Playing with your cat

Playing with your cat

Playing with your cat is a great way to develop the bond between you and your pet. Play is an essential part of a kitten’s development, and an enjoyable part of domestic life for most adult cats. And while senior cats may have less energy and may be less mobile, they can still enjoy gentle games, and playtime can become a valuable part of your time together.

Additionally, cats who live exclusively indoors need plenty of stimulation and play to prevent them from becoming bored. Cats with free access to the outdoors will find plenty of entertainment to occupy their time – walls and trees to climb, leaves to chase, new places to explore – the list goes on!

What motivates cats to play? 

Each cat is an individual, so their motivation to play will vary. However, all cats, when provided with the opportunity, will happily play and benefit from doing so, regardless of their age. Understanding what your cat likes will help you to provide play opportunities based on their routine and natural activity rhythms.   

Look out for the following behaviours, which indicate your cat is in a playful mood: 

  • Spontaneous play with objects 

  • Sudden erratic movements 

  • Eyes focused intently on an object 

  • Stalking posture, crouched legs, head lowered 

  • Increased energy levels 

Knowing how motivated your cat is to play means you can tailor playtime to suit their needs e.g. allocating more or less time for daily play, finding the right time of day to play with your cat, and so on.

A cat that’s highly motivated to play: 

  • Plays frequently (and spontaneously) with objects 

  • Is receptive at any time of day 

  • Isn’t fussy about the objects they play with 

  • Rarely tires (you give up first) 

  • Can be destructive, often tearing or eating toys 

  • Responds to ‘conditioned stimulus’, e.g. the sound of a drawer opening that contains toys

A cat with low motivation to play: 

  • Doesn’t play spontaneously with objects 

  • Is receptive only at specific times of day and under certain circumstances 

  • Is fussy about which toys they play with 

  • Tires quickly and needs a great deal of persuasion to start playing

How do I choose toys for my cat? 

Toys can appeal to all your cat’s senses – sight, sound, scent, touch and taste. Movement is a great stimulus, and most toys are designed to be used actively in one way or another. Gentle noise (for example, a tinkling bell firmly concealed in a ball) may encourage cats to play, while catnip (dried catmint plant) rubbed on a plastic toy or secreted within a stuffed toy will appeal to most (but not all) cats. Some cat toys are made of different fabrics, encouraging cats to rake their claws or rub their face. 

Your cat will have specific likes and dislikes when it comes to toys, and these will be based on:

  • Texture 

  • Shape 

  • Size 

  • Scent 

  • Noise 

  • Movement e.g. random, quick, stop/start 

  • Owner interaction 

  • Time of day 

  • Location 

  • Presence of other cats

Understanding what encourages your cat to play can be trial and error, although some toys appeal to most cats e.g. wand (fishing rod) toys with feathers on the end, small objects on a wire that move erratically and small fur mice. Even simple toys like ping pong balls can provide hours of fun and exercise. The ball is light enough not to cause damage around the house and the right size for a small paw to bat.

Do cats play in different ways? 

Playtime for a cat isn’t limited to playing with their owner and a specific toy. It can include: 

Self-play (solitary) 

  • Running around  

Self-play (object) 

  • Toys 

Interactive play (with other cats)  

  • Chasing 

  • Play fighting 

Interactive play (with people) 

  • Fetch games 

  • Wand toys

Explore, search, forage play 

  • Cardboard boxes 

  • Cat activity centres 

  • Cupboards, wardrobes 

  • Paper bags 

Play explores all parts of a cat’s natural predatory sequence: search, stalk, chase, pounce, catch and manipulate. Some games/toys can cause frustration if the pounce/catch parts of the sequence are missing. For example, a laser pointer allows your cat to stalk, chase and pounce, but not ‘catch’ – ideally, you should remove the laser pointer and switch to a wand toy to finish the game so that it ends on a positive note for your cat.

Play Ideas

If you’re looking for a game to play with your cat, try…. 

