My cat doesn't like toys

I found my cat as a stray and have had him for a little over a year now. I have tried giving him many different kinds of toys and he really has no interest in them. I can get him to play with one for maybe a minute but he loses interest fast and won't play with them independently. Is this normal?

Sure is. Some of my kitties love to play, others have no interst in toys at all and others still would rather play with a crumpled piece of paper, a Q-Tip or the plastic top off of a milk carton over store bought toys any day.

Perfectly normal. I have some that play with toys, and some that think they are kitty torture devices to be avoided at all costs. The house cats play with toys in spurts, and a couple of the barn cats will play for hours ever day, most of the rest will play for a while but there are a couple that just know that thing on that brightly coloured plastic stick is going to eat them. The barn cat that plays the hardest?? The feral tom that I cannot touch except at feeding time....go figure

I have 2 cats and the one we got as a stray won't play at all either. I think she is smart enough to know that there is no point, since she can't eat it. She used to be an avid hunter and would bag at least 1 bird a day and eat the whole thing. But she hasn't been healthy in the last couple of years, so she has retired from hunting, but still won't play.

My other cat Squeak, is a playing fool! She will chase a ball or a felt mouse around the house for hours. And her favorite toy is the mouse tied to a fishing pole with fishing line. She goes "cat-fishing" lol!

Try one of the toys that you can stuff catnip into. Does wonders with ours.

Is your cat very food oriented? Perhaps your cat is a wonder-kitty like my Linus was and would much rather do tricks for food? Just an idea.

Originally Posted by Dusty's Mom

I have 2 cats and the one we got as a stray won't play at all either. I think she is smart enough to know that there is no point, since she can't eat it. She used to be an avid hunter and would bag at least 1 bird a day and eat the whole thing. But she hasn't been healthy in the last couple of years, so she has retired from hunting, but still won't play.

My other cat Squeak, is a playing fool! She will chase a ball or a felt mouse around the house for hours. And her favorite toy is the mouse tied to a fishing pole with fishing line. She goes "cat-fishing" lol!

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Cats don't play for the sake of finding food. Yes, their play emulates hunting, but cats play because it is fun!

Amalthea5 when a stray kitty is rescued, and his history is not known it's hard to know why he doesn't have a sense of fun. Perhaps he's never learned to play, perhaps he was abused.

Don't ever give up trying to interact with him. Try different things. Drag a string on a stick under a newspaper to entice him to pounce. Sit at one end of the room with a pile of used envelopes with cellophane windows (the kind that bills and some junk mail come in) and crumple them up one by one and toss them around.

Give him a Box Fort and a paper bag, cats love both these things. (cut any handles on paper bags)

Just try a certain Game every night for say..a week, then go on to the next. Do it at the same time every night, so he comes to expect this bonding time with you. Even if he doens't play, he'll know this is his time with you.

Do some sort of Game period every night, for his whole life, because you never know when a cat will begin to blossom. Sometimes it can take years.

Thank you for rescuing this boy. Do you know how old he is?

PS catnip is a good idea and worth a try.

One other thought. Probably you have, but have you had him to the vet recently? He might have a health issue bothering him that keeps him from playing much.

Or if the cat doesn't respond to catnip much, try toys (or loose) valerian root or a catnip and valerian blend. We do have a member or two on here that makes cat toys with it.
For many cats, simply finding a good catnip is good enough, though.


Each cat has their toy preference. I have one that only plays with toys in bouts and one way to get him to play is rile him up. You know how you're not really suppose to play with cats with your hands? - it works perfectly for him, but then he's a well mannered cat that doesn't bite or claw.

I have another one that won't play with any sort of wand toy. I think a former owner might have hit him with sticks/similar objects. He'll play with string or a long ribbon in my hand, though.