We Heart Cats

As the proud parent of a feisty cat or cats, you want to make sure that you keep your feline family from being bored. So, what you need are some cat game ideas. Now, before we get into that, keep in mind that if you just have one cat, you’re going to want to play with him or her a lot more often than if you had multiple cats. The reason for this is that multiple cats, especially if they’re the same age, will play together most of the time. Of course, toys are a necessity, no matter the situation.

When I first got my two older cats, Buster and Ruby, I decided it would be a good idea to get them a motorized mouse. However, it was really loud, and it terrified them. So, (no pun intended) scratch that idea if you have cats like mine, who have a tendency to be high-strung.

I then moved on to the little plastic balls with the bells in them. They liked these well enough, but they got lost under furniture pretty quickly. Also, cats are very good at opening things, so of course the ball was opened, and the bells were also found in various parts of the house. Because of that, these toys can be choking hazards. Stick instead to solid small balls with nothing in them - like the balls you can find in prize machines at the supermarket.

Buster and Ruby satisfied themselves with surprising things - ribbon leftover from gifts, and q-tips were favorites. As long as they’re supervised, household products such as these are an inexpensive way to keep cats busy for hours!

Then, a full ten years after I had adopted Buster and Ruby, I brought a new kitty into the picture - Mozart. Lovely little Mozart had just come from a place where he’d had lots of kittens his age, and here he was, living with two geriatric cats. This is not to say that Buster and Ruby don’t play with him, because they do sometimes - just not nearly as often as Mozart would like.

However, since Mozart is a very resourceful cat, he’s found a bunch of household materials to keep him busy when his brother and sister don’t feel like playing: dental floss and pieces of paper are two of his favorites. However, when I’m not home, I keep both of these safely out of his reach.

So, what’s the most tried and true cat toy I’ve found works with all three of my cats? In a word: catnip. I got a packet of catnip that’s been sewed into some cloth with the words: “50 lbs of catnip.” I got it at Petco not too long ago. For some reason, just having one of these, instead of one for each cat, seems to make them even more interested!

Another tip: feather teasers (those long sticks with a bunch of feathers at the end) are not only inexpensive, but a really fun way to interact with your cat too!