Cat toy FAILURES!

[bengalcatman]

Failure #1
Saw this silly radio control centipede thing in a YouTube video. There was a cat playing with and having a great time chasing it. Only $9.99 on Amazon!

Charged it up and it zipped around the floor as advertised.

June Bugs reaction:

Once, and only once, she batted at it. I think she was annoyed by it.

Next FAIL.... The krinkle tube
All our cats like to play in packing paper. They hide under it, race and jump on it to hear it crinkle. Lay on it, sleep under it etc. We often leave a few big pieces out for them to play with. So my wife figures they would LOVE a tunnel that crinkles when they walk through it. The big day arrives and it shows up with the Chewy order. And there it sits. They like to play with the strings on one end, but for months they wouldn't go through it.

Now they occasionally wander through it if there is no packing paper to play with.

Don't even get me started on the "catnip infused" bags we bought

Today's toy disaster.....
A few days ago I clicked on the "Todays Deals" thing on Amazon (usually a mistake) and they had a flipping fish cat toy. The videos showed cats going crazy playing with it. 12 inches long and it flips its tail when a cat starts to play with it..... How could I miss with this one? And it was on sale! (right now you are thinking "this guy never learns")

Anyway.... there it sits.

June Bug tapped it once and when the tail flipped she walked away to play with her old fish toy

Makena wacked it once, sniffed it as it lay there flipping.... and went and got one of his old catnip toys to play with. I am pretty sure the look he is giving me here is "I hope you didn't spend much on that stupid thing."

Post up your toy failures!

 

[Lola3791]

I don't have a picture, but I once got a laser pointer for Lola. She didn't care for it at all. The dog, however, loved it.

 

[DreamerRose]

I've got two. One was a scratching thingy that hung from a door knob. It had a tiny stuffed tiger on it to attract the cats. Mingo got it off the thingy, and no one ever touched it again.

The other is that round thing with a ping pong ball locked in a circle around a cardboard scratcher. Mingo played with the ball once or twice, and both used the scratcher for a while. That was it. It's been behind a lounge chair for years now, and no one touches it.

 

[bikeman]

Laser pointer is the only toy that has ever worked acrosss many cats. And will again, if we find where it went. Tennis balls, because they can grab them with claws. The large yarn wand is a favorite, sometimes. Most manufactured cat toys have either been dangerous or unappealing. There's an inverse relationship to how complicated cat toys are to a cat's acceptance of them.

So another orange and white tabby named June Bug? I though we had the only one! (ours is one word, Junebug)

 

[Silver Crazy]

I learned a trick with smaller cat toys..leave them overnight in the treat bag before giving it to them..hasn't failed yet

 

[Neko-chan's mama]

I got this stuffed bird toy that chirped when the cat bats at it. Neko-chan is afraid of it.

 

[livismom1]

My cat does not understand his crinkle tunnel. I will put a wand toy in one of the top holes to "entice" him to enter the tunnel. But he just walks up to the hole on top and sticks his head in. lol

I the Catit Senses Wellness Center. Nope

2 different types of cat beds. Nope

We got him one of those cat scratcher with the ball in circle things. Nope

I have the flipping fish toy arriving today. I will let you know how it goes. I don't have high hopes. lol

 

[livismom1]

I got this stuffed bird toy that chirped when the cat bats at it. Neko-chan is afraid of it.

This one? Frisco Tweet N' Swat Chirping Pineapple Catnip Cat Toy - Chewy.com

This is a no-go for Ollie too.

 

[clpeters23]

Scribbles refuses to play with any "cat" toys. She will not lie in a "cat" bed. She does love chasing the laser light while sliding on a stack of sack kraft paper. She's scared of catnip bubbles, but will attack a running vacuum cleaner.

 

[bengalcatman]

I have the flipping fish toy arriving today. I will let you know how it goes. I don't have high hopes. lol

I hope your cat loves it and goes crazy playing with it!

If not, you won’t be the only one with a flipping fish failure!

