How do you amuse a cat without any effort? (an actual question)

[Destino]

I often work from home and lately my cat has gotten into the habit of staring and meowing at me when he gets bored. He's surprisingly determined and despite ignoring him entirely hoping to thwart his efforts he's responded by stepping up his game. He will now jump on my desk and sit on my wife's desk and stare at me. It's surprisingly annoying.

Throwing wadded up paper balls at him in frustration is viewed by him as playing so now any time I so much as touch a piece of paper he comes flying into my office. Closing the door results in loud yowling at the door that can be heard on the phone.

I don't want to make him less social in the process, otherwise I'd just keep a water gun by my desk and call it a day. It would be fun for me but then he'd hold a grudge and hide which my wife would interpret as illness and cost me a vet bill.

Are there any toys a cat will actually play with that doesn't require my involvement? I got a bird feeder which held his attention for a solid week but the damn birds in Springfield apparently put this out on twitter and the bird seed now lasts about 2 hours.

[KAOSkins]

Funny, I call rawhides and big bones "doggie nintendo" because I use them for that same purpose. For cats, they sell these nylon tunnel tube things you can run around your house along with one those play toys that have a spring in it.

[Park City Skins]

I used to get a kick out of watching the cat we had when we lived out there entertain itself with a super ball. He wasn't interested in eating it,(like one of brother's cats does now),so that wasn't a concern. Put that on smooth floor,(no carpet),and big fun was had. Unless your cat ends up being like one of my brother's cats and brings it back to you to throw. Again and again like a dog. :doh: The other two get a kick out the normal toys they sell at the pet store.

[SoCalSkins]

Get a second cat

[China]

Unless he is a kitten, there are not really any toys that will entertain him without your involvement. Our old cats died last year and we now have two kittens. They can play with just about anything. Rubber balls worked well. They've now lost about 20 of them and I have no idea where they went (and I've looked under furniture). They will bat and chase various objects, including my beer bottle on occasion (much to my annoyance). We also tried out one of those balls in an enclosed track that they can bat around but the ball doesn't come out. They played with it periodically, but do get bored with it. Although I will point out that they managed to break the track apart, get the ball out and lose it.

I recently discovered they go wild for the laser pointer, which is nice because I can send them flying around the house without leaving my seat. Otherwise they have various toys on strings. But mostly these require my involvement. One nice thing is we got them at the same time (although they are not litter mates) and so they frequently rampage about the house chasing after one another. This does not require my involvement, so SoCalSkins has a point about the second cat.

I'm not sure what else you can try. You could always get some catnip and drug him when he gets on your nerves. :)

[Maximus71]

Laser pointer, hardwood floor, a bit of buffer on the hard wood floor.... Watch your cat slide head first in to a pillow... Priceless lol

[Special K]

Buy a few pet mice.

[fullnelson9999]

Put catnip in a tied up tube sock and watch your cat go to town.

[G.A.C.O.L.B.]

Open the the door and let him outside. He's a big boy. He'll survive.

[D'Pablo]

They sell a toy that's essentially a laser pointer that moves the dot on its own. You have to place it somewhere high up and angle it towards the ground. It goes for about fifteen minutes and will do a good job of tiring any cat. Here's a link on amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/FroliCat-BOLT-Interactive-Laser-Pet/dp/B0021L8W6K/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1304142523&sr=1-2

[Bang]

Laser pointers are the greatest pet toy ever invented.
But I would not use one that mounts and automatically works.. my dog chases the dot for a minute, then looks to the source. If it's automatic, he could flash his eyes.

~Bang

[dfitzo53]

We bought a pet toy that our cat loved so much he eventually destroyed it. It was a stuffed mouse with a little gizmo instead that squeaked whenever it was touched. The mouse was hung from an elastic cord that you hooked over the back of a door, so it would bounce around and squeak whenever the cat touched it.

He eventually ripped the mouse off the cord and still had a blast entertaining himself by basically playing "mouse soccer" and kicking the mouse all around the house.

[Chachie]

Open the the door and let him outside. He's a big boy. He'll survive.


This depends on where you live but it's definitely my method.

[skinsfan_1215]

Laser pointer or second cat methods are highly recommended.

[wysknz1]

throw it in a tub of water..?

[stevenaa]

Plastic easter eggs. They roll in unpredictable ways. Our cat loves them.

[TheLongshot]

Some other ideas: a motorized hamster ball or a Roomba.

But a second cat is probably the best idea.

[LadySkinsFan]

I have 4 cats, my daughter's cat had kittens twice in a row (sometimes daughters don't listen when you tell them to get the cat fixed and they ignore you) and she couldn't bear to let them go to any home she didn't personally approve. Apparently, she approved my home. The fact that she was living there are the time might have something to do with this.

My cats play with each other, one likes round balls, one likes the mice that have little beads in it so it makes a noice when he tosses it around, one likes a realistic catnip mouse, one likes to bring real mice into the house and then they all play with it unless I can catch it and take it back outside. I have a cat door, so they can all go outside if they want. With nice weather, the boys all stay pretty much outside (3 boys). My girl likes to hang out with me. One of my cats likes to participate when I have con calls, so he meows up a storm. I had to send around a photo of him so my collegues could get a look at the other participant! They all sleep in a clump.

I like them pretty much. They are fun to have around. They are not allowed in the bedroom, so the entire house is their oyster.

Conclusion, get another cat.

[DCSaints_fan]

Cut off one end of a two liter soda bottle. Put some food on the other end and put the soda bottle on the ground. Have a video camera handy.

[RichmondRedskin88]

Laser pointers are amazing. Cats and dogs are instantly drawn to the dot.

[Mickalino]

Get a second cat


Much easier said than done

[Koolblue13]

Much easier said than done

We are literally giving them away at the shelter, so we don't have to kill them. Free. All ages and breeds. Even kittens this time of year. 20 a day sometimes. Free kittens to anybody.

[zoony]

http://thenexttobestblogever.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/cat-and-piranha.jpg