Foraging/feeder Toys?

[narelle]

Hi all, its been awhile since I've posted here but I figured that if anyone would be able to help me, it would be this community of cat lovers!

I would really like to find a good option for a foraging feeder toy for my cat to hide dry food and treats in to get her more active and engaged when she eats, rather than just being handed a meal. (More of the hunt, kill, eat routine.)

She's extremely picky about toys and was a feral cat, so anything like wand toys that reach up or towards her while we play makes her too nervous to engage with the toy. The toys she likes are only the soft, stuffed toys. Which makes it difficult to reliably get her engaged in a normal play session before offering her food.

Most feeder toys and puzzles are hard plastic, which she won't touch, or are stationary, which she loses interest in very quickly. So I'd like to find a stuffed feeder toy for her that she can play with like she likes to and then (ideally) be able to sort of "gut" to get the food out, like she probably did with real captured prey when she was feral.

The only option I've found that is close is these mice from Doc and Phoebe's:

They look like a decent option if I can't find something else, but I wanted to see if anyone knows of any other products like this?

Before I was able to locate this toy, I was thinking about the design and came up with something that would be ideal for my cat that I would just make her myself if I had the time. (I'm a college student buried in work right now, so I won't have time for sewing projects until I'm on a break.)
I was thinking of making a catnip stuffed toy (maybe with a removable outer skin that I can wash?) that had a little pocket in it. I'd have a loose little pom pom made of strips of fleece tied together, like a snuffle mat, that I tuck inside the pocket to keep the food in place. That way she could "gut" the toy by pulling out the pom pom and it would allow her to play with it more without immediately dumping the food.
I'll probably make her something like that eventually, because I really like the idea, but if something like that already exists that would be much easier. Anyone know of existing feeder toys like that? (Or any close enough that I could make a quick little pompom myself to tuck inside of? I don't think a pom pom would work in the ones by Doc and Phoebe's above.)

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Disclaimer:
I would much rather be feeding my cat canned food or, preferably, raw, but I have tried every trick in the book (I promise anything suggested is something I've tried, any links I've already read) and over 100 varieties of food. I've had her for 3 years and am still working on trying to find a way to get her to accept a healthier kind of food, but in the mean time while I have her on a high quality dry food, I would at least like to improve her feeding method. So please focus comments on the feeder toy and not the type of food she's being offered!

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. You are right, most of the toy feeders are hard plastic. But, I did find an article that reviews several feeding toys as well as other interactive type toys. Maybe there is one or two in there that might be worth trying?

Cat Treat Toy Dispensers Reviews - Playing And Getting Treats As Reward

 

[Mamanyt1953]

I got that same feeder for Hek. She does seem to like it, but she likes ANYTHING that her food is in. I, too, would love to switch to something other than kibbles, and have tried everything in the attempt. As a very wise person here once said, "The very best cat food is the one your cat will actually eat." And Hekitty is one of those cats who will go 3 or more days without eating if she doesn't like the food. I won't let her go over 48 hours, due to a near-brush with hepatic lipidosis.

 

[kissthisangel]

What about making a single use disposable toy out of used cardboard rolls like an empty kitchen roll/ toilet roll poking holes in it and then using pom pom hats for dolls to cover the ends. This way, she can tear off the pom pom, the toy will Roll and you won't need to worry about cleanliness as once the card is ripped and dirty, you can just throw it away. Sometimes we make slow feeding toys from these for our cats by poking big holes in the side. the food drops out erratically, keeping them moving and once it's destroyed we just throw it away. we seal up the ends of ours but if you want something she can pull out then a little hat from a doll stretched over each end might be good, you can just throw them in the wash after. Plus the card isn't plastic so the food smell should permeate through a little to get her interested.

 

[susanm9006]

I have a feeder toy I made for willow out of a plastic bottle. I just cut a few kibble size holes in it with an Xacto knife. I put the kibble or treats inside, cap it and set it on the floor. She has to roll it around until to get the treats out.

She also like a game we play with small plastic cups. I set each cup on top of a treat and she needs to knock the cup over to get the treat.

 

[rubysmama]

Sorry, no suggestions on other soft toy feeders to try, but I love those mice!

 

[TobiDaDog]

I second the idea of a toilet paper roll. I stuff treats and little strips of fabric into them and my two really enjoy pulling the fabric out to get the treats!