Bored Kitten -- need help

My new baby seems so bored. We live in a bachelor apartment.. and he was timid and curious for the first few days but now he seems uninterested in everything. I bought him a load of toys but he's bored with them all already. Any suggestions..

Also, whenever stangers come he hisses at them and runs to me.. cute, but I dont really want him to be that kind of cat. Need a lot of help here..

Thanks.


Cait

Do you play with him? Cats need interaction and will only play so long alone, as most of their fun stuff is chasing moving targets like little balls, feathers on a stick ("Da Bird") or knotted cords being pulled under sheets, etc. What are the chances of your getting another kitten? If he has nothing to do all day, it could be very boring for him without a friend.

I play with him as much as he'll play with me.. lol.. he almost gets bored of me and prefers to play alone.. I got him felt mice, little balls with bells inside, a cat dancer, a feather on a plastic rod attatched to a ball, a feather on a bell thing.. I bought all the ones I could. He prefers to explore the toilet, or unravel the toilet paper, or unfortuantely play with my hands, which I'm trying to teach him not to do.. I wish I could get him another little kitten to play with but I couldn't afford two.. : (

He's even getting less affectionate. He used to curl up right beside me and purr whenever I touched him. Now he curls up about four feet away from me. Stares at me, I call him over, but he just curls up in a ball and goes to sleep. Its heartbreaking.

He is still being affectionate; he is just finding his own comfort zone. Really, each cat is different. I have two kittens and an adult cat and the two kittens are now as different as any two people. One will let me cradle him in my arms like a baby, the other doesn't like to be held that way. One lays near my head when he wants attention the other doesn't do that anymore. But they are both affectionate.

Cats need to deal with their own nervous system. Some cats cannot tolerate a lot of petting. More than one stroke and their tail is twitching. It's not that they don't like it; it's more that their physical bodies have tolerance levels and these vary from cat to cat.

When my kittens get bored (and they do look bored often but I don't worry too much about it) I rip a piece of clean white paper, crumple it up into a ball...while I'm doing this they are both getting ready for the fun they know is about to come...then I throw it onto the kitchen floor and watch them both go chasing after it. The paper makes a neatO noise and it is small enough to bat around and bite and carry from place to place.

Later I go around and throw the old paper balls away. I don't let them play with them more than half a day, a day at most.

Oh, the caps from water bottles are also great-sounding fun toys for kittens.

Come to think of it, in five months, I've bought NO cat toys for my two kittens. They find enough to do. Boxes: every time a new box comes into the house I treat it like it's the biggest deal since Meaty Morsels. With grocery bags you have to watch them though, kittens can get caught in them.

I think one of the funnest toys I've had around is a stick with a medium weight string, to dangle it for them to chase. At the end of the string, tie a piece of lightweight yarn about 8 inches or so. Then, when you move the string around the yarn on the end looks like a real bug. My older cat loves that one.

Also, when you feed your kitten treats, use this time as play time too. The vet gave me some samples of healthy treats for the kittens. They are like dry food so when I give them I toss them onto the floor and have the kittens HUNT them. I scatter them maybe three feet in diameter across the floor and this keeps them occupied for at least five minutes or more.

Before you go to work, hide treats near your kitten's favorite hangout windows. As you notice he has been finding them, hide them in more difficult locations. As he grows this will become a satisfying "game" for him, and it will keep him busy and always on the lookout for his food, the hunting instinct.

Also, do little things with your eyes. When you are sitting on the sofa and your cat is on the floor, if he looks at you, do this: look at him, look at the sofa where you are sitting, look at him, look at the sofa. Sort of inviting him up with you with your eyes. I do this and I swear my cats completely understand and jump up with me just about every time.

My kittens are also going through a calmer, maybe a little restless, period now. They are about five months old. They do have each other but I am starting to think of building my cat tree and even an outdoor enclosure for them. So I know what you mean.

Don't be too hard on yourself. I think people feel guilty. Your kitten will adjust. Just be sure to play with him.

There is something called a Kitten Mitten that has small toys attached to a glove.
you can make one by sewing some of his interactive toys, small balls of yarn, etc. to a gardener's glove to prevent punctures (of you)

I'd also get other toys than Cat Dancer or Da Bird. My girl disliked both of them and only responds to bits of real fur tied or sewn to a leather shoelace. She loves bits of rabbit fur and old mink coat bits.

Toilet paper rolls are also good, and one other poster suggested putting a bit of cat food inside for him to lick off.
Tying two shoelaces together makes a nice thing to pounce on.
My cat has even developed a fondness for socks.

with cat toys it's not quantity, but quality that counts. Gizmo prefers to play with me but will amuse herself with her toys when she is alone...and after a year, I know which ones she likes!