Fun for Fluffy Feline

Check out these FIVE simple games you can play with your cat to keep her amused and active all day!

Pet parents often complain about their cats being lazy and inactive. By nature, cats are extremely playful and curious. They love exploring, hunting for things and chasing down moving objects. But the natural hunting instinct and playful spirit of the domestic cats often get stifled as they spend far too much time indoors. As a pet parent, you can help your cat come out of her sluggishness by constantly engaging her in games and fun activities. This will also help strengthen your bond with your feline companion.

Here are FIVE fun games that you can play with your cat to keep her physically and mentally fit and agile.

1. Chase the ball: You don’t need expensive toys to entertain your cat. A simple ping pong ball would do the trick. Just bounce a ping pong ball on the floor and watch your cat all excited, hopping along with it, trying to grab the ball. You could even roll the ball on the floor, and let your kitty chase it around the house. Ping pong balls are safe toys and being lightweight, they won’t hurt your cat, even if she gets hit by them.

2. Catch it if you can: While a rolling ball mimics the movement of mice, a wand toy mimics a fluttering bird, thereby capturing your cat’s attention. Wand toys are simple to make. Just take a piece of stick and attach a bright, colourful cloth or ribbon to its end. Wave the wand, move it in circular motions, and watch you kitty twist and turn, to get hold of it. Don’t forget to reward your kitty with treats, if she grabs the wand, and wins the game.

3. Follow the flash: Nothing can pique a cat’s curiosity more than a flickering, racing beam of light. Get a flashlight or a laser light and start moving it across the floor and up and down the wall. Move it in quick, irregular motions, and watch your cat pounce on the shimmering light, trying to grab it with her paws, and performing other funny acts, thinking it’s a firefly or some other insect.

4. Wrestling with blanket: Cats love rolling on the bed and hiding under the blanket. The next time you find your kitty lying lazily on the bed, grab a blanket and put your hand underneath. Then, move your fingers up and down and across the blanket. Your cat will instantly jump out of her torpidity, to catch your fingers, and be her usual animated self once again.

5. Bag of fun: That paper bag from the grocery store could be an interesting toy for your cat. Place an empty paper grocery bag in the middle of the room, or where your cat can see it. When your kitty jumps inside the bag, gently poke her from the sides, and move your fingers along the bag to amuse her, while she is busy exploring the bag.

Toy facts

• Like kids, your cat too can become bored with toys. You can keep a couple of toys at hand and give her a few to play with. When she is bored with them, stack them way and take out the rest. Likewise, change them with the earlier ones when she is through with the new ones.


• Include a variety of games in her playtime, and observe how she responds to each of these.


• If she loves a particular game or enjoys wrestling and snuggling with a particular toy, include that more often in her play.


• Make sure the toy you give her is safe.

Don’t mess with me!

Do you find your cat growling and hissing for no reason at all? Does your cat find it difficult to get along with other pets in the house, and often picks up a fight with the neighbourhood cats? Do you notice your cat acting annoyed and angry these days? If your feline companion is showing these and other signs of aggression, then it’s time that you take control of the situation, before it gets worse.

Signs of aggression in cats

Aggression in cats can be either offensive or defensive. Cats show offensive aggression when they want to attack or intimidate another cat or human; and show defensive aggression when they are under threat or feeling intimidated by another animal or person.

Though cats often communicate their feelings of anger and irritation through outward actions, body language and expressions, the signs of aggression may sometimes be subtle and may easily go unnoticed. Make sure you intently look out for these physical signs of aggression in your kitty.

• Growling and hissing for no apparent reason.


• Eyes staring directly at you.


• Upright ears (offensive posture) or ears flattened backward on the head (defensive posture).


• Raised fur along the neck, body and tail.


• l Tail pointing downwards towards the ground (offensive aggression), often moving in a back and forth swish, or tail turned sideways towards the opponent (defensive aggression).


• l Biting and scratching when petted or lifted.


• Frequent fights with other animals.

Causes of aggressive behaviour in cats

It’s important to diagnose the cause of aggression in order to treat the problem effectively. Your cat could be struggling with a health problem that’s causing her pain and discomfort, leading to an irritable mood; or it could be an environmental factor such as stress or boredom that might be making her furious. Below are some of the common causes of aggression in cats.

Illness or pain: Like us, cats also get grumpy and short-tempered when they are unwell or experiencing pain due to some illness. Several medical conditions such as hyperthyroidism, arthritis, dental diseases, epilepsy etc. have been known to cause aggression in cats. Consult a vet to identify any health problems that your cat might be suffering from.

Lack of healthy diet and exercise: Lack of nutritious diet and regular exercise is not only detrimental to your cat’s physical health, but it can also negatively impact her mental fitness, leading to moodiness and unhealthy behaviours.

Mistreatment: Has your cat been exposed to some sort of abuse or mistreatment in the past? Has she been ever attacked by some other animal? Painful experiences and mental trauma can cause her to avoid socialising with other animals and resist contact with humans.

Fearful situations: When cats find themselves in a frightening situation, they display defensive aggression. Your cat might be afraid of a pet dog, a particular person in the house, or something as harmless as a moving toy. Identify any such objects, animals or people that might be triggering aggressive behaviour in her.

