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Simple and Cheap Things You Can Do to Make Your Cat Adore You
Posted by Ingrid Newkirk at 5:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (10)
After reading Kerry's post about growing catnip and the great ideas that some of you wrote in response, I wanted to share with you some fun, simple, and cheap amusements from my book, 250 Things You Can Do to Make Your Cat Adore You. Enjoy the following excerpts, and let me know how they worked with your cats:
1. "Teach your cat to imitate a golden retriever: Scrunch up bits of tinfoil and roll them into balls, then toss and flick them around. Cats can be pretty adept at pouncing on, retrieving, and eventually amusing themselves for hours with these shiny silver toys. … The PETA office cats enjoy retrieving little dime-store plastic lizards (which, believe it not, they recognize as lizards, often chewing off their tails and dragging them around in their mouths, looking mighty proud)!"
2. "Cats have been known to inhale unusual substances that make them start doing the cat equivalent of giggling uncontrollably. Jack, one of the PETA office cats, adores shoes. Should someone slip theirs off under a desk, he can be found upside down with his head stuck in the toe part and a really silly grin on his face. … A sure bet, however, is catnip. … Most cats will roll on their backs and purr and gaze dreamily into space with one of these mildly stimulating sachets between their paws. Wouldn't you love to know what they are thinking at such times?"
3. "Create a 'bag of tricks' by placing an empty paper grocery bag on the floor. When kitty enters the bag, which is inevitable, sneak up and move your fingers lightly along the side. Using several bags will provide rapid-fire hiding places during finger attacks."
4. "Recycle the pull tab from juice containers–into a cat toy. Don't ask me why, but most cats will play with these little doodads until they keel over from exhaustion."
5. "In the evenings, try dousing the lights and run the beam from a pencil flashlight or a very low-wattage laser pointer over the carpet and up the wall. As with all games, do let the cat win sometimes."
6. "Here's something useful to do with the odd sock you pull out of the dryer. When you've given up searching for its mate, shove some catnip into the toe section, add some cotton ball or any sort of safe stuffing, and then tie this newly made ball off by knotting the top of the sock."
7. "Possibly the only ethical use of a fishing pole (although a long stick works just as well): "Cast" a piece of string out towards your cat, having secured a bit of fluff, plastic bait worm, or other squiggly bit to the end, and reel or pull it back in."
8. "Finally, walking on the beach or in the park? Don't forget to pick up feathers, seaweed, and other interesting but harmless discards that your cat(s) will find smelly and fascinating to play with. (I dry seaweed first and then tie it to a doorknob or to a string and drag or dangle it about). A few feathers tied together make for a super game of pounce on the prey."
What kinds of games and toys do your cats like?
Posted to Family & Friends | Posted to Tags: Cats, companion animals, toys
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kerry says...
November 25th, 2008, 1:26 pm
I love this book. Its full of so many simple ideas that work!!! Who would have thought that a tree branch or a pen cap or pingpong ball could provide so much fun. I find that rearranging the kitty condos seems to the kitties like a trip to Disneyland. But most of all, I have found that adopting two cats that have bonded to each other is best of all. They play with each other and keep each other company so I dont feel guilty when i have to go off to work. A great way to find 2 bonded older cats is to visit the shelter cat room, and find 2 cats that are sleeping snuggled together.
Christy says...
November 25th, 2008, 3:15 pm
I agree that all the cats i have ever had prefer the "bag" to the toy i brought home (and paid the big bucks for). I once had a cat that retrieved a rolled up piece of paper EVERY time i rolled one across the floor. We changed his name to "Rugby". He was one good retriever. I Iike your suggestion to use foil. I'll try that this afternoon on my current crazy cat. Thanks!
K.B. says...
November 28th, 2008, 3:40 pm
Well, my kitty is unlike most cats: she is simply not very playful. She rarely plays with anything, unless i am involved. She would sit by my desk and cry until i get up, and then she rushes into a hiding place, waiting for me to start dangling a string in front of her. She would hardly go into the "bag of tricks", mentioned in the article, and she does not ever chase laser light!!! So i would need some more inventive ideas please!
Christine D'Aquila says...
November 28th, 2008, 10:41 pm
our cats love the little doodads from the juice containers ^^ my mom sometimes buys catnip but we didn't really know any good ideas for it so we just threw it on the floor and they go nuts but it made a huge mess so we'd have to vacuum every time they got into it
thanks for the great ideas ^^
Pamela says...
November 28th, 2008, 10:46 pm
Yes, kitties always seem to prefer the bag, box or receipt to the object inside! My big fluffy gray and white male loves the plastic wind-around end from the milk jug (as well as the cap itself). But I don't let him or the others play with it for long as I am always concerned that they could bite off a piece and choke on it. The paper bag workout is always fun.
Karen Blevins says...
December 4th, 2008, 6:45 pm
My cat, Lucy, loves plastic baggies especially if there's a toy inside. She also loves the plastic wind-around end from the milk jug. Silly girl.
wolfsister says...
December 5th, 2008, 2:47 am
Our "babies" give us many years of love……….don't we owe them the same?
Nancy says...
December 6th, 2008, 9:10 pm
My 1st kitty ( bless her soul) loved plastic bags, she would spend hours pushing her face against the plastic and it would make the most awful sound!! My 2nd and current kitty loves paper bags, she will sleeep in their for hours after she has made it her own!!
Oh and she loves my husbands' sweaty stinky sneakers to pieces!!
We have a Big Cat Sanctuary close by that we go to yearly for my bday present and they give the Big cats (lions, tigers, etc) smelly toys too! I think they said they love the smell of cinnamon!
Alex says...
December 16th, 2008, 11:44 pm
My cat loves aluminium foil balls. She's not huge on catnip though for some reason. We never could figure it out. She loves paper, plastic bags, suitcases(no idea) and the brown paper bags. She also loves the juice tab things, the rolls from the papertowels, straws and if it's something that really shouldn't be a toy she's all for it. If we buy her toys she's like, "Why?" SHe kind of reminds me of the kids I work with. You know the ones where the cardboard box is hours of fun more than whatever came in the box.
Sue says...
April 30th, 2009, 11:25 pm
Just a friendly warning about those ubiquitous twist ties from bread and other things — my kitty found a stray one somewhere and swallowed it. It perforated her intestine, which nearly killed her. The same kitty also found some sewing thread in my daughter's room and swallowed a whole lot of it. This time she tied up her insides something awful. She survived surgery with a very talented vet and lived to the age of 19. Calico power!