All 5 of us are bored...

lunasmom

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with our toys.

Who knew? I'm bored of playing with Da Bird with the cats, the cats stop ignoring it after 10-15 minutes.

Then I switch to another toy and within 15 minutes they're done with that too. I was entertaining Whitey for a while by sliding toys down the banister. However he began to jump at them on their way down so I stopped that right away.

Any new interactive toy suggestions?
 

white cat lover

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Catnip all the toys.


I buy a small bag of kibble they love....and I have no weight issues here.....so I hide the kibble throughout the house for them to find.
 

sakura

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Have you tried those kitty DVDs that show birds and stuff on TV? They won't really get exercise that way but it will keep them entertained.
 

werebear

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We have a basket and rotate various toys in and out of it for everyone. Now that we have a kitten, the rotation has sped up!

We usually have one Major Toy out; his Trackball (which is out of rotation while we get a new scratchpad for the middle) his Puzzle Box (big wooden box with holes in it, we drop treats and toys in for him to suss out) and now his Cheese Chase, which is like a combo trackball/puzzle box, only smaller, and clear tinted plastic, so he can kind of see the toys inside.

He also loves his Cat Attack, which is a big cat head with a wand coming out of it. It uses chaos theory to make the wand move the way a human would do it. It also has tank treads underneath it, with a remote that lets you chase or be chased by the cats. Dear Husband's favorite toy!

When you get a new toy, put away the old ones. In a week, they will seem like new!

We also use:
  • Empty tissue boxes, with the plastic window. Put a toy inside, shake it, and let them get their "prey."
  • Those plastic rings we peel off milk bottles to free the cap. Some cats love them above all others. I have a friend who only buys milk and juice in these kinds of containers, so she will have a constant supply.
  • Empty plastic bottles. Put a marble or rock inside, and secure the lid.
  • Put some nip in an old sock.
  • Cut holes in a cardboard box for them to play hide & seek. They will even be interested in the hole cutting process, so be careful.
I've found the Cat Dancer is very cheap, basically a long thick wire with some round sticks on the end, but the wire makes it very lifelike. I make the business end "hide" behind chair legs and under tables, and this will usually wear out RJ in short order.
 

EnzoLeya

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Originally Posted by Sakura

Have you tried those kitty DVDs that show birds and stuff on TV? They won't really get exercise that way but it will keep them entertained.
Do they really like that DVD??? I've never tried it, but I don't know what our cats would think. We were watching a movie last night that had birds cawing, but the only cat that cared was Leya (whose blind) she was tweaking!!!! She was twitching and moving her head all around to try and figure out where the birds were!
 

sadieandziggy

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We've just bought a laser pen. You should have seen them bounding round the living room after that. They get loads of exercise and it WILL keep them entertained for ages. And all you need to do is sit on the sofa and fling your hand round a bit.
 
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lunasmom

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We did have a laser light (got it at the $1 store), but the batteries went out on it.

I'll have to try the Ducky stuff...I saw the Banana and have heard good things about it on this board
.

most the of the stuff I've tried and either they lost interest or never really were interested. I think I have ADD cats.
 

kittkatt

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Originally Posted by white cat lover

Catnip all the toys.
When all else fails...


Since the furbabies seem to be bored
with all their "real" toys, I've been giving them stuff to play with that I just find laying around the house, and which seems to amuse them more, anyway.
Something like an empty box or bag, plastic milk carton tops/rings, empty toilet paper or paper towel rolls (Geronimo especially loves those - especially if there's some paper left on the roll!
), a piece of candy wrapped in that "crinkly" plastic, an empty pill bottle (for some reason, they LOVE to bat those around...go figure!), a pen or pencil, etc. They're just like kids: they'd rather have something that doesn't cost you a penny - instead of something you paid a small fortune for.


It works for me, anyway!!


~KK~
 

callista

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I put a shopping bag inside a sock, knot the sock, and catnip the whole lot.

Crinkle+catnip=fun!
 

zane's pal

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Originally Posted by Callista

I put a shopping bag inside a sock, knot the sock, and catnip the whole lot.

Crinkle+catnip=fun!
Am I the only one who has a cat who seems to be immune to catnip?
 

1man1cat

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As someone else already mentioned, you can't go wrong with a box that they can jump in and out of, play hide and seek, play stalk, etc. What is it about boxes that kids and animals love so much???
 

werebear

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I have heard there are cats indifferent to catnip, 30% by some estimates.

All I can say is that I have not encountered one.
 

kittkatt

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Originally Posted by Callista

I put a shopping bag inside a sock, knot the sock, and catnip the whole lot.

Crinkle+catnip=fun!
Thanks for the tip, Callista! I just tried it, and the furbabies are having a blast - especially Geronimo!
Maybe now he'll leave poor Gabriel alone - now that he has something else to beat up on!


The only one who's not being affected is Winchester; he seems to be immune to catnip


~KK~
 

kaete

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all i can tell you is that i dropped a piece of broccoli on the floor making dinner last night, and kittenpants was entertained for a good half an hour
 
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