I promise this blog is a little less disgusting compared to my last blog and it also coincides with the time of year that is fast approaching.

I include Sterling in the gift giving experience at Christmas.  Okay, mostly my Mom does.  But if you don’t have a gift-giving-to-the-cat- kind of Mom like I do, it is fun to personally create or renew some of your cat’s toys.

In my opinion, buying anything for your cat that requires batteries or electricity is unnecessary.  It’s a waste of energy and costs more money than a manual toy.  In fact, your cat probably knows it was more expensive than the “normal” toys and just because of that he/she will refuse to show any interest in it.

There are a lot of ways to re-create old toys, or to make homemade new toys for the kitties in the house.  Everyone has a creative side and you can be festive and environmentally friendly at the same time!

Re-gifting Cat Toys:

Sterling’s favourite, a big chunk of honeysuckle wood.  I bought it years ago, and all I do is stick it under the tap for a few minutes to soak up a bit of water and she will escape into lala-land for hours.

Sterling's Honeysuckle and newspaper bed.

I constantly buy Sterling those cat toys that have a little bobble thing hanging from a string extended from a pole.  Then her silly roommate, Whispers, chews through the string, and we end up with a whole bunch o’ broken toys.  It’s very easy to just attach another string to toy and stick.  Very easy.  It’s also easy to tie together a pile of broken toys and create a super toy!  Also, rubbing organic catnip on any old toy makes it new again.  Catnip is a savior that way.

Anything with feathers.  If a feather falls off a toy, re-attach it to something else, or collect them and make something feathery and awesome!!

Homemade Cat Toys:

Use your imagination!  A few key items you probably have lying around the house:

  • Toilet Paper Roll – cut them up like a grass skirt.  Leave enough bulk at the top so your cat doesn’t demolish it instantly.  You could leave it as is or tie a string around it and watch your kitty dance.
  • Cardboard box – These are typically plentiful around Christmas and there are a few things you can do with one of these.  1) Cut a hole big enough for your cat to enter (in Sterling’s case this would be a very LARGE hole) then cut some smaller holes for their paws.  They love to sneak attack you when they think you can’t see them. 2) If it’s one of those sturdy boxes, tear off the first layer of flat board and expose the corrugated stuff.  Sprinkle some organic catnip on it, lay it on the ground and you’ve got yourself a homemade scratching mat.
  • Tennis Ball – FYI normal tennis balls, the ones for the court, have wires in them.  You can purchase safe tennis balls at some pet stores (confirm safeness before purchasing!) but still keep an eye out.  Eating rubber is never suggested.  But Sterling loves to chase a tennis ball around from time to time.  She once chased a golf ball too, but that can do damage on household items… so it’s not the best suggestion.  Similarly, a ping-pong or wiffle ball would be safe!
  • Cardboard Coffee Sleeve (for the days when you forgot your personal travel mug) – Sterling has knocked coffees off of my coffee table to try and embrace these.  Now I immediately take them off and hand them over to avoid any unnecessary spills.
  • Lost Sock – Laundry ate another sock?  Take the odd one and fill it with some organic catnip, tie it up, and whip it around or tie a string to the end and shake it about.
  • Garbage  and/or recycling– Sounds worse than I mean.  When Sterling hears the sound of a candy wrapper, or a crumpled up receipt, she gets ready for battle.  Make sure it’s nothing small enough to eat, and also make sure it has no food on it.
  • Newspaper or used Christmas Wrapping Paper – this one comes from my good friend and roommate.  You weave strips of paper together to make a sturdy “sit-upon”, but in your cat’s case, it could be a bed.  How many times have you gone to wrap a present or read the newspaper and someone rudely interrupts you to “sit-upon” your work?  Here are some instructions for this one: http://basketmakers.org/topics/beginners/situpon2.htm
  • Pillow case – stuff some crumpled up paper into an old pillow case you don’t mind seeing slept on and/or shred to bits.  Similar to the last idea, cats love lying on paper.  Especially when it makes cool noises.  My cats like to curl up for a nice nap on the pillow case newspaper bed I made for them.
  • Catnip Tea – This idea comes from my special someone.  He pours boiling water over some organic catnip (steeped tea).  Once cool, he sprays it on items of interest, such as old toys, bedding, or cat trees.

I keep all of my cats toys in a basket on the living room floor.  When they’re not sleeping, they sift through and pick out the one they want to toss around for a bit.  Throughout each day the entire toy collection ends up scattered throughout the house, but it sure is fun to watch them pick out their favourite!

Sterling and her pal Whispers

Important rule:  WATCH YOUR KITTEN! Don’t let them eat their toys, as eating any of these items is obviously not ideal.  Pay particular attention to the curious kitties around the Christmas tree.  Ribbon, if ingested, can cause some terrible problems that neither you nor your kittens want to be dealing with through the holiday season.  Remember: DO NOT PULL RIBBON OUT OF THE BUM. This is gross, but I know many who have experienced ribbon hanging out of their kitten’s bum after eating it.  Your instinct may be to pull it out, but because you don’t know the length of it, leave it in.  Trim it if you like, but wait for them to finish expelling it.  It you pull, you can tear their insides.

If they can get into trouble, they will, so be alert!!!

Take a peek at my suggestions for when you’re considering giving a pet as a gift.  It’s an important one!

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