cat toys??

[silvermoonmyst]

Anyone know some really inexpensive ways to make cat toys?
I have a 7 ft tall cat tree that was made by my uncle for his cat before she passed. It then went to my mom, who lost her cat to an eagle, so she gave it to me. Anyway there is plenty of space to hang toys off of it, but i cant seem to figure out any good toy ideas. And everything at the pet stores are really expensive. Any ideas? Or even some websites that have cheap toys would be nice. Thanks!!

 

[bab-ush-niik]

A bag of feathers from the craft store and florist tape to bundle the feathers up.

Cotton balls, milk caps, and toilet paper roll attached to fishing line or yarn.

Little knitted balls of yarn.

 

[silvermoonmyst]

Thanks, but im not sure about feathers, i have alot of birds too.... which was why i asked for other toy ideas.

 

[catnipwhiskers]

I used to foster, and I made cat toys for them because it got too costly buying toys for every cat.

Toilet paper rolls are awesome. If you get some invisible fishing line, or thick wire, you can make a teaser, which is popular in stores.

Cut the toilet paper roll into strips from one end to the other. Then cut those in half. Take half and attach them to one end of the wire/fishing line, and the other half to the other end. You can tie the wire or line around the center of the strips. Use one end to hold, and the other for the cat to chase. If you use invisible fishing line it's better to attach the "wand" to something, like the cat tree. Invisible fishing line is more free than the thick wire, which cats love because it bounces wildly. Note: Cut rubberbands can also be used instead of the toilet paper roll.

There are balls, too. Pet stores like Petsmart or Petco, even Wal-Mart, sell foam balls at a good price, but they can still add up. I'm not sure what foam runs for at a craft store, but you could probably just cut out a ball if you bought foam. And most likely you could make more balls from one "sheet" of foam than the same amount of money would buy at a store. To make the ball spherical might be hard, though. I've also found that bouncey balls are good. So if you're at a pizza parlor and there's one of those 25cent machines, you might try for a rubber ball.

My biggest toy type was a wand (like the first I described), because you can hold them, or attach them to places.

I hope some of that made sense. Keep us updated. If none of those work I'll try adding more ideas.

 

[frawri]

I would buy so many different types of toys for my cat Sassy. She didn't care for most of them. Or if she did like it, it was torn up not too long after I gave it to her. So one day I had been writing a letter, and messed up. So I crumpled it up, and tossed it in the garbage. Well it didn't make it there, it fell to the ground, and the next thing I knew my girl was playing with it. She would pick it up and growl at any one who came near her. LOL From that point on I would crumble up a few pieces of paper in a week. And that would be her toys for the week. My guys that I have now, like the toys I get them, but again they either tear them up. Or my Chi's eat them. So I am resorting back to the paper idea again.

 

[etain]

-my cats love the milk cap ring (there are probably 50 of them under my stove right now ...
-they love pony tail holders (I use the kind that don't have any metal on them) ...
-they love highlighters (the big fat ones that don't have any clips on them, so they roll smoothly ... make sure the cap is on tight)
-they love paper too, but they tend to like it so much that they eat it, so I don't give them paper on purpose.
-they love plastic grocery bags (be sure to supervise them, some kitties can get themselves tangled up)
-empty toilet paper rolls are great for batting around on the floor (they like full toilet paper rolls ... but what a mess!)
-paper grocery bags, just lay it on it's side on the floor, instant kitty hideout and jungle gym
-use a small flash light and point it at walls and floors, move it around to tease your kitty, they will usually chase after it
-wad up a piece of tinfoil on the end of a string or ribbon (I use a really wide durable ribbon that they can't possibly swallow), try to really pack the foil tight so it stays on the string and so there aren't any sharp edges sticking out, you can dangle this over them and play with them, or attach the string to your cat tree, letting the foil ball dangle in the air for them to bat at it
-if you know how to sew, even if your skills are very basic, you can use scrap pieces of fabric to make little catnip bags, balls, tubes, whatever shape you want.

*safety tips, don't leave your cat unattended with toys that have loose parts the cat can eat, don't leave bits of string laying around that they might try to eat and choke on, don't leave anything out that they can get tangled up in

 

[frawri]

Etain: you covered it all pretty well. Thanks for all that helpful info. My guys love all the stuff you mentioned. Some of it a little too much. LOL Bingzy likes to play with the stuff, but Sammy likes to taste everything. For some reason plastic is his fav to eat. I let them play with it, but as you said I don't let them do so unless I am there with them. There is this toy that cost about $7.00. It looks like a ferret, but it is tied to a ball, that when turned on rolls around on the ground. So it makes the ferret look alive. The cats at first didn't know what to do with it. But when they got use to it, they liked it. I thought they would go crazy over it, but maybe your cats might.

 

[silvermoonmyst]

thanks!
I have 4 kittens that will be 2 weeks tomarrow. I can only imagin how busy my house is going to be with 2 toddlers 4 kittens 1 cat, 1 puppy, 2 birds and 2 adults ( yeah i like to pair things up lol)

I need to figure stuff out that is cat fun, kid safe ect. thanks you guys gave me lots of ideas!

 

[momof3rugratz]

Just hang a water bottle from it with a few coins

Make sure lid is tight or forget the change and use it like a boxing bag.

 

[sibohan2005]

an old sock stuffed with another old sock and a bit of cat nip tied at the ankle end or sewn shut is a great thing. Or an old sock stuffed with krinkly paper. My cats love it. Or go to the dollar store and buy fluffy hair elastics. I fling them across the room and the cats retrieve

 

[momof3rugratz]

Originally Posted by Sibohan2005

an old sock stuffed with another old sock and a bit of cat nip tied at the ankle end or sewn shut is a great thing. Or an old sock stuffed with krinkly paper. My cats love it. Or go to the dollar store and buy fluffy hair elastics. I fling them across the room and the cats retrieve

LOL I do it with my scrunches LOL

 

[catsallover]

My little weirdo bottle baby (Smoochie) and my other 1/2 ragdoll weirdo (Meggie) love and like, respectively, rolled up kneehighs

! I had to get them in bright colors, so it doesn't look like I have dirty kneehighs all over my house

! Mine also LOVED the milk top rings- My oldest cat would come running when I opened a new milk jug, and snatch it and run off (also had a collection under the 'fridge

) I have a picture (not digital) of a 4 week old kitten wearing one like a headband while playing with it- "Where did it go?!?"

.

 

[silvermoonmyst]

Originally Posted by catsallover

My little weirdo bottle baby (Smoochie) and my other 1/2 ragdoll weirdo (Meggie) love and like, respectively, rolled up kneehighs

! I had to get them in bright colors, so it doesn't look like I have dirty kneehighs all over my house

! Mine also LOVED the milk top rings- My oldest cat would come running when I opened a new milk jug, and snatch it and run off (also had a collection under the 'fridge

) I have a picture (not digital) of a 4 week old kitten wearing one like a headband while playing with it- "Where did it go?!?"

.

hehe that is too darn cute!!!

Wouldent the cat eating a knee high nylon ( polyester) cause some internal problems. Im thinking of if they shread and eat it. I know that i have to use only cotton on my homemade bird toys, polyester can kill them.

 

[catsallover]

They have never tried to eat them or even tear them up; they bat them around and carry them in their mouths and meow (you know, the muffled "I've got something in my mouth" meow that teaches you to look before you open the back door

!). For a while there, we had to collect them up before we could go to bed

.