Fun for cats

Providing new and interesting ways for cats to play is a great way to up their exercise and reduce stress. This is an ideal little toy that is cheap to make.

Take a small plastic container, light enough for your cat to be able to bat it about such as a drinking yogurt pot.

Carefully, as it is very easy to cut yourself, make holes in the side (children should ask an adult to do this for them). Smooth off rough edges with a nail file to make sure that there are no sharp edges that your cat could cut itself on. The holes should be large at first, so that food falls out readily, since you want to make it easy for the cat to get rewarded to start with.

Choose a food that your cat really likes that will fall out of the container easily when it is rolled. For many cats, dried cat food or biscuits are ideal. Alternatively, try chopped pieces of meat like chicken.

Put the food into the container, don't worry about a lid at first. If your cat cannot easily get food out, they may lose interest!

Put the container on the floor, and see if your pet is interested. You may have to bat the toy around yourself at first, so that the cat gets the idea.

Once your pet is getting the treats out easily, you can gradually make it harder. Surprisingly, cats seem to enjoy this because it's natural for them to work out puzzles in the wild. Make pots or bottles with progressively smaller holes, and improvise a stopper. If you are using a drinking yogurt pot, a cork cut into pieces (again, be careful doing this!) works well.

You can use this toy to provide activity and entertainment for your cat when you are out, or if you have a cat that insistently pesters you for food, the pot can provide a source of food that is not centred on you personally. Don't forget to reduce the amount you feed your cat normally to compensate for the extra rations of fun food.

View some footage of a cat enjoying a game with a hanging pot containing treats.

With thanks to Sarah Heath MRCVS

March 2007