, aka the active hours of mice and birds. As a result, outside of dawn and dusk the cat will sleep.

However, there are also conditions when cats pretend to sleep. Quoting from The Daily Cat, Michael W. Fox through the book Cat Body, Cat Mind: Exploring Your Cat's Consciousness and Total Well-being reveals that cats often pretend to sleep to avoid threats.

Apart from that, cats pretending to sleep can also be a sign that they are stressed and need to calm down. It can be said, sleep is a form of 'me time' for cats.

Meanwhile, according to PetKeen, cats pretending to sleep is also a sign that they want more attention from their owners or humans around them, such as wanting to be pampered, needing protection, and feeling jealous.

Not only looking for attention and rest, cats pretending to sleep is also often said to be a way to get to know their new environment without being noticed. Usually, cats do this so they don't look awkward.