Your cat sleeps a lot during the day and becomes a ruthless adventurer at dawn? In part, it is important to understand that felines developed predominantly nocturnal habits during their evolution; and their senses (mainly their vision) allow them to perform better under dimmer lights, ensuring a successful hunt.
But this does not mean that we should give up our necessary rest to provide our cats with well-being. It is possible to reduce the nocturnal activity of our domestic felines by proposing a more stimulating routine during the day and positively increasing their environment. And to help you in this mission, our site invites you to learn some how to tire your cat through play
Benefits of playing with your cat
Cats have an active and curious nature, like most felines in the wild. But when they are not properly stimulated in their home life, they can become hyperactive, stressed or bored, developing numerous he alth and behavioral problems. In fact, most cats that exhibit aggressive behavior experience sedentary routines in environments that arouse little of their interest. Therefore, if we want to provide a he althier and happier day to day life for our cats, we will need to stimulate them to expend energy and release tension. How? Playing!
Games are an excellent option for physical activity to tire your cat out and they also offer the following benefits to their body:
- Stimulating their cognitive abilities.
- Help strengthen your muscles and bones.
- Help balance your weight, metabolism, and heart rate.
- Prevent pathologies and behavioral problems associated with the accumulation of tension, stress and boredom.
- Promotes socialization (mainly in households with more than one cat).
All with the added bonus of giving tutors a better night's sleep!
How are the games to tire your cat?
The games we propose below are excellent alternatives to stimulate, entertain and tire your cat. But they also propose moments of coexistence to be enjoyed together, strengthening the bonds of friendship and affection between guardian and feline. What are you waiting for to start having fun with your cat?
The magic wand
This exercise simulates hunting a little bird, and cats just love it! We will need a toy in the form of a wand with feathers of many colors at its end. There are several options on the market and you can also easily make it at home, using a wooden stick, a very strong string, some colorful feathers and a lot of creativity. By waving the wand, we imitate the flight of a small bird and awaken the hunting instinct of our domestic cats.
Play ball
This is probably the most simple and cheapgame on our list. To carry out this activity we will only need a ball and a lot of willingness to have fun with our cat. The ideal is to prefer a ball suitable for animals and avoid those that bring bells or decoys and make a lot of noise.
To start, just throw the ball and watch our cat make it fly through the air while performing some really acrobatic tricks. You can't imagine how much fun it will be for both of you!
Shall we go fishing?
This proposal is similar to the “magic wand”, but simulates a fishing adventure We will need a very long strong cord or thread and a toy that is to the liking of our cat. We tie the toy to the thread well and just throw it as if it were a hook to arouse our cat's curiosity. The most interesting thing is to throw it over a door or other similar surface, making our cat stretch, jump and exercise to catch his fish.
We played hide and seek?
Not only children have fun with the game of hide and seek, our pets also enjoy this activity very much. To start, call your cat until he comes to your voice (of course, from a place where he can not see you). So, you can go changing rooms while you keep calling him. It is very important to start with an easier level so as not to frustrate your cat, and reward him once he finds you
In addition to stimulating your cat's body and mind, hiding is an excellent activity to train him to come to your calls. And the best thing is that you can start it today, without needing any additional toys or objects.
Did you like these feline games? Well, to continue discovering other fun activity options to tiring your cat, be sure to read our article “10 games to entertain my cat”.
How to tire a cat when he is alone?
Many times, our work does not allow us enough time to play with our cats during the day. And by spending a lot of time alone at home, the animal is more likely to get bored, sleep for many hours during the day, and want to play at night. Therefore, you may be asking yourself the following question: "how do I tire my cat if I'm not home all day?" Well, the best thing is to enrich his environment with toys and accessories that allow him to entertain himself on his own.
How to enrich the environment for your cat? A practical and effective option is to give him a scratching post with different floors and accessories, which acts as a true amusement park for cats. You can even make a “Homemade Cat Scratcher” yourself in an easy way.
To further exercise your creativity and encourage your cat's curiosity, we recommend making mazes with the cardboard boxes, where a reward awaits at the end of the path. And you can also use cheap and creative options like these 5 homemade toys for cats, using simple and recycled materials to stimulate and tire your cat while you are away.
Have you thought about giving your cat a little brother?
"What if my cat gets tired of playing alone and I work all day?" In these cases, it is best to consider giving your feline a little brother or sister. In this way, by enriching their environment with toys and accessories, they can spend their energy together during the day and rest at night. Of course, before making this important decision, know your cat and act according to his needs If he's not a social feline, you'll need to find another alternative, such as asking someone he trusts to spend time with him.
If you finally believe that it is the best option, it is important to prepare the cat beforehand for the arrival of a new family member. We must not forget that felines are very territorial animals and can show certain aggressive behaviors when an unknown animal enters their environment. To ensure that your felines get along, be sure to read our tips for socializing an adult cat and, above all, how to introduce the new cat to your feline.
Care when offering toys and accessories to your cat
The most important care when increasing our cat's environment is to ensure his safety It is not recommended to offer very small toys or accessories that contain tiny accessories and decorations that can easily come loose. These items can get stuck in the animal's throat, creating a serious risk of suffocation.
Toys containing long strings or threads should not be left within the reach of the cat when we are not present, to prevent the animal from swallowing them or getting entangled with them. It is also recommended to avoid toys and activities that can generate feelings of frustration or irritability in the feline. The ideal is to prefer more games that allow the animal to positively exercise its hunting instinct and enjoy the success of catching its prey.
If you choose to present intelligence games to your cat, such as hide-and-seek with caves (or holes) and puzzles (puzzles), it is important to choose a proposal appropriate to the age of the animal. If we propose an excessively complex game to a very young cat, for example, we can frustrate its will by exposing it to repeated failed attempts.
