Kittens play with just about anything in the house and it can quickly become a nightmare if you don’t bother to kitten proof your house and get some kitten toys that are interesting, fun and safe for your kitten to play with. Kitten toys in the mind of your kitten include rubber bands, wool, string, threads, needles, electrical wires and plugs. No one needs to explain the danger of making electric wires into kitten toys but things like string and thread can cause choking, or get tangled up between tiny toes and pads and cause a lot of trouble.
Kitten toys should be soft and washable and have a safe filling. Not all toys which are sold as kitten toys are totally safe. For example, felt mice with rope tails look fun but some have little sequin things attached for eyes. It will take your kitten just a few minutes to detach these and perhaps swallow them.
Sometimes kitten toys chosen by owners are of no interest at all to a kitten. Each one will have its own favourite type of kitten toy and knowing what you kitten likes best will enable you to buy the right thing.
Kitten toys vary in shape and design but most kittens love things that they can paw around and chase. Table tennis balls, golf balls, cotton reels, and even plastic curtain rings can provide hours of amusement. Remember that kitten toys are also carried around in your kitten’s mouth so they must be too big to be swallowed and not too big to fit in the mouth.
Large paper bags make excellent kitten toys. Use the ones without handles, or take the handles off. Kittens love to roll around inside a paper bag but keep plastic bags well out of the way because of the danger of suffocation and the possibility of the kitten chewing and swallowing the plastic.
Other favourite toys with kittens are mouse shaped ones with long tails. These kitten toys can be swung around, thrown into the air and generally treated as prey. All your kitten’s wild instincts will come out here.
Kittens seem to love catnip toys and kitten toys stuffed with this fragrant herb will get a lot of attention. Don’t be surprised to see your kitten rolling on the catnip toy, chewing it and generally being almost obsessed with it. Catnip does things to kittens and cats and nobody knows exactly how it works but it is totally safe and a real treat for a kitten.
Kitten toys need to be varied or your kitten will soon get bored but if the kitten has a favourite kitten toy it is fine to let them play with it. Offer a selection of toys and perhaps introduce a new one now and then. Keep your home kitten proof or your little bundle of fluff will soon find dangerous things to play with around the house. Kittens are hard work and need to be supervised unless they are sleeping.