How to play with a cat, besides Flirt Pole

jeannem

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Ever since I accidentally bopped Suki on the nose with one of the flirt poles I can't get her to play with it and chase it. I am 70 so running around is not one of my strong points.
What to do to get her some exercise?
J
 

ladytimedramon

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2 things Delilah loves are pipe cleaners and these little plastic springs. When I take out a spring and start stretching it, she sees it and goes nuts. I toss her the spring and she will chase and bat it all over the place. I have a bag full of them so if she loses it I toss her another. Then I can collect them all later with my grabbing stick (I have back issues) and put them in a bag for later. Sometimes she will just find it and go nuts with it on her own.

Also, instead of a stick, I have one of her favorite things (fake grass) tied to a long shoelace that I can dangle or drag on the floor (no stick) and she will stalk and pounce it. Maybe Suki will go after a ribbon dragged on the floor?
 

minish

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Minish loves chasing string. Dragging it under or over things makes the game more fun for her. Yesterday we played with a dining chair while I was sitting on the sofa. She had quite an excercise, under and around and above while the only excercise I had was laughs :)
 

game misconduct

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i have mobility issues also i roll those little toy balls with a bell inside graycie will chase them across the apartment s(forces me to walk fetching the balls again :lol:keeps me mobile) i also toss those crinkle balls the non dyed ones not the dyed kind from petco those lose the dye once they get wet
 

Caspers Human

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Braid up some yarn into a long rope and drag it across the floor for the cat to pounce on.

Get a good, long piece of yarn, ten feet long, double it over and tie the ends to a doorknob or a chair leg. Put a knitting needle or a pencil through the opposite, looped end, pull the yarn taught and spin it like an airplane propeller until it is twisted tight. Have somebody hold the exact center of the twisted yarn and take your propeller end back to the place where it's tied. Let the tension off and the whole thing will twist into a four-stranded rope. Tie knots in both ends and cut them off to make little pom-poms.

It's a great cat toy... Casper's favorite... and, no, the cat can't swallow the yarn. It's too thick.

Tie a toy to the other end to add a little weight so that you can throw it out, easier, then jerk and pull it back.

Like I said, it's Casper's favorite playtime activity. He'll actually go to where his rope toy is laying, look up at you as if to say, "Make it go!"
 

Caspers Human

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Just leave whichever toy you want your cat to play with on the floor where the cat plays.

Simply let it lay there for a day or two. Most cats are “neophobic.” (Afraid of new things.)

It might take some time before a cat gets used to new toys enough to play with them.
 

gilmargl

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I have difficulty playing with my cats but more because there are 4 of them than the fact that I am 75. Two younger cats play well together and need no catalyst. Emily is too aloof to play - it just encourages her to attack. But Mogi likes to play, but without the other cats. She has a small red ball of wool which she can pick up in her claws. She used to retrieve it which saved me a lot of walking but now she leaves it for me to pick up and a favourite trick of hers is to flick it down the stairs. I know that climbing up and down stairs is good for my health but rather boring.
She follows me into the bathroom where she can be alone with me and we spend time with the little red ball and a small wicker basket. I throw the ball into the baslet and she immediately tries to flick it out. The bathroom is very small, there is no space to walk so retrieving the ball is no problem for me. I sit on the closed WC-seat and Mogi plays ball. I just have to bend down to pick it up and drop it back in the basket.
In the living room, a bit more movement on my part is required when I put the ball on the top of the cat tree. She will run up the tree, flick the ball onto the floor and wait for me to retrieve it. At least I don't have to go up and down the hallway dragging a length of string behind me. :lol:
 
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