Bored cat

Question
Dear Ali:

I recently separated from my spouse and I kept the house and the cats. I have a neutered 1.5 yrs old male and a spayed 9 month old female.  They love each other and keep each other company and I have seen some behavioral changes due to the separation, but I understand they need more TLC and reassurance during this trying time.  My spouse worked from home and spend a lot of play time with the girl.  Ever since his absence she has been crying a lot.  She is a very vocal girl, nothing is physically wrong with her, she just needs more stimulus.  I am working many hours and I try to spend at least 30 min of playtime with her, but she still cries a lot for attention.  I really cannot spend more time playing with her, I already give her a lot of attention/treats/affection.  Do you have any suggestions for easing my girl's boredom/unhappiness?  Thanks!

Answer
Cherry,

I have found providing different forms of stimulation helps to ease boredom and help maintain good physical and mental health, hopefully this answer will give you some ideas to try out with your cats. Cats and kittens are quite intelligent. Contrary to popular belief cats just aren't designed to lounge around sleep all day and night. Cats are predators by nature, providing different outlets to help house or apartment dwelling cats and kittens fulfill their natural instincts is very important for a number of reasons including preventing behavioral issues like destructive behavior or house soiling as well as health issues like obesity, neurotic behaviors linked to boredom or anxiety. Most cats really enjoy having a range of toys designed for independent or interactive play, I usually buy my cats' toys on sale once they're marked down after special occasions like Christmas and other holidays. It's a win, win situation, I get to splurge on the cats and they get to see new toys throughout the year. It's a great idea to consider picking up a few interactive toys like a few kitty teases, a kitten mitten, laser lights (do be careful to keep them out of anyone's eyes they can cause damage) and other toys that encourage playing games and bonding with human family members. It's also important for cats to have a variety of toys that they can bat around and play with on their own, after all, cats are predators and they would normally stalk, hunt, play with and eventually kill small prey animals and this is an instinctive behavior that needs to have an appropriate outlet. One activity that my cats love is a treasure hunt - this involves hiding toys and treats throughout the house for your cat to find throughout the day which is a lot of fun as well as providing entertainment and exercise for your cat. When it comes to buying toys I seriously recommend that you consider what any given toy you're thinking of picking up for your cat will sound like at 3 am. Toys that make noises on their own or have bells inside of them are best avoided. Toys made of hard plastic are good to avoid because they can make an awful amount of noise when batted across wood or tile floors or bounced off of walls in the middle of the night. I can tell you from personal experience cats can be incredibly good at hiding toys that are noisy enough to wake their humans during the wee hours of the morning and I can honestly say that after having a night of sleep interrupted you won't be overly impressed with your kitty's hunting and hiding prowess. In our household the cats have several large grocery bags worth of toys which we simply rotate so that the cats don't become bored with their toys. I recommend small catnip filled mice made from a variety of different materials that can be held in their mouths, if they are made of softer materials that's usually best. Most cats also enjoy playing with small ping pong ball shaped foam balls which can be found in just about any pet store, they bounce wildly when thrown for the cats and they have the added advantage of being a quiet toy. There certainly isn't any shortage of cat toys out there and manufacturers are becoming more inventive every year. In my opinion a good quality, sturdy floor to ceiling cat tree with platforms your cats can climb up to and hang out on to watch the world go by cubbies where they can sleep high up and hidden from view is a good investment. You might be surprised at how much fun your cats have playing with each other and climbing up and down a decent quality floor to ceiling post with cubbies and platforms. To purchase a sturdy, high quality floor to ceiling post with several perches and cubbies can run $300+ CAN. Another entertainment option for your cats since you live in a house would be to install one or more bird feeders filled with bird seed meant to attract small song birds in your yard so that the cats can see the birds coming to eat while they sit in different windows throughout the house.

You could also try entertaining your cat using the Cat Sitter DVD series. These dvds are movies geared towards cats. As far as I'm aware there are three videos in this series. In my experience these videos can occupy a cat for quite awhile, they are designed to entertain a cat when their human caregiver is away from home. The footage in these videos is set up to be played on a loop so that once the entire movie has been viewed it will automatically restart. The first two volumes feature some great footage of birds, mice and other small animals. The second and third volumes of the series include scenes that the production company refers to as "digital catnip" which is essentially a computer generated bug that flits back and forth across the screen in the fast and unpredictable fashion that appeals to most cats. The third DVD in the series focuses on aquariums and there are some phenomenal shots of fresh and saltwater fish. You can often find these videos in pet supply stores for around $14-25 CAN (depending on where you shop). With the Cat Sitter DVDs the cats will have plenty of visual stimulation and entertainment that will help to occupy their time. If you do opt to purchase these videos I would strongly suggest that every time you set the cat up to watch their movie you make sure that the top of the television is free of photos and fragile figurines. It's a good idea to have a chair or small sturdy scratch post with a platform parked in front of the television because most cats like to bat at the prey animals and fish and in some cases these animals disappear from the screen in one direction or which prompts most cats to try and find out where the animal or computer generated bug has disappeared to.