I work from home. I’m guessing many of you do, too.
I juggle a busy family. I’m guessing many of you do that, too.
I also love my cats, Newt and Ripley, to absolute pieces, and I’m positive you love your cats, too.
But, sheesh. They sure can plan the exact right moment to walk across your keyboard, knock a (full) glass to the floor, or waggle their butt on Zoom. Not the mention the vocalizing. Right when the school nurse / boss / doctor’s office calls you, the yowling starts. (Or is that just Newt?)
I want my cats to be happy. I want them to be happy AND I still need to get stuff done. So, today, let’s dig into how to keep your cat entertained while you’re working through that miles-long to-do list.
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Set the Foundation for a Happy Cat
Before you can utilize the steps outlined in this post, there are a handful of things that must happen first.
- You need to meet all of your cat’s basic survival needs. What does that include?
- You need to meet your cat’s connection needs. What does that mean?
- Your cat truly wants to spend time with you. Some cats prefer play; others want to cuddle. Make sure you’re meeting your cat’s need to spend time with you.
- Exercise is super important, too. This can include meeting other needs at the same time, like by playing together, or it could include providing cat trees, tunnels or donuts, toys, or a laser pointer (this one’s controversial and cat dependent… check with your vet or trainer).
- Your cat needs lots of downtime in a stress-free, restful environment. What does that look like?
- Plenty of places high and low for a nap.
- Opportunities to rest away from children, dogs, other cats, and other household chaos.
- Cats need to scratch. Provide lots of choices for scratching posts to deter your cat from scratching your sofa. This is an excellent way to meet your cat’s playful needs, too, with interactive cat scratchers like this sunflower interactive scratching post.
Only after your cat’s foundational needs are met can you look into outsourcing some of your involvement.
Tap Into Your Cat’s Natural Predatory Sequence
Cats are natural hunters. The predatory sequence mimics hunting:
- Your cat spots the prey and crouches down low with big eyes.
- She stalks and chases the prey.
- Then, she pounces and grabs.
- Finally, the kill. This is often when you see your cat “bunny kick” her toys.
Use this instinctive behavior to your advantage because it’s very satisfactory to a cat to complete the predatory sequence.
Provide toys, like toy mice or even crinkled-up newspaper, that your cat can hunt. Or, consider investing in an automatic interactive cat toy that you can break out for your cat when you need to focus on a task that doesn’t require her input!
BTW, this is why a laser toy isn’t recommended for all people and cats. There’s no way for a cat to complete the sequence since she’ll never be able to pounce and grab. One workaround is to always end a play session by swapping the dot for something your cat can grab and kill, like a food-stuffed toy.
Bring the Outdoors in with Sensory Enrichment
Indoor cats live longer lives than outdoor cats. This post won’t get into the arguments for keeping your cat inside; instead, I’m going to assume that you do. If you want to read more about why this matters, check out the book Decoding Your Cat.
However, bringing the outside in can provide your cat with incredible enrichment that can keep her focused and playful while you log into your Teams meeting.
- Position cat trees or a cat window perch so your cat can watch the activity outside. We have a cat window perch similar to this one in our front window so the girls can watch cars, bikes, school busses, dog walkers, and UPS trucks. I have a cat tree in my office window, which overlooks a tree so they can watch squirrels and birds. There’s a third cat tree in a quiet corner of the living room. They have choices.
- Layer different scents for olfactory exploration. This can be as simple as bringing cut flowers in from the garden and allowing your cat to sniff to her content. Or, plant catnip or cat grass in a container that you can make available when you want to give your cat something to do–sniffing can be fun and rewarding for your cat. Disclaimer: Ensure the plants are non-toxic. Check the ASPCA’s toxic plants list to be sure.
- Some people like YouTube channels that portray bird or squirrel watching. I do not, at least not for Newt, for the same reason the laser pointer can be tricky: Your cat can’t complete the predatory sequence. But she might try to and launch herself into your TV. No one wants that! You know your cat best, though, and this could be a good fit for her.
- Make a sensory basket. Gather up sticks, leaves, flower buds, perhaps a bird feather–whatever you can gather and feel comfortable bringing inside. When you need to focus on a project or a household task, or you need to take a call, spread the items out (or leave them in the basket for your cat to dig!) and allow her to engage, chew, sniff, paw, scratch, etc. If you live somewhere with a cold season, this is super fun with a bowl of snow!
The Power of Rotating Your Cat’s Toys
Regardless of what type of toys your cat prefers, it’s a classic mistake to toss them all into one basket in the living room.
Those toys become part of the landscape and won’t hold your cat’s interest.
Instead, choose a few toys to put out at any given time. Then, stash the rest in a closet or bin. Swap them out every two or three days. If you have big Zoom meetings or phone calls that need your undivided attention, swapping them right before is a great idea because you’ll pique your cat’s curiosity and buy yourself some cat-interruption-free time.
This is especially true if you buy a new toy for your cat. Don’t set it out until you need to take care of another task.
Leverage “Smart Toys” for Focused Work Blocks
There are gobs of “smart toys” for cats on the market right now, but they are not all created equally. For instance, you want to avoid the automatic laser toys and anything that projects an image your cat can’t actually catch and “kill.”
Utilizing appropriate smart toys makes the most sense when you need your cat to be busy but you are unable to play with her, or if you need to redirect your cat from an unwanted behavior (read: sitting on your keyboard during the workday).
3 smart toy options for cats that can help keep her busy while you are also busy:
- Motion-activated: These toys spring to life when your cat interacts with them. This flapping bat toy keeps cats engaged with chirping noises, along with the motion. And this whack-a-mole cat game also comes with an interactive non-electronic companion game.
- Treat dispensing: My personal favorite! There are puzzle food dispensing toys or licky mats. There are options to bat around and food dispensing toys designed to be hidden around the house. They keep my cats busy while providing their meal. I love treat and food dispensing toys.
- Hidden teasers: These types of toys give your cat something to chase, pounce, and bat, but the object usually remains hidden. This is great for cats who love to pounce on their prey because this hidden teaser interactive cat toy has a ball that the cat can actually catch.
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Low-Tech, Non-Electronic Interactive Cat Toys
Not everyone wants to integrate smart toys in their pet care. And, for those of us who do, sometimes we forget to charge the darn thing up. (This happens ALL THE TIME with my dog Stola’s automatic ball.)
Add a few non-electronic interactive toys to your toy rotation.
Just before you jump on a call, break out this multi-feature interactive cat toy with dozens of different options for your cat to play with, from diving in and out of the box to batting at the feather and more.
Or, rotate in a scratching post that includes interactive elements. I would recommend something like this spinning carousel cat scratcher and toy combo to be part of your rotation. If you leave it out all the time, your cat might eventually ignore it altogether. But if you pull it out of the closet for a day or two, it’ll be exciting again!
Bookend the Day with Five Minutes of Play
Yes, independent play is great. But it doesn’t supplant YOUR time and attention. Try to play with your cat for five or ten minutes in the morning and then another burst in the evening.
Cats are crepuscular, which means they’re most active at dawn and dusk. That gives you two specific pockets of time to leverage your attention. Then, segue into breakfast or dinner utilizing an interactive feeding puzzle or licky mat to meet all your cat’s enrichment needs!
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