You’ll be happy to know it doesn’t have to cost a lot to treat the four-legged love of your life this Valentine’s Day. All she wants is you—and a little play time.
Cats are hunters by nature and need to exercise their skills at chasing, pouncing and catching. The good news is, you don’t necessarily need to let them outside to let them hunt. You can set up an indoor hunting ground in just about any room of your house.
Here are a few items to consider when setting up for play time. You don’t have to use them all, pick the ones that your cat likes best. Then get ready to have some fun.
Soft toys — Pick items that can easily be batted and filled or dusted with an attractant like catnip or silver vine. Of course, we recommend our own Little Puff and Cloud Nine, but any of kitty’s favorite toys will do. Make sure the toy has a fresh pinch of attractant to help tap into your cat's sense of smell.
Crinkle toys — Anything that makes sound will do. Cats love to pounce on “prey” that mimics the sound of crunching leaves or grass, so just pick something that appeals to your cat’s own preferences. Some cats love the hide-and-pounce technique, so they might like a play mat like our Magic Carpet. If they love the thrill of the chase, you might try a Flutter-Ring.
Wand toys — Almost every cat loves a wand toy. It’s why we offer so many different attachments for our own Wiggly Wand and why you can find wand toys in every cat aisle in every pet store. Trust us, these little beauties go a long way to keep kitty active and engaged.
Chase toys — Some cats prefer balls, while others prefer toys that wiggle. Whichever your frisky feline prefers to chase across the floor, make sure you have a few of these on hand. Or you can combine the two with a wiggly ping, pong or ball.
Play tunnels, boxes or bags — This is the most important item on the list. Kitties love to hide and play in everything from boxes to bags, so it’s always a good idea to have something for them to explore. Of course, we offer the super popular Hide and Sneak, but you can make a quick playground out of any cardboard or paper materials you have on hand. Check out this post for more on ways to make paper and cardboard fun for your cat.
Now that you have a few things to entice your cat into playtime, you’re ready to go. Get down on your cat’s level and look at things from her point of view. What can you do to make playtime more interesting and challenging for her?
Try hiding soft toys dusted with attractant inside your Hide and Sneak, or concealing a few treats under the crinkle toys or Magic Carpet. This makes kitty use her senses and skills to find her “prey.”
Or you can use the wand toy to get kitty to chase her “kill” through the play tunnel and onto their crinkly play mat. Toss the chase toy across the room, or inside a cardboard box. Try different things— whatever gets kitty active. Let her watch; let her stalk, and then let her pounce and “kill.”
Whatever you do, commit to spending some quality play time with your cat this Valentine’s Day. It’s a great way to show her just how much you love and appreciate her. I promise you, you’ll both enjoy it!
I found your interview on the Community Cats Podcast and enjoyed it thoroughly. That is how I found your website. I really appreciated the advice you gave on the podcast and this is a great article about enrichment. Looks like I need to up my game with my kitty cats and I look forward to employing some of the suggestions you have here. Thank you!
I found your interview on the Community Cats Podcast and enjoyed it thoroughly. That is how I found your website. I really appreciated the advice you gave on the podcast and this is a great article about enrichment. Looks like I need to up my game with my kitty cats and I look forward to employing some of the suggestions you have here. Thank you!
Such great ideas! The many wonderful toys really helps keep playtime fun for all of us! My two love all the toys, especially the bouncing ball wiggly, the wands, the magic carpet, the tunnel….
One “game” that I play with my 2 kitties is like an Easter Egg hunt. I “hide” little bits of treat on and around their climbing tree, their tunnels, their scratching posts, etc., and they go and search for them. When I forget to do the hiding, they search around and then remind me of my faulty memory.
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