Podcast #20 Shownotes​ - Samet & Bre discuss what the best options are out there for our kitties to play with ? What toys are safe to use and which ones can be dangerous? Find out about toys and more in this episode!

• THE REASONS BEHIND CAT TOYS

 Cats are, by nature, solitary hunters with a special place in their brain providing a need to hunt. It is this natural behavior that toys help to express. It is not associated with eating as cats are inefficient hunters and might exhaust their energy and fail to get enough to eat if they started out hungry.  Acting out the seek, stalk, pounce and kill sequence found in all hunting cats is a critical piece of a great quality of life.

• GROUP EXERCISE VS INDIVIDUAL PLAY TIME 

Cats don’t tend to like to share. As solitary hunters, they generally prefer their own resources. The big exception to this rule is cats who are littermates and are raised together. Other cats may learn to play in the same space, but it tends not to be their preference.
 

• TYPES OF TOYS: 

The Tunnel toy
Racing through a tunnel in the brain of a cat mimics charging through an understory in the woods on the heels of a tasty mouse

Automatic Randomized Laser Tower (Available on Amazon)
Cats learn patterns and grow weary of them rather quickly. The random nature of a toy like this or one on the end of a human hand can keep cats engaged longer.

Catnip stuffed toys
Catnip is a genetically acquired preference and is present or absent in about 50% of cats. The cats who don’t care about it will not find it appetizing.  Watch for overstimulation!

Food Puzzle Toys (Earn the treat)
Food puzzles are a great way to engage cats that are food-motivated. It can also help make eating more like seeking prey, the natural form of cat food.

Any toy on wand (to prevent cats playing with your finders/hands)
Many people make the mistake of letting kittens play with fingers and toes.  Teaching them to play with a toy on a wand gives you a chance to play with them but teaches your kitty there is a distance between your hands and feet and the toy. 
 

• WARNING & DANGERS OF CERTAIN TYPE OF TOYS

      Cats who like to chew should be kept from toys with long skinny parts like tails that could be accidentally swallowed. The same goes for string, yarn, Christmas tree tinsel, thread and anything else that could become a  dangerous foreign body.
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• PUT TOYS AWAY WHEN DONE TO PREVENT ACCIDENTS