What is the best thing to buy for a baby kitten (other than food, place to sleep, water, etc)?

Question

what are some good toys or other objects that i can play with my kitten with. It likes trying to catch my hand when i wave it around. So a ball with a string on it? I just got it yesterday night so any ideas?

Answer 1

CATNIP TOYS... there are some where you open them and stuff them with fresh catnip.

there are others that look like fishing poles with feathers

have lots of fun

Make SURE to have your cat SPAYED/ NEUTERED before they mature ... this will keep them more kitten like.  And reduce the cat population too.

Answer 2

Get one of those long stick toys with a dangling mouse (or any other toy at the end).You control t he stick & the long string holds the toy - my cats love it!

Answer 3

I have plenty of ideas to share with you! A couple months ago a pregnant stray cat adopted me and had kittens the very next day, so I've been thrust into caring for kittens and all the joys and headaches that come along with it!

Here is what my six kittens have enjoyed playing with:

First, the things you can find for free around the house:

-Boxes, including- Kitty litter box cut in half; a shoebox with lid taped on and a hole cut in top Kleenex-box-style; 1x1x1.5 foot box closed up with a few kitten sized entry holes cut out- any box will be fun for kitties!

-tub with chunk of my lawn!- so they can experience the outdoors- a plastic tub size of a kitchen sink, and I dug up a patch of the back yard and stuffed it in- only do this if you DO NOT use lawn chemicals! They love to play and nap on this. They nibble a little on the grass, too. I replace the lawn chunk weekly.

-Paper grocery bag, open and on it's side. Tear a few small holes in for kitty to stick her paw through.

-Wadded up paper balls-  Make sure kitty doesn't try to eat these, if so take them away.

-A small stuffed animal- they love the ones that are the size of themselves or a little smaller. When they want to chew on me, I put the stuffed toy in their paws instead and rub their bellies so they know the toy is the appropriate thing to chew on. They stalk these too. Adorable.

-An old towel- this is a GREAT interactive toy, and can be useful, too- I gently (only very slightly snug, NOT TIGHT!) roll the kittens up in it and it helps keep them calm and quiet when it's claw clipping time. For playing, I just grab a corner of the towel and pull it across the top of a kitty and they get a huge kick out of it, rolling and grabbing on, getting up and chasing and pouncing. I lay it on top of a kitty (the first few times leave their heads just barely peeking out so they don't feel trapped) and they roll and fight with this "enemy". I can dangle it and they enjoy it as much as a string. (Sounds like your kitty loves to chase and attack things, so this would be perfect!) One of my kittens likes being rolled up burrito style and then I lift the end of the towel to send him into a gentle unspin, which he loves to do over and over and over!

Things I have bought for my kittens:

-Cat Scratcher, a low box with a corrugated cardboard chunk inside meant for clawing, infused with catnip- mama cat loves the catnip and babies love clawing and playing "King of the Cat Scratcher". Try raising one end on a wood block or book for climbing fun.

-Catnip felt mice- easy to pick up with claws, fun to stalk

-Ping pong balls- my kittens LOVE the noise and how easily the balls roll

-Crackle balls- sparkly and crinkly fun

-A dog's rawhide square cut into smaller strips or squares- not a favorite toy, but they will actually gnaw on these sometimes. The rawhide is thick enough they can't chew any off (which is good- i don't want them swallowing this)

-Colored round cat rings- find these in the cat section of pet stores. They are squiggly plastic rings, milk-jug ring size, but are cat safe.  My kittens adore them. They chew on them, carry them around (cute cute!), and generally bat at and play with them.

-Fake feathery bird toy, connected to a stick- fun interactive toy

-A scratching post- cats outdoors scratch trees to keep their claws in shape. Scratching vertical things just feels right to them. Get some sort of vertical scratching post or a scratching box that hangs from a doorknob to save your sofa and plush chairs!

