Why don’t my cats like the cat nip I bought them?

[Marie2023]

I bought my cats a small cat nip bush from the garden centre. They have completely ignored it. Even when I pick them up and put them near it, they just turn around and walk off.

I thought all cats loved cat nip. Is it just mine who don’t?

We don't buy anything with cat nip in after a previous cat 'overdosed' and nearly died.

Mine doesn't like it either. Dried or grown from seed. Neighhour's cat can't get enough of it though!
Mine tolerated cat grass. But you had to cut and feed it to him, he wouldn't get it himself.

They don't always like live plants - when it's dried as it is in catnip toys it concentrates the smell and they like it more.

BTW if they do like the plant it's hard to keep it alive as they will eat it and lie on it and squash it to death so you can't win!

Here's one of mine happily squashing the plant

Not all cats have the catnip appreciation gene
Those that don't usually go mad for valerian

@3smallpups my parents cat is just like that.

Loads of cats don't like it. Two of mine go mad for it but one just looks confused and walks off 😂

All my cats have loved catnip, but my friend's cat curls her lip, jumps back sneezes and won't go near it now.I guess they are all different .

A proportion of cats don't react to catnip at all. If yours are related probably have same genes.
I thought mine was one of them but as he's got older he seems more 'susceptible'

BTW if they do like the plant it's hard to keep it alive as they will eat it and lie on it and squash it to death so you can't win!

Nah - you've just got to keep it out of paws reach until it looks healthy enough to survive the onslaught. I've got 2 big spreads from 5 plug plants that survive being chewed, rolled on, sat in... by Lard-Arse-Leroy and some random local felines. Right proper drug den here 😂 Sure, they don't look great... but they're not there to look good they're there to keep bees and cats happy.

Cos you bought it for them and they are cats.

This is the whole answer.

Thanks everyone, I just thought ALL cats liked cat nip.

I can't help calling it Cat Weed...
A cat I had once used to go crazy for my sleepy tea, which had valerian in it. Once came downstairs to torn used teabag all over the kitchen floor

Not all cats like it.
How much cat nip do they need to overdose. I usually give them a pinch, but worried now.

Cat mint and the cat mint that is cat nip aren't necessarily the same plants - we bought the wrong sort....

Research at the moment indicates 30-50% of cats lack the gene for catnip appreciation - this PetMD article talks about that & suggests alternatives. A PP also mentioned valerian, which my two - who are utterly unbothered by catnip - go mad for. (Sadly for my brother’s valerian tea in their kittenhood… 😸)

St Brides, I was coming to say the same thing.

Because they're cats. If you bought it for them, freely, it has no value. Hide it somewhere just out of reach and they'll be desperate for it.

Some cats don’t care for cat nip, but you could try Silvervine. You can get them in chew sticks or shavings from what I’ve seen and some cats love them, it’s similar to catnip.