Make no mistake, cats LOVE to play! Even the shy ones. They just don’t let you see it. The scardy-cats would prefer you dangle the toy while they peer at it from underneath the bed, and just enjoy it’s bouncing. Compare that to the other end of the spectrum of your typical “orange tabby” personality, that destroys the entire living room in search of play. Play activities for cats, however they prefer it, is pretty much necessary for their happiness. (I can almost picture Ariel & Aurelia meowing in agreement in the background here). Necessary enough that we as owners should plan to give them regular ways to accomplish those activities. Which means… toy shopping!! It’s just being a dedicated owner and making sure sure fluffy has what he or she needs to keep enjoying their lives, right? Well it’s a little more than that, Even the American Veterinary Medical Association covers the importance of exercise, play and social interaction for our felines. So I think that’s a solid reason to consider these 6 ways of keeping your cats entertained:
1. Play WITH them! This one knocks all three off the list, play, social interaction, and exercise. If you have ever browsed the cat toy isle, or dared venture into the world of online cat toys, subscription boxes, ect… you likely found more cat toy options that you know what to do with! If you bring one home that is barely noticed, there are hundreds of other options. They really don’t need a lot, cats will make toys out of almost anything. In fact, one of their favorite toys of mine are those cheap, black hair ties. Their likes can be as different as their personalities. Which, if you know cats, is pretty broad! Shoot for some amount of dedicated time in the day, with little interactions throughout the day. If your cat is a shy one, sometimes you just tossing around a toy as they watch from their cat tower is enough for them. Just know you are providing the joy of “play” even if they don’t participate.
2. Give them a window view. Cats are programmed to hunt. They have to hunt to survive in the wild, and no matter how many years they have lived indoors, they still will have an inner urge to hunt every now and then. One way they can enjoy the thrill of finding and “tracking” prey without actually finding and tracking prey, is by watching from a perch in the window! (Bonus points for the owner who puts up a birdfeeder outside of the window too.) They can enjoy this for hours as they wait for you to return home to them.
3. Let them watch the birdies. International Cat Care does a deep dive into the hunting behaviors we see with our cats that I learned a lot from.. And it’s for this very reason – the inner need to hunt -that we decided to try something that might be a little controversial but that I am still dying over. We let them watch the birds on TV! Read more about Can Cats Watch TV?
4. Give them a scratching post.
We have all seen a meme, or cartoon, or some sort of picture or video of cat scratchings etched across a couch, or wall, or curtain. It’s no secret that cats have an innate need to scratch their front claws on things around them. It is why we started de-clawing them, to make them more “house friendly.” Scratching posts seem like a “necessary” kind of thing at first, but as cat owners around the world learn, end up being also used as toys. They are even made with toys attached to them. Aurelia, who has her claws, plays for 10-20 minutes at a time at her scratching post, doing summersaults around it. Ariel, who is de-clawed in the front, still “scratches” her paws on it daily, just for fun. But beware, the scratching post might look like a lot of fun for your baby too 😉
5. Give them a friend.
Cats are solo hunters, but not solo creatures. Sure they like to own their personal territories, but they also like their friends too. Just like we like to hang with other humans, even if it’s at a coffee shop to people watch, cats like to hang with other cats. Ours will fight like MMA warriors, but are lost without eachother. If Ariel accidentally gets locked outside a door, Aurelia will start meowing and circling us lounder, and louder, until we find Ariel.
6. Let them have the sock roll. I love hearing people’s stories of what their cats “bring” them, or play with around the house. My friend’s cat used to play with her sock rolls, and even walk them upstairs, to drop at a door overnight. Ariel finds the strangest things to call a toy. We could try to train them to play with their “cat” toys, but if it’s not dangerous for them, why not just let them enjoy whatever it is, and laugh at their “cat-isms.”
For me, keeping our cats entertained means making sure there are toys around the house the cats can play with solo, making SURE there is a scratching post at all times (see Elle’s list), and setting aside 10-ish minutes a day to toss a toy or use a laser pointer with them. Or, Ariel’s favorite: shooting a hair tie across the room like a rubber band.
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