Tips For Tiring A Kitten Out?

[Naela]

Basically what it says on the tin.

I have a five month old kitten, close to six months, but I'm not sure of the math. I love this little boy to bits, but yeah as expected he's really high energy. It's not so much an issue for me since I knew that much when I made he decision to get a kitten, but what I didn't expect was for the trouble he's causing for my neighbours below me.

She's a sweet old lady, but she's complained about how noisy he is when he runs around at night since we have hardwood floors and when Hermes zooms, he just pounds that floor with his little paws.

I'd love ideas on how to wear him out. I play with him every day, 15-30 minutes an hour before bed, but if anything that just excites him even more. I have a lot of toys - Amazon's basically made a killing off me, two cat towers and even a few home made puzzle toys. But I'd love suggestions on how to really tire this kitty out so that way he's too pooped to run around at night.

 

[rubysmama]

He's still young, and full of kitten energy. Some of that will settle down as he gets older.

Meanwhile, here's a couple TCS articles that might have some tips for you.

Cats And Night Crazies!
How To Stop My Cat From Waking Me Up At Night (step-by-step Plan)

 

[Etarre]

You can 'encourage' the zoomies earlier in the day by getting him to chase a laser pointer up and down a hallway or across a large room. I do this with Juniper and it does really wear her out, and she seems to enjoy it a lot.

Have you considered getting cheap area rugs to dampen the sound, at least until Hermes gets older and settles down a bit?

You could also suggest that your neighbor invest in a sleep machine and/or earplugs (or, if you're really nice, offer to buy them for her).

 

[duncanmac]

Make him jump - just up in the air or onto the bed or a cat tree. Get him going up and down like a madman. I also use the stairs. I never saw a cat pant in exhaustion until I had both of my cats chasing a wand toy around in circles up-and-down from the bed.

 

[susanm9006]

Soon your kitten will turn into a cat with triple the weight or more so it’s running isn’t going to get any quieter. You need thick rugs and runners, or a different downstairs neighbor.