Cats - Noise Nuisance

mrcol1000

Fire_Fox wrote: »

So what is your neighbour's excuse for being unable to sleep in either of the bedrooms?? Answer: insomnia. By choosing to sleep in the living room is your neighbour accepting she sleeps better (not well) than she does in either of the bedrooms? If so how is it your cats that are responsible for disturbing her sleep? There is no logic to these assertions.

The room that she sleeps in his irrevelant. If the noise is causing her a nusiance she shouldn't have to move into a different room to sleep regardless of whether its a bedroom or not.

I personally think from what the OP is posted that the noise is not a nusiance and is unavoidable noise. Her neighbour can hear the noise but I do not think its stopping her from sleeping. Hopefully if Environmental Health are dealing with this they will tell her its not within her remit and suggest if its that much of a problem then she should look into her insulating her flat.

Fire_Fox

mrcol1000 wrote: »

The room that she sleeps in his irrevelant. If the noise is causing her a nusiance she shouldn't have to move into a different room to sleep regardless of whether its a bedroom or not.

I used the word unable not unwilling: I wasn't suggesting the neighbour should spend the night elsewhere. If the neighbour is unable to sleep soundly in three rooms of her flat (only one of which is 'noisy') the cats are not the problem.

ailuro2

your neghbour has had issues with noise in the past which has made her more aware of all the other noises aswell now.

Suggest you could go halfs with a white noise machine for her - it's what some shift workers use to get a decent sleep when they're trying to sleep during the day and other people are going about their daily routines.
It simply provides low level background noise that the user gets used to, and masks other noises.

Like someone else said, gently remind her it could be much worse, how you always kept your kids quiet even when they were little etc, make yourself out to be the reasonable one.You're all living in flats, they're awful for transmitting noise - in an old flat I stayed in, I used to hear our upstairs neighbours chasing each other around before having sex - very wierd foreplay if you ask me, but you have to live and let live, and sometimes turn the radio up a little louder.;)

supersaver66

Well I don't know how you have managed to stay calm, I think I would of throttled her by now!

She has to expect noise, end of. Its her choice not to sleep in either bedrooms which brings me to my next point!

She shouldnt be living in a 2 bedroom flat now as its only her living there! The council should move her and give her place to one of the 1000's of families on the waiting list for a 2 bedroom place!

I would be tempted to do nothing, as nothing will come of this. Sounds like a very bored lonely old lady who has nothing better to do.

Lass

I can't see the council moving her to be honest - my understanding, aside from any other reasons, is that in these types of properties, most of the flats are owner occupied, however the ground floor flats are always retained by the council for housing elderly or disabled tenants - the elderly portion of these tenants are unlikely to need two bedrooms, but this is certainly my local authority's position on this.

I am just in the door after having a rather interesting conversation with another one of my neighbours who I just bumped into in the street - she's a 'cat' person and has nothing but sympathy for my predicament. In the course of conversation at the mediation meeting, my neighbour said that she was under added stress at the moment, on top of not being able to sleep, as she had literally just found out the day before that her ex husband (father of her children) had died and they had no idea where he was buried. She said she'd always loved him even when they seperated and she was distraught. She stated that she had heard the news of his death on Wednesday, the day immediately prior to our mediation meeting. I told my other neighbour that I was really stressed and that I felt awful after hearing this news. She informed me that this was an out and out lie, and that the family had been made aware of his death approximately 6 weeks ago, they had found out where he was buried, and even been to visit his grave and lay flowers! Suffice to say that this has removed most, if not all, of the sympathy I was feeling towards my complaining neighbour! She also told me that the local council chap, who had gone round all the neighbours in the stair introducing himself just a couple of weeks ago, told her that if he went to environmental health with the problem my neighbour is complaining of, they'd laugh in his face! I so wish he'd told ME this!

So while I'm still unhappy and a little stressed by the situation (possibly more so now that I know what a good liar/actress my neighbour appears to be, she had us all sucked in), I'm beginning to feel just downright angry and am wondering if I should forget the actions I agreed to at the mediation meeting. Or should I keep up my side of the agreement and at least seem like the willing, reasonable neighbour?

Lass x

Lass

Incidentally, the same conversation with my other neighbour made me aware that, of her 3 children, only 1 talks to her and that she now has no friends visiting her - she's a lonely old woman who likes to be the centre of attention and I presume that this is her way of getting it.

Money_maker

I would suggest that you appear to be trying to sort this out for the sake of appearances. But for goodness sake, do they expect you to gag and bind your cats?! Mine were a pair and would often have a romp round together (bit of a mad moment) - its good for them. Youngest also used to pull himself upside down under the bed using his claws to propell himself. Made a terrible racket but hilarious.

I really think you have bent over backwards for this old lady and she has made no effort herself.

Wonder what she would think if she had a newborn with colic living above her, closely followed by months of late night teething?

You cannot curb your cats natural instincts and it really sounds as though they are not too bad. Would avoid catnip - mine got high on it and hallucinated - could be more troublesome.

Personally I'd buy her some earplugs, tell her to plug up and shut up!

Good luck

supersaver66

Shocking news! but not surprising - this woman sounds lonely and it seems by her own doing!

I would just ignore her and not bother with the mediation talks that went on! I'm glad that you can see her for what she is now, just out for sympathy and attention, shes like a small child.

BitterAndTwisted

In the OP's place, knowing now how very lonely the old lady is, I think I'd offer her some company every now and then even if it's just a cup of tea and a biscuit or two on a Sunday afternoon. You never know, she might even enjoy having a play with the kitties herself

Fire_Fox

I've just had another idea .... maybe you could contact your vet or even the RSPCA and ask if they have any ideas for amending the playful behaviours of your cats? You will probably get written confirmation by an expert source that this is natural, even desirable, another string to your bow.

If this neighbour is as stressed as she claims it's no wonder she has insomnia! As I have already said, the 'noise' your cats make may be exacerbating the insomnia but it's not the root cause. If she's lying about timeframes then your neighbour won't want to supply a letter from her GP detailing the progression of her condition will she?