A question for all you cat people

[The Zigman]

my crazy girlfriend just got another cat, now she has 2 cats, and a dog..

Where do you buy cat stuff?

I mean kensfish is the place to buy cheap fish stuff, where is the cheap cat stuff?

Looking for cat towers and climbing things...
scratching posts, toys and that kinda stuff...

Also do you know of anything that will keep the dog outta the cats food?

Thanks!

[lorindaleigh]

Ebay! They have a few awesome cat trees for $99 with free shipping!

[lorindaleigh]

The only way we can keep zeus (one of our dogs) out of the cat food is by putting the cat food where he can't reach it. The dryer is what we use lol. If u get a cat tree that would work.

[leeser28]

my crazy girlfriend just got another cat, now she has 2 cats, and a dog..

Where do you buy cat stuff?

I mean kensfish is the place to buy cheap fish stuff, where is the cheap cat stuff?

Looking for cat towers and climbing things...
scratching posts, toys and that kinda stuff...

Also do you know of anything that will keep the dog outta the cats food?

Thanks!

I always get stuff from a regular pet store - as for the dogs, you have to put the food somewhere where they can't get to it. We keep ours down in the basement and the door has a cat door in it so that dog can't get down there. I know others have it up on a table or counter. Good luck.

[AshK]

IME buying cat toys is a waste of money. Cardboard boxes, bits of string and laser pointers are just as good as those expensive froo froo shiny toys. Getting catnip in bulk and rubbing it on a durable reusable toy is a better choice than those cheaply made toys filled with catnip that they shred in seconds.

Lol, my cats never really bothered with those equally expensive cat "trees." A blanket in an accessible windowsill was much more appreciated.

[Kashta]

Cheap cat stuff can also be found in 'pets' on Craigslist. Or post a "wanted" ad yourself. Pet stores always charge too much... as we already know.

Another tip about using catnip is to let it steep for a while in some hot water, making something of a strong catnip tea out of it. After that cools, fill up a small squirt bottle with it to spritz it on something they can play with... like that cat furniture or their scratching post. The dried leaves can then go into an old (clean) sock or glove and then stitched closed.

[bettagurl]

Don't bother buying cat toys. Small stuffed animals, old socks filled with catnip and lightly crumpled paper(for the crinkly sounds), and home made string toys are much cheaper.

Also, making a cat tree is VERY simple, take a 4X4 and nail a piece of plywood on the end, stabilize the bottom using 2X4's or something, attach a cushion to the plywood and you have a cat tree... Paint it, wrap a rug around the bottom, whatever if you want ti to be 'pretty'.

Adding levels is just as easy, but IME, cats a re just as happy to sit in the window or on you bed than a $100+ cat tree.

Also, buy bulk catnip, rub it on their toys, favorite resting places ect.

And, as already said, the only way to keep a dog out of the cat food for good is to put it out of his reach.

[kj5kb]

ditto the previous 3 posts.

#1 kitty toy around here is a long old shoelace (or 2 tied end-end)...sometimes tied to a stick.

Anything with catnip in/on it, sew up some in a little fabric bag or 'cat safe' stuffed animal(no button eyes they can swallow,etc).

wad o'crumpled paper

cheap to buy:
sponge 'golf' balls
kitty balls with the bell in 'em...except they always break when you step on 'em.

scratching post? well, ours have always laid on their sides and shredded the carpet on the first stair step...so I let them. They also have an Alpine scratcher they use: http://www.cosmicpet.com/scratchers.htm

Checkout petsolutions.com...cat AND fish AND Dog stuff...

Feed the cat in another room? I only feed my cats 3-4x daily, a small amount they will eat in one session.

[bluerat]

IME buying cat toys is a waste of money. Cardboard boxes, bits of string and laser pointers are just as good as those expensive froo froo shiny toys. Getting catnip in bulk and rubbing it on a durable reusable toy is a better choice than those cheaply made toys filled with catnip that they shred in seconds.

Lol, my cats never really bothered with those equally expensive cat "trees." A blanket in an accessible windowsill was much more appreciated.


mine love their toys... spider kitty plays alot with his and the cat i lost last year used to wander around the house with a small stuffed toy snail in his mouth . but they all differ so much, it just depends on their personality at the end of the day

[justahannah]

Cardboard boxes and paper bags are my cats' absolute favorites. Another is a toy I made...I went to a fabric store, bought a 10 foot long feather boa for a couple bucks, cut it into a few lengths (to make extras since the feathers get torn up after some heavy use), tied a few jingle bells onto one end, a stick on the other and drag it around. I can make my cats do flips with it :D

[Nolapete]

All you need is a laser pointer and your cats will be entertained for hours on end chasing the image on the wall. Most chain pet stores have them with a mouse design for the image.

