Baby "noise toys" for intelligent cats

mackiemac

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Schrodie the Tonkinese-- my stomatitis kitty-- has a fascination for things that make noise. He's particularly intrigued by the NOAA Weatheradio that sits on the end table near the front door. It has buttons that make different noises when you press them. One button turns the radio on and off, and another button is use during set-up and programming but if you punch it by itself... it makes a trilling sort of error sound.

He LOVES to push the buttons to make noise! I have seen him go over there and push the programming button over and over just to make noise. He turns his head from side to side like he's laughing at it-- then he presses it again, then he pushes the other button to "listen to the forecast"... and in Texas, in the spring, when there are already severe storms in the forecast and on radar... and being an emergency communications volunteer (Ham Radio operator)-- I tend to fly awake when I hear that sound at 2 am! 

(Public service announcement here... I HIGHLY advise everyone to have a Weatheradio like this in your home, especially if you live in a storm-prone area. These are as critical to keeping your family safe as a smoke detector. This is something you should have IN ADDITION to phone apps and the internet. They have a very LOUD alarm that sounds off when a warning is issued for your area-- you program it to receive the signals in the area of your choice so you only get the alerts that matter to you without being jarred awake for stuff that's 50 miles away in the other direction. As a trained weather spotter and EmComm volunteer-- I know that these things SAVE LIVES. You can buy these at most big box stores, Radio Shack, Fry's, Walmart... and they're pretty inexpensive for the basic model. I cannot stress these enough.. Weatheradio saves lives. Thus I don't get too worked up when Schrodie "tests" the device out for me at 3 am! End of PSA)


I'm tempted to buy some baby "touch toys", things that "do things" when he manipulates them-- activity center type toys with spinning cylinders and things that make a (non-scary) sound when he pushes a button and things that go "clack" when he paws at them... something kind of like this--


He has a Peek n' Play-- a wooden box that has a lot of holes in it, large enough for him to reach in for a toy or treat, but he figured it out way too fast and got bored with it in the first 20 minutes. He enjoys his Cat Track sometimes, as an interactive game. We take turns batting the ball around the track.


Skye loved these "cat tracks" when she was a kitten-- she used to grab hold of it, turn it over and try to SHAKE the ball our of the slots!   
Has anyone else ever gotten safe human baby toys for their very intelligent cat who gets bored with "regular" cat toys? 
 

cinqchats

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We have a few noisy toys at the adoption center. One I think is meant to be hung on the side of a cradle and has all sorts of dangling toys, it makes like a bird noise when you hit it. We also have a toy that is a mouse inside of a soft plastic ball that squeaks when you hit it. It's called the "Play-N-Squeak Ball of Furry Fury Cat Toy". 

I've personally tried some little stuffed bird toys that make noise with my cats, but they were not fans. 
 
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mackiemac

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Nice! What I want are toys that encourage him to manipulate things with his paws-- he seems to like those kinds of toys-- and things that make an interesting reaction like a squeak or a giggle when he "pushes the button" (so to speak), since he loves the sound of human laughter-- I think he does goofy things sometimes just to hear us laugh.


I figure baby toys fit that role since the reaction would have to be "not scary" in order for a little baby to keep playing with it. A cat seems to function in that regard on the level of a (maybe) a 2 year old. So a fun reactive toy geared for an older infant or pre-toddler would be good for a smart and "handy" cat.
 

MoochNNoodles

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Hmm...  My girls did play with a couple baby things (my kids things) but nothing that made noise really.  Mooch liked the butterflies on DD's swing mobile.  I think one of them liked some of the things that crinkled.

Are you looking for something that takes batteries?  It seems most do these days.  We had a little walk-around "table" that had blue legs and you'd do things to make noises.  The legs could be taken off for a sitting style toy.  I believe it was a Fisher Price toy but there is another version.  It had a piano, a "book' where you had to flip the pages, a phone with buttons, some rolling rattles, a slider and I forget what else.  Oh a little computer with buttons to push.  It sings and might be horribly annoying!  We had a few other toys that played sounds when  you moved various parts; but nothing I can picture a cat playing with.  They all sang and what not too. 
 
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