 

[Talien]

None of my Cats so much as acknowledge the existence of kicker toys. I bought a few different ones but none of my 4, or any of my fosters, ever bothered with them aside from an occasional sniff. If I toss one at any of them they get up and walk away then lay down elsewhere.

 

[livismom1]

I am learning from this thread that we spend way too much money on toys. LOL

 

[clpeters23]

None of my Cats so much as acknowledge the existence of kicker toys. I bought a few different ones but none of my 4, or any of my fosters, ever bothered with them aside from an occasional sniff. If I toss one at any of them they get up and walk away then lay down elsewhere.

I've been thinking about getting one of these for Scribbles, but they're not cheap and I have my doubts she'd give it a second look.

 

[game misconduct]

i would love to find a toy that lasts and can hold up to graycies rough play.OurPets® Catty Whack™ Electronic Cat Toy | cat Electronic & Interactive | PetSmart her favorite one but she breaks them to fast.cat wands are a waste she cuts the string on them every time

 

[basscat]

My toy failures generally don't come from lack of attention. Rather they're from TOO MUCH attention
Soccer Ball: $7.99 for three minutes of play before it had to be taken away so he didn't ingest the chunks.
It was flat within a minute. Most new toys suffer the same fate.

 

[Talien]

My toy failures generally don't come from lack of attention. Rather they're from TOO MUCH attention
Soccer Ball: $7.99 for three minutes of play before it had to be taken away so he didn't ingest the chunks.
It was flat within a minute. Most new toys suffer the same fate.

Try giving him a chunk of wood to play with. You'll probably be cleaning up bits of bark and shredded wood for days but hey, at least it'll keep him occupied.

 

[Caspers Human]

I can’t remember how many cat toys we’ve bought for Casper that tended up going to the thrift store!

Anything that is motorized which makes mechanical sounds is pretty much “out” for Casper. He won’t play with them. Like others say, he sniffs it, flips his tail and walks away.

He has dozens of “mouse” type toys that he plays with in rotation but his favorite is a furry, catnip mouse with leopard spots.

There is a feather toy that dangles underneath his cat tower which he attacks when he get the “zips” but, other than that, he doesn’t even really play with feather toys.

Casper’s favorite toy is just a plain, old piece of yarn. He’ll sit and watch his Girl-Human crochet for hours, occasionally attacking the dangly part.

The only toy he really likes, besides that is when you pull a piece of yarn or string along the floor and weave it around obstacles like a table leg. Casper will actually come to me and meow, as if he is asking me to “make it go” for him.

Just remember! If you let your cat play with yarn or string, ALWAYS hold onto one end of it in case the cat starts to swallow the loose end. Cats can easily choke on yarn if you don’t keep close watch.

I think that most cat toys are marketed to the humans who buy them but not really the cats.

I think that most cats prefer the simple things and many complicated, battery operated cat toys are mostly just thrift store fodder.

 

[bengalcatman]

I am learning from this thread that we spend way too much money on toys. LOL

I can’t agree more...... but I see a toy that I think the cats will love and I can’t resist getting it for them.
Our cats bring us so much joy: June Bug and her young cat antics, Makena and his high intelligence and trust in us, Lilia and her lap-napping and cuddling. I feel like I owe them the best, good food, love, attention and........ fun toys.

We have many toy success stories, but it’s the “they are gonna LOVE this one!” toys that totally fail that make me laugh at myself. And make me appreciate just how peculiar cats can be!

Try as I might, I can promise that in a few months I will once again spend too much on a toy. And all three cats will look at me with that “I love you but you are an idiot sometimes” look.

 

[Tobermory]

“I don’t understand,” says Mouse. “I tried so hard. Nothing I do seems to make a difference. I feel so alone. So unloved.”

 

[Caspers Human]

“I don’t understand,” says Mouse. “I tried so hard. Nothing I do seems to make a difference. I feel so alone. So unloved.”
View attachment 342329
View attachment 342328

Casper has a favorite mouse that he plays with so much that it's become raggedy.

We bought him a brand new mouse that is EXACTLY the same thing as the original. We had to look all over town to find it.
When we brought it home and gave it to him to play with he sniffed and walked away.