Siamese cats are intriguing creatures surrounded by an air of mystery. People often ask about their nighttime habits. When do they sleep and particularly, what do they do at night?
Are Siamese cats nocturnal? Siamese cats, like all cats, have nocturnal instincts. However, as many Siamese cats are now kept in after dark they have lost their natural nocturnal behavior. Given the opportunity, a Siamese would be more active at night and sleep during the day.
It’s fair to say that most cats are not nocturnal anymore because they adapt to our sleeping and waking habits.

What Do Siamese Cats Do All Night?
A Siamese cat will either sleep, play or hunt during the night. Most of this will be dependent on what you allow it to do. Our cats have a flap so they can come and go 24/7 – although these days they mainly only go out at night to answer a call of nature.
When Do Siamese Cats Hunt?
Siamese cats, like most, hunt whenever the opportunity arises and will do this at night if allowed out. If they are house cats then they won’t often see a mouse but they will stalk and hunt many things that appear in homes from time to time such as spiders, flies, bees, and butterflies.
The way we interact and play with our kittens and cats stimulates and hones their natural hunting skills. Many Siamese cats are quite content to do this instead of hunting live creatures. Despite this, they would still hunt outside given the chance. Our cats have brought us in a variety of different hunting spoils over the years, including a variety of mice, birds, and even baby rabbits.
The Siamese cat is a natural hunter and you can’t prevent this ingrained behavior nor should you try. Never get cross, try to act thankful for your gift and then dispose of it once your cat has turned its back. Remember by bringing its quarry to you, your cat is only trying to please you. You provide it with lots of food and it is just taking its turn to provide for you.

When Do Siamese Cats Sleep?
Like all felines, Siamese cats need 13 to 16 hours sleep in any 24 hour period. They don’t have large chunks of sleep like us but have short snoozes throughout the day, hence the term ‘cat nap’. These power naps ensure they have bursts of energy in reserve for hunting. As cats don’t always hunt these days they might expend energy around the house. Have you ever seen your cat tearing about like a mad thing and wondered why? Does it sometimes wake you up in the mood to play? It’s got to use that stored energy up somewhere!

The Definition of Nocturnal
It’s a term we often use but do we really know what it means? In case you’re in any doubt, a nocturnal animal sleeps during the day and is active at night. It’s the opposite of diurnal, which is what we basically are.
Typically, nocturnal animals have a greater reliance on their senses. Their eyes are larger to allow more light in and they usually have highly developed hearing, smell or eyesight to compensate for the lack of light.
Cats have an adaptive eye that allows them to adjust for both daylight and low-light and so they can function day or night. Often cats lose their nocturnal behavior because they don’t rely on hunting to survive. They know we will supply them with ample food whenever they demand it.
What Is Crepuscular?
You may have heard people refer to cats as crepuscular and wondered what this actually means. Crepuscular is a term applied to creatures who are mainly active during the twilight hours (dusk and dawn).
Crepuscular behavior is often linked to the movements of prey. It makes sense for an animal to be active when its prey is the most active. Another reason for a crepuscular lifestyle is temperature. If it’s too hot during the day or too cold during the middle of the night it leaves dusk and dawn as the most favored time to hunt.
The structure of an animal’s eyes can determine if they are nocturnal, diurnal, or crepuscular. Crepuscular creatures have slit-shaped pupils. Look at your cat’s eyes and you’ll see the evidence. Animals with this feature are often ambush-style predators. The vertical slit helps your cat to focus and see clearly as it lays in wait before pouncing on its prey. Cats are seen, more often than not, displaying this type of play behavior at dusk or dawn.
Although they are biologically programmed to be most active during twilight hours, some cats carry on all night, which is why they are often considered nocturnal.
If your cat doesn’t go out at night, you may find it likes to curl up on the end of your bed or nearby. Basically, it will sleep when you do.
Conclusion – are Siamese cats nocturnal?
A Siamese cat might be nocturnal if it wasn’t for our diurnal lifestyle. They are awake during the day with us and asleep at night when we do.
A Siamese cat, given the opportunity, would spend more time than you realize out at night, hunting. Cats that don’t get the chance to hunt need quality time from you to encourage play. You’ll see them acting
A piece of string slowly pulled along is all it takes – they’ll get crouch low with dilated pupils. Their backside will wiggle and they’ll push off from their hind legs, pouncing on the prey in a fraction of a second. Don’t use your hand as you’ll ever move it out of the way quickly enough. Their reflexes are a lot quicker than yours.
Finally, if you’re wondering whether the Siamese cat is a one-person cat – check out my article, you may be surprised!