Kitty Toy Issue

Hello I am new here and need some advice.

I have 3 lovely kitties- Kami, Kisa and Keeba. Both Kami & Keeba really love those little toy fuzzy mice. keeba a bit more. So we end up with a bunch of them and the cats will all lose them for a few weeks and then they will all show up again lol

Well all the mice would disappear except one, this little pink one which was Keebas favorite. I remember once my father in law came over and Kami and Keeba ran off to the bedroom to hide lol Then all of a sudden after maybe 5-10mins Keeba goes running out to the kitchen where we all were, grabs his mouse and runs back into the bedroom with it!! Apparently afraid that my fatherinlaw would steal it lol

Anyways one day the pink mouse does disappear and from how Keeba is acting it went under our stove. So I finally find something small and long enough to reach under there and pull the mouse out. Along with several other mice, balls, other toys, little treasures and trash that the cats must have been hiding under there.

Now though Keeba must think it is a fun game to put all the mice under the stove and then cry for mommy to come get them..only to knock them back under 5 mins later. Sigh.

If I refuse he will try to reach under there himself which causes an ear shattering nails on chalkboard noise of his claws scratching the metal under the stove.



I am at a loss of ideas on what to do. I do not want him knocking them under the stove anymore. It probably isn't even safe to have all of that under the stove. I can't keep him or his toys out of the kitchen. I could only give them the mice when I can supervise but the mice bring them alot of fun when I can't play or watch and it would just lead them to stealing treasures to play with. They love to try and get on top of the fridge and steal my magnets! They remind me of ferrets with how much they love to steal lol

Anyways any ideas??

I have the same trouble with Radar batting toys under the bookcases, he will scrabble about for ages trying to get them out, and it's even better as far as he's concerned when I go to get the bamboo stick to fish them out for him. It must be great fun because he does it over and over and over!

Despite my lighthearted tone I do understand your safety concern about fluffy toys being under the stove. If at all possible I would get something like a decorative free-standing panel or fireguard/screen type thing to put in front of the stove when it's not in use, something that Keeba cannot get the toys through! I wouldn't advise fixing anything permanent in place because it could affect ventilation or flammability, but something that you can move to one side when you are cooking and put back again when you're done may be the best solution.

Yes they remind me of little children where they will throw a toy on the floor from their high chair and then cry and cry until you give it back to them only to throw it right back on the floor lol


Anyways omg that is a great idea. I kept thinking of something I could put there but I couldn't think of anything that would be safe. It didn't even cross my mind that I could just put something up for when I am not cooking and remove it when I do cook lol Now just to find something to use.

Thanks!

I used to have a huge problem with Ike when she was younger. She would get really scared and hide for hours under my bed. And when she got a nit older, she just started taking things she thought were hers and hording them under there! (She had a weird fixation with all my make-up brushes... )

Anyways, I got ahold of some cardboard and lined the bottom of the bed. It actually worked quite well! The bed skirt covered the cardboard, but if you are worried about appearances, you could paint it black or spring for some colored card stock! Hopefully you get everything figured out!

Also, that reminded me of when we moved one of our love seats at my place...a sea of cat toys was underneath!!!

EDIT: I realize now, those things might be flammable! Oops...maybe something plastic? Definitely something movable for cooking!

We used to have the same problem with Joey and the entertainment center. He would just stare under there or try to herd you to it and if you bent down to look under it he would help... we still find balls and things under it.
I have no idea how to make them stop, maybe put a barrier there if possible? Like maybe a towel or something?

How wide is the gap under the stove? Maybe you could get a long, narrow piece of "carpenter's cloth," as they call it (actually a heavy wire mesh with holes about 10mm square), and roll it into a U-shape (cross-section) so the cut edges are pointing backward under the stove when you slip it under the front edge. Then you could affix it by wiring it to the feet of the stove.

You wouldn't want to use anything solid, because it may be important for air to circulate under the stove, to prevent heat buildup. And of course you wouldn't want anything flammable, either. But maybe that heavy screen would work...

Well, every house I've ever lived in (except one) was "with cat" or cats, and they always batted toys under the stove, refrigerator, washer, dryer, whatever -- and nothing ever happened. So I think you're safe! Besides, it's one game you can play with them that they really enjoy, and good exercise, too!

Thanks everyone for your replies

We ended up getting a new microwave and it came with these long thin L shaped pieces of very hard cardboard. They were perfect for the problem! And even though he can pull them away he hasn't really.

Ofcourse now he just hides them under the bookshelf lol but alittle safer I think

That's what I was gonna suggest - a strip of cardboard along the front/sides so the mice can't "escape".

I would love to be able to have a bunch of them for the cats - but Keno (the lab) will destroy them and chew them up!

I just keep a yardstick on hand for rescuing cat toys. Stimpy is always batting toys under our couch.

We had that problem with cat toys under the fridge. My solution is to put a used christmas paper roll under the fridge/stove to keep toys from getting under there. You have to wedge it in near teh front of the appliance and may have to trim it or slice down the length to make it fit but the fact it is a cylinder and can expand to fit the space makes it a life saver