Enrichment for a cat who won't play.

[Toddlerteaplease]

I've bought loads of toys for Madam Penelope, they've all been ignored. I don't want her to be bored. What else can I try, to engage her brain cells?

Forgot cat tax.

My cats, who do go out, seem to enjoy a good stint of looking out the window every day.
I put some cat trees and scratch poles near the windows which seems to be appreciated.
Mine only like very specific toys and get bored by them easily. They quite like ones that they can pick up and fling about, especially if this means they then roll/move by themselves.
They're quite interested in hidden things too. As kittens they were very keen on toys or treats in semi hidden places like under a washing basket. Basically the toys had to be a bit like prey.

Their tree is never to the window. And she can jump into the windowsills. But she doesn't seem to bother with that anymore. She spends the majority of her time upstairs.

She's a Persian, so they are pretty dopey. But she's much younger than the others I've had. So expected her to be a bit more playful.

She is gorgeous in that ‘fuck you’ cat way

She's absolutely gorgeous!!

Mine love cat hammocks in the window, being tickled from below or teased with a flirt pole so they can attack it.

Tbh mine decide when they play and what with - often their face tours are not cat ones 😂 maybe invest in lots of phone charger cables, some socks, ties to aprons and pens?

Puzzle feeders x

Puzzle feeders or slow feeding bowls/balls to get her interested?

I LOVE her!!
Mine don't play with toys really but they are hunters so I am assuming get all their 'play' from hunting.
They sometimes chase like a long bit of fabric pulled on a stick or you know the security plastic from a hummus tub? That seems to be popular 😅
They have a ball on a track thing that they will occasionally play with but that's about it! Something with catnip maybe?

Catnip - Although it made me feel as if I was the cat's drug dealer.

If she isn't energetic then slow or puzzle feeders.

I'd also recommend watching a Jackson Galaxy video on how to play with your cats.

It turned one of mine loves playing, just I was rubbish at it. The other one really really doesn't even with improved me.

Have you tried teaching her commands eg sit, high five if she is food motivated? My family mocked me but turned out one cat was a very fast learner and enjoyed it.

Mine took a year or two to start playing. I adopted her when she was five and she was honestly just stressed out. Once she relaxed and understood her routine she started running around the garden. She loves her shoestring!

Have you tried a large feather?
Basil behaves like a kitten when we use them.

Ours loves a ping pong ball in a box! Or a feather on a wand slowly dragged under a rug - she loves pouncing on it as it disappears! I tried expensive toys but she wasn't fussed by them.

A pile of cardboard boxes for her to explore?

Try silvervine if she isn't motivated by catnip. Can buy from Amazon, rub a pinch on a toy, use sparingly!

I wonder if this is the case with her. She's 3. But somethings about her just don't quite add up. I do wonder what happened to her. She's on her third (& final) home.

They already have slow feeders, to stop Cheddar puking. But because their faces are so flat, they struggle with the deeper style ones.

Actually I wonder if she likes the proved covers from the thermometers we have at work. I have found them in odd places recently. I tend to come home with pockets full of them. The late Maia would fish them out of the bin.

She's gorgeous OP. One of my cats, one of her favourite things to play with is the plastic seal strip from a wine box 😂 she has a million toys but that bit of plastic will keep her amused for hours!

My other cat seems to get the most pleasure from watching me do things. I have a lot of craft hobbies and she'll just sit and watch me for ages.

You never know what they'll get in to. She will just probably find something absurd One day that she just loves!

I have a box full of scrumpled up paper which I throw treats into. Would Penelope enjoy something like this? (Sorry for the "sensitive image" but I expect you can all cope with a cat's bottom)

Waves to another Katkin parent.

(quick thread hijack, do you think the trays aren’t as full as they used to be, my boy scoffs his in minutes but still looks around for more)

Boxes have been completely ignored by both cats!

I use a deep puzzle feeder for cat to pull the kibble out with her feet.

I remember the look of absolute disgust on her face when we first got it, she hadn't a clue what to do. Then our elderly demented cat walked over and started fishing out kibble immediately.

It keeps her busy for a little while. Other cat, who is only motivated by himself, just stares and I swear would starve to death before he deigned to work for a living.

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I feel your pain, but in a very different way! My cats have tons of toys, we play with them every night and they still smack seven shades of shit out of each other, just for fun. They broke their puzzle feeder because they were too impatient to get the treats out manually 🙈