Stressful surroundings: It’s essential that you provide your pet with a healthy environment, devoid of unnecessary stress. Your cat may experience stress due to different factors such as lack of space to move around and sleep, noisy surroundings, and being forced to live alongside things she fears, like a pet dog or another cat.

Territorial aggression: Cats, like dogs and other animals, strive to protect their territory and tend to attack other animals and even humans when they intrude into their space. Cats may chase other cats, and display other offensive signs such as biting, growling and swatting to keep out intruders and defend their territory.

Aggression between male cats: Unneutered male cats, as they reach adulthood, show aggressive behaviour towards other male cats, and get into fights, challenging and competing with them for mates.

Ways to deal with aggressive cats

• Take good care of your cat’s health by feeding her nutritious food.


• Incorporate games and other activities to keep her mentally fit, and to shave off boredom and moodiness that often lead to aggressive behaviours.


• Consult a vet to rule out on medical conditions that could be causing the problem.


• Watch out for warning signs of aggression. Pay attention to your kitty’s body language, and expressions before she gets into the aggressive mode, and try distracting her with catnip or lure toy, whenever you see an attack coming.


• Pet parents often underestimate their cat’s ability to hurt them. Do not encourage your cat to engage in rough play, and grip your hands and legs with their claws. Keep your cat’s claws trimmed to avoid them from causing serious injury while playing.


• Do not force your cat to do things she does not want to do. If she does not seem interested in playing, or tries to get away from you, don’t pursue her or restrain her in any way.


• If you have been monitoring your cat’s behaviour, and have still not been able to identify the problem, then consider seeking professional help and consulting an animal behaviour specialist for detailed analysis of the issue.

Is your kitty suffering from Separation anxiety

Do you often come home to shredded couch and tattered cushions? Do you find your kitty going berserk when you are about to leave home? Does your feline friend greet you with frantic joy when you return home after a long day at work? If you have been observing these and many other signs in your feline friend, don’t take the matter lightly. Your kitty could be suffering from what is known as the separation anxiety. Here’s how to handle it.

Cats suffer from separation anxiety, recent studies conducted by animal behaviour specialists have shown that our feline friends also crave for constant companionship and get flustered when they don’t find their pet parents around. Unlike dogs who howl loudly and get uncontrollably aggressive, cats are more subtle when it comes to displaying signs of separation anxiety.

You have got to have a keen eye to understand what your kitty is trying to tell you. Here are few signs to look out for, to find out if your cat is suffering from separation anxiety:

Extreme attachment: Is your kitty so attached to you that she follows you around the house? Does she mingle as freely with the other members in your family as she does with you? Cats suffering from separation anxiety show extreme attachment to their owners. Extreme dependency and clinginess could indicate separation anxiety in cats.

Pre-separation blues: When you are leaving home, do you find your cat displaying unusual behaviour like incessant meowing, hiding, sulking, etc. These behaviour changes indicate the pre-separation blues your cat is going through when you are about to leave home and the ways she is trying to grab your attention to stop you from leaving.

Desolation distress: When left alone at home your cat would express her dismay by

• Meowing and moaning loudly.


• Refusing to eat food even if it is her favourite food in the feeding bowl.


• Displaying aggressiveness by scratching doors, walls and fighting with cushions.


• Urinating and defecating near the door, on your clothes and at other inappropriate places.


• Compulsive self-grooming and excessive licking to the point of developing bald spots on her skin.

Joy of companionship: Upon reaching home, do you find your kitty greeting you like you have been away for years? Chances are that she has been really missing you and is now overjoyed at your return. Now that you are sure that your feline friend is struggling with separation anxiety. Here are few things you can do to get hold of the situation:

Your attitude: Don’t pay attention to your cat when you are preparing to leave and for few minutes after you reach home. By not paying heed to her until she calms down and behaves normally, you can reinforce good behaviour in your cat.

Training to stay alone: Let your kitty get used to the idea of being alone. Start by leaving her alone in the house for few minutes on a regular basis and slowly increase the time span. That way she would get over her fear of being alone and become more independent.

Reinforcing positive things with being alone: Distract your kitty by bringing out her favourite toy or a treat filled toy when you are leaving. Remove these toys when you get back home so that your kitty gets to enjoy these toys only when she is all alone. This would cause her to associate positive experiences with being alone and she would begin to look forward to the alone time.

No boredom blues: Make the environment at home more comfortable and stimulating so that your kitty is entertained and distracted from the thoughts of loneliness. A comfortable couch near the window from where your curious kitty can enjoy a nice view, a nice toy to cuddle with, climbing structures to help her move around freely and some food dispensing toys can go a long way in staving off boredom and keeping your kitty engaged.

Make her a family cat: Acquaint your cat with all members in the family. Encourage others to take turns in feeding her, playing with her and grooming her. That way your cat will become more amiable and you can have others to take care of her when you are not around.

Seek vet’s advice: Discuss this problem with the veterinarian. Your vet would be able to analyse the underlying cause of separation anxiety and prescribe some medications if needed.

Conquering separation anxiety takes time. Be patient and supportive towards your cat and she would be able to boost her confidence and become more comfortable with the idea of being alone.