Toys and Litter Tray

[Kathy]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for all your replies.

I'm definitely gonna get some nice long boot laces.  The cats are sometimes tempted by ping pong balls, but all our furniture has feet so it ends up being more exercise for us than them...scrambling around on the floor trying to find 'em under sofa's, sideboards, wardrobes and dressers!

We tried the kitchen roll tube thing last night without much success.  Both Mia and Fudge looked at us as if we were crackers, we put some nice juicy meat in there, let them watch us doing it so that they knew it was there, but wouldn't even attempt to put a foot in it.  We will persevere.

I have to admit that I do only have one litter tray, for the most part no one uses it for days on end, but if one of them does use it and I have to clean it out they don't seem to like it.

Sorry it took me ages to reply to your posts, I have problems with my hands that prevents me from typing too much.

[DaveD]

I've always found that a good old-fashioned boot lace works a treat - something long enough so that you're not on the receiving end of the talons! If you don't mind your furniture being roughed up, draping it over the back or arm of the sofa always gets my one jumping up to "kill"

At last someone agrees with me!  One advantage of the bootlace over string or wool is that it doesn't come apart as easily, so doesn't pose such a choking threat.

[B.]

my Suki is also less playful (whilst Digger jumps on anything that moves or gets thrown). Got tons of toys but Suki was never interested until.... she detected a a cabletie! I got a few in different sizes now. Her absolute favorites (I know guys, no expenses spared, lol).

[Claire Hirsch]

I find tying one of those very cheap cotton catnip mice on the end of a very long string - which can then be twitched or swung in the air or dangled or thrown to the other side of the room and made to creep across the floor like crawling prey - works well. And it's a cheap toy too.

I once had a cat who'd chase after tiny balls made from screwed-up paper. He loved to chew and crunch them once he'd caught them, and they make good footballs too.

As far as the litter tray question goes I wonder how many trays you have between the three cats. The recommendation is always 1 per cat and 1 extra... So if they're sharing one tray it might increase the territorial instincts/anxieties...

Most cats do prefer to use a clean tray though (just like humans I guess). Though I've even observed the kind of thing you're talking about with very small feral foster kittens where they're in a pen so the tray is being cleaned every few hours. (I use World's Best so you only remove the soiled litter).

[LuLu]

I've always found that a good old-fashioned boot lace works a treat - something long enough so that you're not on the receiving end of the talons! If you don't mind your furniture being roughed up, draping it over the back or arm of the sofa always gets my one jumping up to "kill"

[Em]

Yay, ping pong balls are fab. Especially if you have a laminate or lino floor!! You can get little sponge ones that are less scary if your cats don;t like the hard ones.

Throwing balls up the stairs is quite good fun too...

Or....

1) take a shoe box
2) cut little holes in the sides and top, just big enough to stick a paw in
3) put little toy mice and/or some treats in the box
4) put the lid on
5) get out the camera and a box of tissues
6) sit back and prepare to 

[Susanne (urbantigers)]

1.  the litter tray - lots of cats do that.  mine do sometimes.  I think it's either a territory thing or the sound of the litter being raked makes them want to go!  Even though they don't need to go and there's not much in there to squeeze out. 

2.  How about a laser beam?  most cats love chasing the light.

[Tiggy's Mum]

Helen - does Tiggy play at all nowadays?

Ollie occasionally forgets himself and grabs the red fluffy job (see below!) or takes a few swipes at the dangly tag on a catnip teabag but generally he's not very interested.

No, not really.  That doesn't stop me from buying her toys though!  She is still fairly active but prefers a cuddle to a fighty bitey session nowadays, Ollie looks like he's giving it a go in that pic though!

[Beccles]

Helen - does Tiggy play at all nowadays?

Ollie occasionally forgets himself and grabs the red fluffy job (see below!) or takes a few swipes at the dangly tag on a catnip teabag but generally he's not very interested.

[Tiggy's Mum]

Ping Pong balls were very poplular when Tiggy was a bit younger (she's an OAP now),  great fun gently pushing them down the stairs or jut pinged around in the kitchen.

[Beccles]

The kitchen roll tubes was my crew  it's a good one - the girlies really love it but Ollie is a bit bemused by the whole thing - although he'll still bounce for the treats!

It sounds like Mia would go for dangly things... we've got a long red fluffy thing on a stick, modelled in the photo below by the lovely Ollie, which everyone loves - especially me cos it keeps my poor hands a long long way away from those needle-sharp kitten claws.

The litter tray... as long as everyone's letting everyone else use the tray I'd not worry about that drop of wee, it's someone scent marking it - as long as you're confident that nobody's got an infection or cystitis, I'd just leave it and clean out the tray when it's been 'seriously' used!

[attachment deleted by admin]

[Kathy]

Hi Guys,

As my post about the litter tray was lost in last nights problems, I thought I'd post again with the same question and another one for good measure!

Litter Tray

Whenever I clean the litter tray out, whoever is around at the time (Max or Fudge, Mia doesn't use the tray at all) will jump in it a squeeze out a little drop, if I clean it they do it again!  Do you think it's a territory thing?  They both get on pretty well most of the time.  Max gives her grief sometimes, but I think he's just being playful, she just doesn't like to play much.

Toys

None of the 3 cats like to play with toys much but I would like to get them into it.  We can usually get Mia interested in playing if it's in the garden but for some reason she doesn't like to play much indoors, even then she only likes to chase around after a long piece of grass or a drinking straw, we can't do it with her for long though, as she's pretty good at catching it and usually manages to get your fingers too, one of her lethal claws down the fingernails is pretty ouch!

Max has never been interested in playing with any toy we've bought and Fudge is very timid and gets a bit skittish when we try to play with her with the panic mouse, but loves the laser toy.

I really want to help them to get more exercise, especially Mia as she's a really jelly belly and since the weather got colder she seems to be putting weight on.  Her tum (expansion pack!)  seems really loose and empty in the summer but in the winter it seems to fill up.

I'd like to find a few bits and pieces that they'd play with to give them for Christmas.

I read on another thread about kitchen roll tubes and a treat, I'll definitely try that one.

Any insight would be appreciated.

Thanks all.