There are hundreds of cat toys on the market, and as anyone owned by a cat knows, there is no way of telling for sure which toy will delight your cat, or which will generate a quick sniff, followed by a look of disdain and a turned tail. So if you’re like most cat parents, you will continue to bring home toys in your quest to amuse and spoil your feline charges.
When shopping for cat toys, the most important thing is the safety factor. Cat toy safety really comes down to one thing: if it can be swallowed, it’s dangerous.
This means stay away from toys that have small parts that can come loose during an energetic play session. Anything with glued on parts, metal pieces, tassles or strings should be a no-no. Sometimes you can remove these parts (which is how Amber ended up with a lot of what we call “blind and deaf mice” – once the glued on eyes and ears are removed, these mice turn into perfectly safe toys). But it’s always best to find a toy that doesn’t require removal of loose parts.
Toys with strings and rubber bands can be fun for your cat as long as you supervise play. Never leave these toys with your cat unattended – rubber bands can loop themselves around your cat’s neck and choke her, strings can be chewed and ingested, and can present a life-threatening emergency if the piece of strings wraps itself around the cat’s intestines.
So which toys are safe for your cat?
Amber loves anything that’s stuffed with catnip. The fewer adornments, the better. A great source for simple, and safe catnip toys is The Mouse Factory – they have a wide selection of fun toys, and their catnip is seriously potent.
The Kong line of cat toys offers a lot of fun and safe choices as well, you can find a sampling in the Conscious Cat Store and you’ll also find them in many pet stores.
Interactive cat toys are great fun for you and your cat – after all, what’s more fun than a rigorous play session with your kitties? Some of these interactive toys, such as the feather teaser (a feather toy on the end of a string) require supervision because of the string part, but they can provide hours of fun for cat and human.
Of course, there are plenty of choices for toys that don’t require a trip to the pet store – paper bags, boxes, empty toilet paper rolls, or even just a wadded up piece of paper can be as much fun for your cat as expensive, store-bought toys.
Whatever safe toy you choose for your cat, have fun!
Amber’s current favorite is a fuzzy crab-like toy on the end of a long fuzzy string. She allowed me to film her for a few seconds while she was playing with it:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuIeNptmc-w
What are some of your cats’ favorite toys?
