Cat Toy Recommendations

[mnstn]

Hello!

So my cat Nyx loves "Da Bird" toys with the feathers on the string. Unfortunately she is a great destroyer of toys and despite my best efforts to monitor play and put the toy away after playtime she manages to destroy it in a week. The replacement feathers are around $6 and buying a new one every week really isn't in my budget right now. I've tried the other fishing pole type toys but nothing makes her as excited as "Da Bird". Does anyone have any recommendations for other toys that may hold up better but will still keep my kitty entertained?

 

[jkuras]

Hey I hope we hear from someone.  My cat does not like to play with toys, only string on a stick.  He  will bite feathers and may swallow them.  What are safe cat toys when I am  home?  He loves his cat tunnels and cat boxes. When he is ready to play, his ears go back and he runs in and out of the cat tunnels and waits to attack me.  I play with him with some string and yarn on a stick that he loves to attack on my bed. 

I would love to get him some interactive toys, but he doesn't seem to like anything as of yet.  He is a young cat.  I adopted him less than 2 months ago and he was sick.  Now that he is recovered and gained more weight, he became a tiger.  Waiting to find out what is safe that he can't eat, chew, or swallow.

Joyce

 

[graywing]

I have the same trouble with Gizmo.  He can destroy a toy very quickly so I have to be careful with the selection.  I've yet to find a wand toy that can hold up for very long.  I'm particularly disappointed with the Jackson Galaxy wand toy that has the metal wire with the snake at the end.  I bought it because it looked sturdy but it didn't take long for the wire at the handle to start to come undone.

Not a wand toy, but there's this mouse toy I found at a pet shop that if you pull the tail it shakes.  It's been super sturdy taking a lot of abuse.  If Gizmo hears me starting to pull the tail, he comes right away and waits for me to toss it.  But despite seeming to be a favorite it's not something he'll always be interested in either.   Another favorite of his is a crinkle rabbit dog toy.  It's also held up very well.  The game we often play with it is me hiding it behind something or behind my back and it "peeking" out.  If he doesn't seem interested at first, I'll have it "hide" again.  This usually really gets him interested.  This ends up with him eventually tackling the toy and wrestling with it.  He likes it if I throw it, too.  I can try to look up either names of those toys if I can if you're interested. 

 

[jkuras]

I was thinking of getting a mobile mouse.  It projects itself and when the cat pushes it - it moves.  He just started playing last week, after being very docile, but that was before he had put on weight and started feeling better.  He plays rough and attacks like a tiger and chews whatever he attacks. I am a bit frightened to get him what I normally see in the pet stores as I don't want him to swallow anything.  

Please let me know if there are any toys you know of that are considered safe.  Of course, I do not leave them around when I leave for work.

Thanks!

Joyce

 

[fluf muf]

You could try rabbit fur mice, my cat really likes them. He did chew off the tails and ears but hasn't managed to destroy the body. Try throwing them if you decide to get one.

 

[graywing]

I managed to find the names of the two toys that are Gizmo's favorites. 

The bunny one is called a Kathy Ireland Loved Ones Crinkle and Chew Candy Dog Toy in the Bunny style.  I got mine for cheap at one of those stores where you can get some pretty nice stuff but I guess were overstocked originally.  I really wish I could find something just like it but larger now that Gizmo's gotten bigger but he still has fun with it.

The other one is called Petstages Scooting Mouse Cat Toy.   It's orange with purple ears.  Petstages also makes a whirly gig that Gizmo liked for some time but I haven't seen him play with it for a while.  He used to like it a lot when he was little.

Gizmo also really loved those furry mice you can buy at grocery stores but he started getting too rough with them. 

 

[LTS3]

Neko Flies is similar to Da Bird. You could give that one a try if you haven't already tried it. Unlike Da Bird which is a simple feather, Neko Flies are more like kitty versions of those lures / fly things you put on the end of a fishinn rod to catch fish with.  My cat goes nuts for Neko Flies. You do have to be careful with attachements that have the rubber legs and sparky wings. Those can be easily pulled off by an agressively playing cat.

Fishing pole and rod type toys are definitley not safe to leave out. Try balls and fake mice and catnip squares instead. As long as the toy doesn't have parts that can be easily pulled or chewed off or come loose with a simple bat across the room, it's fine to leave out.

