Juvenile delinquent cat

gabriel1980

We have a young cat who is basically a terror but also totally loveable. He is a housecat and is starting to get tubby. We play with him on a daily basis to get him moving about (chasing a ribbon on a string), but just wondering if anyone else has ideas on keeping a house cat active and entertained?

arbrighton

Are you feeding him too much? Remember, like humans, getting tubby is about calories in vs out!

hazyjo

One of mine puts loads of weight on in winter but shifts it all again in summer. She's quite a lazy girl who chases shadows and string, but gets bored very quickly. She is around 11 though. You might find yours loses loads of weight in summer when they're more inclined not to hibernate. Always hard with an indoor cat though - would you consider a lead? My friend takes her two out for walks!


Jx

GwylimT

What food do you use?

Lilyjade

Have you tried the laser light red dot toys for cats? Mine will chase the red dot for ages.

We also bought some of the balls that flash when they are moved (think they are meant to go in the track toys). We don't have a track but they will chase these balls around the house by themselves.

Trina90

We have 2 house cats. One is starting to get a bit chubby. Do you feed wet or dry food? For christmas we are getting ours one of these http://m.zooplus.co.uk/shop/cats/cat_toys/miscellaneous/treat_toys/170068 to keep them busy.

HB58

Some cats do need less food than others - my 5.9kg outdoor boy eats only a little more than my 2.5kg indoor girl - and their weights are stable.

Tiddlywinks

Why is he a 'house cat'?

Cats need exercise and roam over quite wide areas if left to their own devices. Being shut in a relatively small and never changing environment must be like being in prison.

How would you like to spend your life trapped in your home and never be able to leave? Even when instinct is calling you to climb, run, hunt etc? Never feeling the grass under your feet, trees to mark etc.

Unless there is a health condition that requires cats to be indoors then they deserve freedom to roam.

If people live near roads or in flats then don't get cats?

nimbo

Tiddlywinks wrote: »

Why is he a 'house cat'?

Cats need exercise and roam over quite wide areas if left to their own devices. Being shut in a relatively small and never changing environment must be like being in prison.

How would you like to spend your life trapped in your home and never be able to leave? Even when instinct is calling you to climb, run, hunt etc? Never feeling the grass under your feet, trees to mark etc.

Unless there is a health condition that requires cats to be indoors then they deserve freedom to roam.

If people live near roads or in flats then don't get cats?

I'm not the op - but we have a house cat because we live by a busy road. My sil is a vetinary nurse who needed to rehouse a stray - and as he has fiv he cannot consort with other cats as he can pass it on. we took him in. And have since found he is a little Spikey.

I imagine if more people had their cats tested they would potentially find out their cats could have it too. We can't get him insurance - except for accidents - which living in a house is unlikely. He has a vet bank account instead.

Some cats do have no road sense so even quiet roads are a bad idea. We had one when I was a child and we'd avoid it going out as it was a bit Dopey. The other three were fine. Haha.

Ours loves a laser light pen. It drives him made when we send it up the walls and across the ceiling. He loves chasing it up the stairs too. And red balls. No idea why but he seems to prefer the red ones. He's got a little porkier since we got him - but being a former stray food is really important to him.

SensibleSarah

My 4 go outside but nothing against house cats - they take a lot more work to keep entertained in my experience but can be perfectly happy indoors. I do foster cats for a local rescue from time to time & obviously these are kept indoors.

Fishing rod type toys are great for getting them moving a bit. Not a fan of the harness & lead thing personally as it's a bit like bully's special prize - this is what you could have, but you can't. Also pretty risky. I know of several cats who have been spooked when walked on a harness & managed to escape.
Treat balls containing their daily food ration can be a good idea, as can scattering their food (obviously dry food only) so they have to hunt it out a bit.

Trina90

Mine are indoor cats because of their breed. They are Ragdolls. They are even more likely to get run over than other cats. They aren't a breed that need to go out though, and not at all streetwise. They just want to be close to us. I get followed wherever I go. They don't try to walk out with us. They also have no hunting instinct. My boys live with 3 rats, never been interested in hurting them. Very friendly cats, they would just stroll up to another cat, without a second thought to how the other cat might react. I did put this theory into practice during a supervised outing - sure enough one of them fearlessly approached a neighbors cat (luckily it didn't do anything, but it looked very surprised).

It is different when a cat is used to going out, then it is a bit cruel to take that away. But a cat that has never known that life, doesn't mind. If someone chooses for their pet to be safe, that is for no one else to judge.