Indoor cats do not have access to everything that a cat accustomed to roaming around the garden or countryside can use for entertainment. For this reason, it is important to stimulate them properly by playing with them every day. Let’s look at the right way to play with your cat.
Why is play important?
When we adopt a kitten, it is truly very difficult to contain its enthusiasm and liveliness, especially at night. New owners often find themselves facing entire sleepless nights because the little one has no intention of calming down.
This may seem to contradict another fact: very young kittens have a great need for sleep. In reality, both aspects are true.
Kittens need to sleep long and well in order to grow, but once awake they need to be constantly stimulated to “release” their energy. The best way to do this is through play.
Whether you participate in the game or not is irrelevant, because the kitten will find every object in the house interesting. From its brand-new toys to your feet moving under the covers, everything is stimulating and worthy of attention.
Once the cat becomes an adult, its desire to play gradually decreases, often making it inactive and rarely interested in entertainment and interaction.
Some breeds, in particular, become even more sedentary as adults, first and foremost the Persian, but also all the other breeds considered “ornamental”.
The risk faced by overly sedentary cats is both physical and emotional.
Physically, exercise helps maintain body weight, preventing the risk of overweight and obesity, while also supporting the health of the entire organism.
Overweight negatively affects the heart and circulatory system, as well as the bones and joints, which are required to support excessive weight.
At the same time, physical activity also helps regulate mood, acting as an excellent antidote to boredom and depression.
The risk our domestic cats face is precisely that of giving up, until they can no longer find stimulation to face the day.
A depressed cat is never a problem to be underestimated.
What is play for?
Play is essential for both kittens and adult cats.
From an early age, kittens constantly play with their siblings. The mother encourages play primarily as an educational method.
Through gentle bites, wrestling and wild chases, kittens can learn to interact with their own kind. The mother reprimands overly exuberant or impudent kittens, teaching them how to relate properly to adults and other kittens.
Play is also a tool the mother uses to show her offspring how to catch prey. The basic principle of play, especially for indoor cats, is to simulate hunting.
For this reason, an adult cat that cannot go out into the garden or onto the terrace must recreate the ideal hunting environment indoors.
Play is also essential for stimulating the cat’s senses. If dogs are known for their incredible hearing, cats, on the other hand, see extremely well.
That is why you should always try to keep their sight active, along with all their other senses.
The cat is a skilled hunter, in nature with prey and at home with its toys.
Its skeleton, joints, five senses, agility and posture make it one of the fastest and most agile animals in nature. Every movement is carefully studied and calculated to catch prey.
Which toys are most suitable?
Naturally, anything that helps the cat simulate a hunting expedition is ideal. Therefore, mice made of faux leather or fabric, feather lures, cords and any other objects that can act as prey are excellent choices.
In reality, cats do not distinguish much between a specific toy and an everyday object.
Try throwing your cat a ball of aluminum foil and you will immediately see its enthusiasm.
In theory, any object capable of stimulating the cat’s senses is perfectly suitable.
Notice how most commercially available pet toys try to create visual, auditory and olfactory sensations that encourage cats to play.
The crackling sounds and flashes of light produced by aluminum foil, as well as the intoxicating scent of catnip, are all irresistible attractions for a cat.
There are truly countless categories of toys on the market, with options for every taste and age.
Light-up balls, laser pointers shaped like mice, teaser wands for playing with the owner—the choice is extensive.
If you prefer to use household objects to play with your cat, start with balls of aluminum foil. Then follow Fuffi’s preferences.
Rest assured that your cat will choose the objects that interest it most, from walnuts to clothespins.
An excellent tip is to make homemade toys containing dry food or treats. Even a plastic ball from a chocolate egg can be perfect.
Make a few small holes and fill them with kibble, so that the cat can smell the food and be even more motivated to hunt.
How to play properly
As we said earlier, play should simulate hunting activity.
For this reason, it is very important to use your cat’s toys, making them resemble prey as closely as possible.
Do not offer them directly. Instead, partially hide them under a cushion or on a shelf, for example, and let the cat approach slowly.
At first, it will be fairly intimidated, but curiosity will still be too strong to resist (have we already mentioned that cats are among the most curious animals in nature?).
If it really shows no interest, make the toy more stimulating by moving it slowly toward the cat and pulling it away once you have caught its attention.
There are also catnip-based attractant sprays on the market, designed to make old or uninteresting toys more appealing to cats.
Speaking of catnip, this plant is also known as catnip, and it is one of cats’ main passions. Nepeta cataria contains a substance very similar to cat pheromones.
Cats produce these to mark territory and release them, for example, whenever they rub their faces against our legs or household furniture.
When a cat detects catnip pheromones, it becomes intoxicated, then starts rolling, rubbing itself and purring.
Therefore, choose toys based on c
atnip, or buy dried catnip powder to fill refillable plastic balls.
The dangers of play
Some cat toys, as well as household objects they may take possession of, can be dangerous to their health.
Pay particular attention to toys containing ribbons, thin cords and cotton threads, because the cat could swallow them, mistaking them for a mouse’s tail.
If you choose to make toys from objects you have at home, ensure that they are an appropriate size, because balls that are too small could accidentally be swallowed by the cat.
The same applies to mice and plush toys with detachable parts. During play, the cat could bite and eat them. Ingesting foreign bodies could have serious consequences for its health.
Always remember that play is essential for cats of all ages, but always try to supervise your friend’s activities.