 

[tabbytom]

For me, best bonding game is interaction with your kitty.
I bought many toys for him but he don't seem to be very much interested in them. He prefers to have someone play with him. Whenever he wants to play a certain toy, he'll lay beside it and wait for me to come play with him.
And I notice he only like certain toys, only a few which is a soft ball which he play fetch and size is just nice for him to carry it in his mouth, I roll it fast on the floor and he chases it or bounce it and he'll jump to catch it. The other is paper grocery bags which he likes to hide in and he'll try to catch your hands through the shadows and sound of the hand running outside the bag like a critter. The other favorite of his is cardboard boxes with hole cut out so that when he lay down to hide, he can peek through the holes. Also he loves his tunnel and dangling strings. Another favorite is peekaboo :chescat: and also play hiding under my blankets on my bed each night.
I will play with January whenever I can. And he has more energy than me and he wears me out fast :lol3:
Every cat is different. So best is find out what interest your cat most. January does not grow tired of the above mentioned games and toys.
Sometimes homemade toys are best and cheap or free

 

[Mother Dragon]

Make your own "Da Bird" feathers by going to a craft store and buying a package of assorted feathers. Check the package to make sure you're not getting a lot of broken ones or those either too big or too small. Use hot-melt glue to make your "bird", making sure the feathers are firmly glued, and attach it with the old fastener. You can also make a floor version by gluing a small bunch of feathers together for an attack toy. Make sure in both cases there's not a sharp glue edge on them. For about $4 you can make enough toys to last for months.

 

[Mother Dragon]

Please be very careful with the yarn and string. Cats love to swallow them and if they become entangled in the intestines, they can be fatal. If your cat eats some, DO NOT attempt to pull it out of his mouth unless you know for sure it's just in his mouth and he hasn't swallowed any. There is a cat treat that is isn string form that I feel is dangerous because it encourages a cat to eat string and thread. The toys that dangle from a door knob or the equivalent are dangerous when unsupervised because the cat may get the line wrapped around a paw or even its neck. Playing with string sometimes encourages a cat to chew on electric cords, too, with dire consequences. Cats don't know the difference between one form of string or thread and another. 

Most cats love puff balls. Go to a craft store or even Walmart and buy a package of 1 1/2" pompoms. Be careful not to get any so small they can be swallowed. Also, no metallic ones because they're bad for cats, as are the metallic toys some stores irresponsibly sell. If you want a special treat, store the pompoms in a jar of catnip for a while. Velcro, our 5 year old, not only tosses them high in the air and plays cat hockey with them, but gives them a good drink in the water dish. He usually fishes them out sand puts them where we're sure to step on them with our bare feet. That failing, he takes them to the food dish for a snack.

Save most of your money when it comes to cat toys. They choose what they play with and it's usually something like the strip off the cap of a jug of milk or a crinkled ball of aluminum foil. 

One good way to make sure your cat's toys are safe is to baby proof the house and the toys. Like babies, cats will put anything in their mouth and either chew on it or swallow if. If it wouldn't be safe for a crawling baby, it's not safe for your cat.

 

[Mother Dragon]

Our Russian Blue adoptee, Darwin, loved to wrap himself around a roll of paper towels and shred it. My husband, who sews, took a fat pool noodle and cut a couple of pieces about 10" long off it. He covered them with sturdy cotton duck. Darwin will often wait for one to be thrown for him. He knocks it out of the air and attacks it viciously, "disemboweling" it with his rear claws. At other times, he doesn't wait for us but attacks it where it is. We praise him for it and he's now leaving the paper towels alone.

My husband has also made some little (2") fleece scrap pillows stuffed with batting and catnip that our cats love. They're great for batting, tossing, and cat hockey. Sometimes the kitties will simply lie with he pillow between their front paws, guarding them from the other two.

Another cheap toy is an empty plastic thread spool. We usually color ours with paint pens or permanent markers in patters and/or colors. They're lightweight enough to toss and bat, and they hold up well.

One of our cats loved for me to bunch up bubble wrap for her to bite and pop. She would grin with pleasure. However, I never left it out where she could get to it unsupervised. 

 

[berb1993]

my cat has destroyed sooooo many wand/fishing pole type toys (even the Jackson Galaxy wands, both types). My most recent purchase is the "bird catcher pro" wand from Pets Can Play. I like it because both the toy part and the string part is replaceable, for when she inevitably chews the string apart...

