As indoor and contained cats are becoming common in the UK, we thought we’d share a few tips on how to keep them stimulated. A bored kitty can lead to stress and unhappiness, even poor health. There’s absolutely no reason for an indoor cat or a cat with contained access to the outdoors not to have a fulfilled, happy and healthy existence. Here’s how you can help bring more joy to your feline family.
Play Time and Chill Time
Spend time together each day. This time can be spent encouraging exercise, grooming and simply enjoying each other’s company and warmth. Cats are solitary by nature, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t lavish your attention on your ball of fluff. Dedicate some of your time, several times a day to your cat and let your cat initiate the activity, go by their mood and don’t force an activity that your cat isn’t in the mood for – they’ll give you that look that let’s you feel like a nobody!
Stuff for When You’re Not There
You can’t always give your cat attention and many cats live in houses where the family work or go out all day. Indoor cats can’t go for an adventure down the road, but there’s plenty of fun to be had at home. Create hiding places in different rooms in the home and change them round every month or so (leaving the obvious favourites in place). Hide treats too and designate some of your cat’s diet to treats to ensure you don’t overfeed.
Change Up the Space
Keep your cat entertained with new things to explore. Moving furniture in rooms is fun, especially when you create new hidey-holes or change the position of activity centres and introduce cat shelves. Expanding the amount of space your cat has can also make a huge difference to your cats’ well-being. Cat fencing and catio is a fantastic option for cats that don’t enjoy being cooped up all the time.
Modern Cats
There are plenty of ways you can entertain millennial kitties. Download cat games on your phone or tablets, leave on cat friendly YouTube videos and even give your cat your company when you’re at work with pet cameras. Seriously, these modern cats don’t know how good they have it!
There are lots of ways for you to keep indoor and contained cats stimulated. Share your tips and ideas with us over on our Facebook page.