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You already know that playing with your cat is very important, but is there a perfect way to do it? Playing is both important as healthy exercise and to keep your bond with them. Especially for indoor cats who spend most of their time at home alone without hunting opportunities. Playing is almost entirely about simulating behaviour connected to hunting. The more your cat feels that there is prey to hunt, the better.
The right toys
The first thing that you need to have are the right toys. Cats are very smart so they recognise if they are playing with the same toy again and again. Rather than having all their different toys on the floor, it is better to change them from time to time. Cats are more likely to play with new objects. It’s even better if your cat can hear suspicious sounds coming from your toys as it works as an extra stimulation. Can you imagine the sound of birdwings or the footsteps of mice on paper? The sound of potential prey is ideal. The size and shape of toys that imitate little birds or mice are best.
Movement & sound
But that is still not enough, real excitement comes when toys imitate the behaviour of prey. Have you ever seen videos of cats trying to catch mice? That’s it! Try to sneak your toy around your furniture and corners, make it partially or fully hidden behind or below things. My cat loves it when a little wooden stick on thread tries to disappear under the old yoga-mat, or when the little stick goes all along the furniture. The best effect is when the toy not only moves like little prey, but also when the toy rustles as it moves, especially on a noisy surface.
- Try to imitate small mice trying to escape around, behind or below your furniture or carpet. The more authentic the noise, the more authentic the prey will be.
- Besides imitating prey trying to escape, try also attempting to hide or pretending „I am not here“.
- It is important to let your cat feel successful. Let them bite your toy for a while before the next attempt to escape.
If you would like to perfect the play, your cat would love to hunt different prey after the first successful hunt. Change the toys or event the location for the next play.
How often and when? And what if you don’t have enough time?
Your cat could be one of those cats with unlimited energy always trying to get your attention or even destroying things around. This is usually a signal that the cat needs to play. Ideally it’s useful to have at least one play, for approx. 10-20 minutes before going to sleep. This will calm your cat down and let you sleep. Playing before dinner is even better as your cat will feel that they have everything they need.
Two sessions a day seems to be optimum, especially if you have a cat with „too much energy“. A lot of energy could also be released by playing games where they need to run a bit. That way their body will have a full exercise.
- I remember when our cat was very small with almost unlimited energy, I bought a toy that looked like a few feathers on a black flexible stick, by moving the stick on the floor all around myself, I was able to create a relatively long trajectory for my cat to run and chase. Such playing could be a very efficient energy release for your cat. If you don’t have such toys, try to find a common stick or anything similar. Just make sure that while touching your floor, the toy makes an interesting noise for your cat. The Most interesting I found was to do this outside in the grass, but it works well inside too.
Do you have other tips for playing? Write and let us know so we could create an ultimate playing guide.
