Cat Toys and Curious Cats... What a Combo

 

 

• Cat Toys Keep a Cat's Natural Hunting Instincts Sharp
  
• Hunting Instincts... a Call from Antiquity
  
• What's a Good Cat Toy?
  
• How Does Alexander Play?

Cat toys keep a cat's natural hunting instincts sharp
Which in turn is directly related to her overall health. What we call play is serious practice to your kitty for keeping those hunting and prey chasing instincts sharp as well as helping to her to maintain good balance and co-ordination.

As soon as kittens begin to move around, they begin to play. They'll play with each other as well as anything in their environment. This is an indication of just how instinctual play activity is. Furthermore, mother cats don't discourage kitten play... as a matter of fact, they encourage it by playing with the kittens herself.

This kitten play is preparation for individual survival by developing the muscle strength and coordination related to a cat's hunting instincts. Eventually a mother cat will bring home wounded prey. That's when the play starts to get serious. When the Queen brings home wounded prey she will teach her kittens how to kill and eat. The play teaches them how to catch prey for themselves. Then the kittens will have the basic tools for surviving on their own.

An added plus to this play is that if she should have a little disagreement with that bully Tom down the block, she will be able to hold her own until she can get back to the safety of her home.

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Hunting instincts... a call from antiquity.
Cat owners sometimes become quite concerned about the hunting activities of their domestic cat. Cats hunt from instinct. They have been doing this for eons. Hunting in the wild is a means for survival and the cat species has become very successful at stalking and catching prey. Even though a domestic cat may never have to look any farther than her food dish for a meal, her primordial instinct will tell her to keep her hunting talents sharp by practicing her hunting skills. The down side of this is that she may not know how what to do with her catch, or how to quickly and effectively kill her prey. So she ends up 'playing' with it in the eyes of her owner.

People have to be careful about applying human morality rules to animals. Your cat might only be practicing, even practicing badly, but you probably think she is tormenting a poor defenseless creature. A mother 'barn' cat, and feral cats will bring home disabled prey to their kittens in order to teach them how to hunt and kill on their own. But, if your domestic cat was never taught how to hunt, kill and dispose of prey, she will not know how to deal with a basic instinct which is at the very core of her nature.

There's no clear way to deal with this instinct driven 'problem'. If a domestic cat continues to hunt, especially into adulthood, even when well fed, there's not much to be done. Many cats simply get bored with the effort of hunting and stalking as they get older. Obesity, which is a problem with many domestic cats these days, won't allow her to be very successful at catching prey. Just don’t start over-feeding your cat to make her a less successful hunter. Obesity can cause a lot of problems of graver significance than disposing of a dead mouse.

Bells around the neck, or other more sophisticated electronic devises, are somewhat effective by alerting prey that they are in danger. A close examination of her diet and the quality of her cat food, and feeding times should always be considered. Be sure she's getting all the nutrients needed for good cat health. Feed her often enough to keep her healthy and feeling spunky, or she will seek satisfaction for her basic nutrient needs in the wild.

It makes sense, though, to give your kitty a cat toy to play with in lieu of hunting in the backyard or prowling the 'lower forty'. She may still bring home her catch to show off to you. I've always praised my cats for being so successful in their hunt. But, with cat toy alternatives there could very well be less of a chance that she'll show up at the back door with a newly caught bird, mouse or squirrel.

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What's a Good Cat Toy?
Cat toys need not be complex gadgets with batteries and/or flashing lights, etc. But, they should have the qualities of her favorite prey, such as...

• The cat toy should be smaller than she is
  
• It should make a little noise, but, not too loud
  
• A cat toy should be fast moving, but not too fast (her self-confidence will be affected if she can't catch the cat toy)
  

Keep it simple... and safe.

Cat toys not only should be kept simple, but consideration needs to be given to cat toy safety. Like children, their curiosity can get them into trouble. Important things to keep in mind when providing cat toys are:

• Dental floss or fishing line are definite no-no's because they can easily cut into their skin as they run around the house
  
• Plastic bags or wrapping are just as dangerous suffocation items to a cat as they are to a child
  
• Ribbons or very small objects that can be swallowed need to be kept out of reach. Surgery may be required to remove them
  
• Cat's eyes amplify light, especially at night, to aid in hunting. So, beware of laser light. Permanent damage can occur if even a small laser (such as a laser pen light) enters a cat's eyes
  

Just keep it simple... a catnip filled cloth mouse, ping pong balls, and paper sacks all meet the playing needs of your cat. Since a cat's eyes are attracted to movement, interactive cat toys are fun too, ... the kind that are on the end of a stick, hang from a door knob, or at the end of a length of yarn that you can pull across the floor. These can all give your cat lots of practice and you hours of enjoyment.

Keep 2 or 3 sets of cat toys that you can rotate into play from time to time, just to keep her from getting bored. When she tires of one collection, you can replace it with another... cats love new things to play with.

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How Does Alexander Play?
Alexander, our intrepid, deep-carpet predator, noticed the small dark object laying, where before nothing had been.

"Hmmm, I wonder what that is?" he said to himself. As he approached the object, his eyes widened and his muscles were flexed, ready for even the slightest movement from this invader of his domain. He was obviously intrigued, then surprised. "You've got to be kidding!... what would my favorite prey, a mouse, be doing here... just waiting for me to catch him?"

As he carefully approached his new prey...er... toy, he noticed a faint, but familiar scent. "Oh my... it's my favorite cologne, Eau de Catneep".

He sat down beside the new cat toy and surveyed the room, just to be sure he was alone. Then he put a paw to it, batting it softly. "Yes, nice and light... this could be good for a little hunting practice... you know, for when I visit my brother in Africa. I need to keep sharp", he said, narrowing his eyes at the thought of having to tackle a Gnu in full flight.

Alexander began to bat his new found cat toy across the carpet. Because he was so intently focused on his play, he didn't notice his chase had taken him onto the bare floor in the entry foyer. There the game became hectic as the catnip stuffed mouse seemed to pick up speed on the smooth white tiles. His newfound prey tested his reflexes as it would become slightly hooked on the end of his claws and fly away in a completely unpredictable path as he flipped his paw. This life-like motion he found very exciting and kept his interest high. Playing with cat toys was a habit he had learned as a kitten to let loose the energy that youngsters seem to have an abundance of. He found this activity also raised his heart rate and stretched his muscles while burning a few calories at the same time (he always felt better after a good work-out).

After 20 minutes he sat down, wearily, beside his new cat toy. "Wow, I'm a bit winded", he said. "I better take a break, and then I'll practice some more". But, he wondered... "do Gnu really run that fast?".