People think of playing fetch and tug-of-war with their puppies, but kittens enjoy games too! And bonus—playing games with friends is a great way to socialize your kitten. With kittens, consider how you can encourage natural cat behaviors to turn your socialization games into feline enrichment!
You’re familiar with wand toys, but we have some other fun suggestions for you to try with your new kitten. Check them out!
- Fetch: Not all cats will engage in this, but some will. Try throwing a fuzzy toy and seeing if your kitten brings it back. You can also toss treats for your kitten to chase down, but they won’t be bringing those back to you.
- Teaching tricks: Kittens can learn tricks. Try teaching them behaviors like sit, lie down and high-five. You’ll need to be diligent with rewards—cats are less likely to perform a behavior just to please you.
- Interactive cat toys: Self-propelling or automated toys are another great way to encourage your cat’s hunting behaviors.
- Online cat games: Phones and tablets have games which encourage your kitten’s natural predatory behaviors. For example, some will have fish that swim across the screen for your kitten to paw and pounce at. While your kitten is unlikely to break the screen with their weight or to slap with their claws out, consider having a screen protector on your devices to protect the screen.
- Puzzle feeders: Keep your cat’s mind engaged by using food dispensers that require your cat to work a little bit to earn their rewards.
- Scent scavenger hunt: Cats have a strong sense of smell. You can put interesting but cat-safe smells around the house for your kitten to find. Bonus points if you hide treats near some of these smells!
If you’ll be using items like laser pointers, make sure to reward your cat when they “catch” the light. Repeatedly pouncing on a light to find nothing there can be frustrating for some cats.
Find out more about the benefits of play and other cat enrichment ideas!
