Cat Extras and Toys

Cats develop and exercise their muscles through play, the brain is kept alert and the eyes bright.

Your cat should have a scratching post, it should be encouraged to use this instead of the furniture, you can help your cat to learn to do this by placing it next to the post every time it uses the furniture, and giving it a treat when it does the right thing. A cat uses surfaces to sharpen its claws and control their length. You can make an indoor cat scratching post by binding a short fence post with heavy duty sisal string and attaching a suitable base. A piece of old carpet is an alternative, but this needs to be renewed regularly. If you don’t mind large frames, cat climbing frames are available in many sizes some over 2m. These can be found in larger pet stores, cat shows and magazines.

Check that any cat toys you buy are solid as bits that could fall off may be swallowed. Some good inexpensive toys are a screwed up piece of paper and a paper butterfly ties to string for it to chase. Some cats like hide and seek. And a ping pong ball rolled around the floor your cat will love.

Often your cat will enjoy chasing something, so you could attach a small ball to a cord, and pull it along. In general you can make your cat any type of toy out of recycled household items such as bottle tops and toilet roles, so there is no need to splash out on expensive toys for your cat.