One of the best things you can get is a cardboard scratch box like http://www.amazon.com/Omega-Paw-SB-Scratch-Box/dp/B0009RTECY/ref=pd_bxgy_k_img_b. Some of them come with catnip in them.

Drs. Foster and Smith has a CAT-alog :D with cat stuff.

[excuzzzeme]

No such thing as dog-proof cat food! I wish there was. Pick it up and put it up - problem solved the only way it can be.

Fancy, pricey toys are made for human eye appeal and not for cats. Most self-respecting cats won't play with them.

I made our own cat post/tree out of an old carpet, wood, and some jute. Rubbed some catnip on it and 4 years later I need to replace the carpet that has been shredded!

Her favorite toy is me. Her idea of play is throwing her self down in front of me and when I pat real hard she goes nuts, runs 2 or 3 paces and throws herself down again. Chasing her own shadow, plastic or paper sacks, pieces of dry cat food, spiders, a clump of dog hair that has been shed, or even attacking the dog. Pet store toys are completely ignored. Go figure!

[Nolapete]

Use the cardboard ones and you can just throw them out instead of having to replace the carpet.

[caitylee]

My cats favorite toys are my daughters hair barrettes and dum dum lollipops my cat Gravy just loves to play with the dum dums. Jason (DooSPX) even covered one in painters tape and he just loves it. The only way my cats use the cat tree is that I put it outside on the enclosed patio next to the open window. They don't like to get on it unless they can see outside.

I don't have a dog but my parents do and they have the cats food up on the counter in the half bath that rarely gets used. I just feed my cats a little in the morning and a little at night so there is rarely any food in the bowls. Especially if Gravy (he is on a diet) has anything to say about that.

Giblet and Gravy just love laser pointers too and only Giblet likes catnip. Not all cats respond well to catnip.

[Nolapete]

I've yet to find a cat that doesn't like catnip and I've had at least 25 during my life. The last four cats I've had would get completed wacked out stoned on it. I couldn't give it to them all the time.

[caitylee]

10-30% of the cat population does not respond to catnip at all, at any age. This is due to genetics -- reactions to catnip are hereditary. Some cats are genetically "programmed" to respond to catnip, some aren't.
I found this on the net, guess gravy is in the 10-30% because he could care less about catnip lol.

[Nolapete]

Weird, must be part dog :D

[crimsonmoon]

my cat doesn't care for catnip either. i got her a little cat scratch thing with catnip stuff in it, and she still won't touch it.
her favorite toy is a turquoise rubber band lol. she will ambush it, roll around with it till it stops trying to escape, then trot around with it in her mouth, making sure we see what she caught lol
she also loves this little stuffed lion we got from walmart. it doesn't have catnip in it, but she will carry it around in her mouth all day.
i second the thing about every cat being different.

[red_wall]

My mom's cat, Dora, hates raw catnip, she literally scrunches up her nose at it, and runs away. My other cat, Domino loves it though.

Dora has a favorite mouse, that she plays with any time it's out. It's kinda crazy, she'll do anything to get it. Its a little grey mouse covered in catnip (she likes toys in catnip, just not it straight out) that we got from petsmart.

Domino likes a monkey and chicken. She NEVER plays with them, but she brings them into my room when she wants me. I don't know why, really. I just find them in my room all the time, or sitting at the front of my room's door.

We probably have about 40 small cat toys, which, they dont touch, except the ones mentioned above. We bought a scratchy-pad that has catnip inside of it, that they scratch a LOT. Made out of cardboard and lasts a while. When Domino gets mad at me, she goes and takes her anger out on the scratchy pad.

Other than that, they love laser pointers (but get bored easily with it), string, foil balls (make sure they cant eat it), and leaves.

[Nolapete]

Some brands go stale easily. I've found that certain brands my cats would scrunch the nose and run off thing. I tried different brands, can't remember which ones, and found some that they went nuts over. I would sprinkle some in a about a 12" circle on the carpet then sit on the sofa and wait. They'd initially come into the room slowly sniffing the air investigating. Once they found where it was, they would go nuts rolling around in it like pigs in mud.

[noodles62]

When we had a cat, we put the food and litter box in the laundry room with a baby gate up to keep the dogs out of the food and the litter box! (my corgis love "kitty Roca"!)

[dixienut]

no such thing as cheap cat toys except homemade ones, and keeping the litterbox/food in a utility room with door shut and a cat door indoors on it works good, or you have to keep the dog out till cat is done eating,.. which is a pita,...lol