  • Wand toys – these consist of a long rod attached to a string with a small toy at the end. This toy should be as near to the real thing as possible in size and texture so a couple of feathers or a little toy mouse is always popular. Move the toy in front of your cat in jerking random movements and watch them leap. Make sure you put this toy out of reach when you are not playing with your cat 

  • Small fur toys – cats love toys that look and feel like the real thing, so a small furry mouse-sized toy is great. Your cat will toss this up in the air and generally make their own entertainment. Once ‘killed’ though it will soon lose its appeal, so have two or three on the go and rotate them regularly, giving your cat one at a time, to maintain their novelty 

  • Catnip – catnip is a dried herb that excites many (but not all) cats. You will notice your cat sniff it, eat it, roll in it and generally behave as if the whole experience is very enjoyable. Providing a pinch of catnip, now and then, or storing favourite toys in bags with catnip inside, will keep those cats that succumb to catnip’s charms interested 

  • Food puzzles – If your cat has a favourite dry cat treat, try putting a small handful inside a paper bag or cardboard egg box and watch your cat work out how to get to the prized morsel. You can convert all kinds of objects into food puzzles (e.g. cereal boxes, yoghurt pots and toilet roll tubes), you are only limited by your imagination 

  • Cardboard boxes – these were undoubtedly invented for cats! Just giving your cat a new box to explore two or three times a week is a joy for most. The boxes can be big or small but represent hours of fun for the inquisitive cat

Don’t forget that cats are sprinters rather than marathon runners when it comes to playing, so one minute of frenzied activity is a good result. Most importantly, your cat is naturally more active at certain times of day, often dawn and dusk, so choose a time to play that suits both of you! 

Additional Considerations

Playing with kittens 

Kittens are a lot of fun, and playtime must be stimulating for them but safe for all involved. Interactive play can help create a positive bond between an owner and a kitten. Here are some top tips on how to encourage appropriate play:

  • Never use your hands or feet to play with a kitten. Although this is tempting and seems cute at first, it can lead to serious problems in the future as your kitten matures and associates fingers and toes with playtime. Growing teeth and claws can cause pain and injury 

  • Kittens may prefer some toys over others, depending on the size, texture, smell, and noise the toy makes, as well as how fast it moves when batted. Some kittens also enjoy larger soft toys that they can rake and kick with their back legs. Pipe cleaner toys should be avoided, as should toys made of ribbons or string, as well as balls of wool. These can cause your kitten’s intestines to become bunched up if eaten (intussusception), resulting in emergency veterinary care and surgery 

  • Catnip toys may not encourage kittens under three months of age to play, as they’re not responsive to catnip before this time. However, older kittens can respond well to catnip, so it’s worth offering it again even if your kitten showed no interest initially, as catnip can help initiate play 

  • Interactive play can be a lot of fun for kittens and their owners. Wand or fishing rod toys are good choices because they keep some distance between you and your kitten, which can help prevent accidental scratches or bites 

  • Wands with toy mice, feathers, or toy worms attached may be particularly attractive for kittens to play with and can be moved across the floor at different speeds to catch your kitten’s eye and initiate play. Interactive playtime can be even more stimulating for your kitten if boxes or tunnels are used to pull the toy through or around 

  • Play may only last for a few minutes, as kittens can become bored and tire easily. However, this can very much depend on your kitten, so if you want to end a playtime session the game should end gradually, and your kitten’s attention directed onto something else (e.g. food). This will help prevent frustration and ambushes on people or other pets in the household

  • It’s possible to puzzle-feed kittens from as early as twelve weeks, and this can provide a stimulating and interesting alternative way for kittens to access their food. It’s best to start with a very simple puzzle feeder, such as an open egg box with kibble (biscuit) placed inside, or a very basic slow feeder

Playing with senior cats 

Senior cats enjoy playing too! Keep things gentle and adapt playtime to suit their level of mobility. Even if your cat lies down to play, they will still benefit both physically and mentally from one-to-one playtime with you.  

Multi-cat households 

Playtime is more complicated in multi-cat households where one cat may be more motivated to play than others or any tension is present within the group. You’ll need to understand how motivated each cat is to play and think about factoring in some time to play individually with cats away from the group. 

Encouraging social play between cats 

Cats are more likely to indulge in social play with each other if they feel safe to do so in their home. Cats prefer to play where there are obstacles and various levels to give camouflage, hiding opportunities, and access to high places for ‘timeout’ when needed. Areas indoors that are designated for play should contain some or all of the following to get the maximum benefits:

  • Cardboard boxes with entry/exit holes 

  • Furniture at various heights 

  • Tables 

  • Cat activity centres 

All objects should be positioned so each cat can move around them and approach from any angle. 

Should I intervene if my cats play too roughly?  

You may need to intervene when your cats are playing if it escalates and there’s a risk of hurting each other. Providing they’re not physically fighting, distract with a wand toy, or kick toy (one large enough to be held in the forelegs and kicked with the hindlegs).  

If your cats begin fighting during play and the problem persists, seek advice from your vet who may refer you to a local, qualified clinical animal behaviourist to assess the situation and recommend action for long-term management.

(Article source: International Cat Care)