 

[graywing]

I brought up an idea a while back in a different thread with the idea of maybe using a dog leash to make a safer, more durable wand toy.  I've never actually got to it yet.  I'm still a bit concerned if it's completely safe for a cat to be chewing on a leash but I think someone in the other thread mentioned that they probably have to be safe considering puppies.  I figure the handle part that's the loop will need to be sewn together so there won't be a cat getting it's head stuck through there.  And then the metal clasp that attaches to a collar or harness I was thinking could be fitted to something else to make a handle.

 

[tabbytom]

@Graywing

Could the dog leash be too heavy and could end up like a whip?

Think for cats, it should be light and dosen't hurt the cat while waving at or over them.
I'm trying to imagine how it looks like but safety for the cat is my main concern.

 

[jkuras]

Hi All. I live in Israel and it is not easy to find a craft store.  I have to search.  Money is not an object for me.  I don't enjoy making things, would rather have them ready for me.

All the cat toys I see are dangerous as feathers can be chewed and swallowed.  He only likes yarn and strings made into a ball.  He chews but does not swallow.  I watch carefully.  I bought some safe gentle toys and sprayed them with cat nips, but he will not go near them, even if I interact with  him . He only likes hunting something under the covers on my bed, or the yarn above.  Won't play with toys on his own.  Loves the cat tunnels and cat boxes I bought him and will run in and out of the tunnels and wait for me to come by and then  jumps out grabs my leg and then runs somewhere else for his next maneuvered attack.  I laugh so hard.  He plays with me as if I am a cat.

I even went to utube to see if I played those cat games on the screen if he would react.  Nothing. No interest.  He is changing as just weeks before he never did the attacks.  It warms my heart to see the weight gain and to not feel his bones when I pet him.  He also loves his scratch couches that I bought him.  Claws them and then lays down in them to nap.  So precious.

I am hoping that  maybe he will become more active at some point with toys.  

Other than that, he is a perfect companion to have around.

Joyce

 

[tabbytom]

Joyce,
How about ping pong balls? My boy love to play with it as it is light and it rebounds of walls and legs of furnitures and bounces and he catch them while it is bouncing. He chases it all over the house.
If you live on the ground floor or there's no neighbors below you, ping pong balls are great. Otherwise the bouncing of the ball on the floor might get your neighbor irritated.
My boy also have a small foam like ball, size of a ping pong ball, which is also very light, he can pick up in his mouth.

 

[Mother Dragon]

If noise from the pingpong balls is a problem, put them in the (empty and dry) bathtub. They will roll all over, up and down the ends and not get loose (unless batted out). You can usually find brightly-colored pingpong balls at Walmart and some sporting goods stores. They're not very expensive and are much easier to spot before you step on them. 

 

[Mother Dragon]

Joyce, it sounds like your cat was never properly socialized when he was a kitten. Strays and kitten mill kittens are often like that. They don't know how to play or interact, and some have to learn to purr. They don't know love until you give it to them and they have to learn to give and accept it. It's really sad, but oh, so rewarding when they learn.

Not all cats like catnip. Many are sensitive to it, but many others are not. Some like peppermint.

Just keep trying. He'll let you know what he likes. Be prepared for his tastes to change often, though, just like a kid's.

 

[graywing]

I don't think it would be like a whip unless I really swung it hard.  But I'll definitely be careful if I try it out.  I'd mostly just try sliding it around like it was a prey animal along the floor. 

 

[jkuras]

He hates any big toy or one that makes any noise.  He seems unsure and is not curious.  He only plays with rope or string.  That is it.  I have only had him since June 29th so he may change.

He loves to attack anything under the sheets or bedspread that moves.  He pounces on it like a polar bar getting meals under the ice.  He may change, but so far, that is all he does with toys. He loves his cat tunnels and boxes and runs in and out of the tunnels on his own or when I walk by, he waits and runs out at me.  I laugh so hard.  He meows loudly when he is bored and wants to play.  If I don't respond he starts to look around to see where he can jump - thank goodness I am home and can protect him.  He has jumped down from the craziest places and can hurt himself.  I close off one of my rooms when I leave for work to protect him.

I so wish he would play like other cats with balls and cat toys.  Nothing interests him but rope and string.

Joyce