** And the All-Time Favorite Kitten Toy for my kitties: **

-A 1x1.5 foot piece of short-nap carpet, tacked to a wall. (You could buy a super-cheap kitchen rug instead.) The carpet loops allow kitties to climb and claw. I hang it so it droops on to the floor, and they LOVE playing in the little "tunnel" this creates. They play with this for AGES! There's not much cuter than a spazzy kitten bouncing along and suddenly leaping for the carpet on the wall and landing Velcro-style on it, ears out to the sides and tail twitching! Velcro Kitties! I don't have a cat tree yet, so this is a very cheap alternative I'll use until I can get one.

Teach your kitty you aren't a chew toy or scratching post- when she bites you, put a small stuffed toy or mouse in her paws instead. If she keeps it up, walk away from her for a minute and don't interact with her- this way she learns you'll only play if she plays nice. If she jumps on you with her claws, tell her NO! and velcro her on to her scratching post or wall carpet instead and she'll learn that is the place to use her claws.

Try rotating the toys. Put half or so away for a week or whatever. Then switch them and your kitty will be stoked thinking she has new toys! This also helps prevent her from getting bored of the toys.

I am happy for you and your new kitten. Have fun with your new fuzzy little baby!

Answer 4

something you can make yourself- get a used up toilet paper roll, wrap a lot of paper around so it sticks out and stuff and then tie it with a piece of string so the middle of the toilet paper roll is sort of scrunched up and so you can hang on to the other end. then get a kid to run around your house with that dragging behind and your cat will chase it!

Answer 5

A non expensive soft toy. Possibly a cat or tiger! It will fight it and practise it's hunting skills like it would do with it's mother and siblings and save your hands and feet being hurt later.

If it's very young then I would suggest a feather teaser, it will go wild if you wave it in front of it!

I have lots of toys for my kitty, I even make them myself! :0)

Answer 6

One tip is to not let your kitten play with your bare hand, it could lead to a biter. They have gloves with long dangling fingers if you want to use your hand. They love fishing pole toys, make sure you put anything with string or feathers where the kitten can't get it without you. When my cats were kittens they loved a wadded up ball of paper, my girl will still dive into the trash to get one out if she catches you throwing away some paper. Small balls, soft ones so it doesn't hurt when you step on them ;o) and a must is at least one good scratching post.

Answer 7

Something like Rubik Cube or even Electronic Sudoku.  It should certainly keep your kitten busy and from causing nuisance to your neighbours garden and rats.

Answer 8

First of all, NEVER play with a kitten with your hand. It's cute when they're little to have them claw and bite at your hand, but not so cute when they have grown. Kittens need toys that will help develop their tracking ability as they are not born with this. Balls, feathers, ribbon, string, are all good for this but remember that you will most often be fetching the items until the kitten can track them properly. A good laser pointer is the best as you can control the speed of movement and actively teach the kitten. It all comes down to nature, kitten play always involves ways that will help the adult cat be a better hunter. Some other ideas are from around the house...milk gallon ring, ball of paper, empty spool.

never use anything that you would not want an adult cat to get into or take.

Answer 9

They all love a nice scented catnip post of any type.  They will love u 4ever if you get that!!

Answer 10

Get plenty of ping pong balls. Cats love to push these around and chase after them. My neighbor had 16 and their cat lost all of them  from accidentally rolling them under a couch or oven. It's really funny!

Laser pointers work really well. I have yet so see a cat that doesn't go crazy over them. My grandma's cat starts meowing and following you around if you just pick it up!

Little balls with bells in them. Cats and kittens alike love the sound of them and will chase them around the house. Some owners even train their cats to bring the ball back to them when they throw it!

Feathery things seem to attract cats. Maybe something with many little feathers or one big one. It doesn't really matter, cats love them anyways.

Things that zip around really fast. No matter what it is cats seem to enjoy them. Sometimes go really slow then really fast or either one. They go crazy!

Random strings seem to attract cats. To matter what it is, if it dangles, it's a toy.

Sometimes getting another person and playing pickle in the middle with your cat will be fun. Some cats even back-flip for the toy!

Good luck and have fun!