Cat Toys From Reused Household Items

By Stephanie Sharpe, Planet Green

Cat lovers will do almost anything for their cats. Buy organic treats, luxurious cat beds, fancy toys—anything to keep your kitty comfortable and entertained. This makes for big business surrounding pet pampering. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Your feline friend may be just as happy with ‘toys’ you already have around the house.

For example I’ve always heard that cats love the plastic rings from the tops of milk jugs. However my cats have long been deprived since I tend to buy soy milk or organic milk in cartons. But thanks to my roommate, my cats have now discovered the joy of milk cap rings, and I discovered the joy of watching them play with them.

Take a break from kitty consumerism and try offering a few of these reusable household items as toys. You can spice up the ‘toys’ with cat nips or treats to make them even more interesting. It’s a great way to reuse household items that were headed for the recycling bin anyway, plus have tons of fun with your kitty.

Household Items that Double as Cat Toys

Paper bags (remove any handles)
Cardboard boxes (spice things up with a cat fort or make a cat scratcher)
Old or torn sock (pour in some catnip to make it more interesting)
Crumpled up scrap paper
Tissue paper that is too old for reuse
Milk rings (with supervision)
Old newspaper (when you’re done, donate them for animals)
Pencils (unsharpened) or pens (remove ink)

Animal Planet also suggests:

Toilet paper tubes (try putting treats inside)
Wine cork
Shower curtain rings
Egg carton with treats inside

Note: for your cat’s safety, don’t let them play with anything smaller than a ping pong ball without supervision. Also be wary of strings and ribbons, cats can easily choke on these.

Each of my cats has their favorite style of toy. One of them goes crazy for paper products like cardboard boxes and crumpled newspaper, while the other prefers to play with anything resembling a stick, like pencils or pens. So if your cat doesn’t seem interested in one toy, just give another a try.

There is nothing like watching your cat discover something new. And you can enjoy this priceless fun for no price at all!

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Kamryn M.

11:59AM PDT on May 21, 2012

boxes and paper balls are the best :)

send a green star

Carole R.

3:26PM PDT on Oct 16, 2011

Great ideas. I actually have that same box in my livingoom right now. :0)

John S.

11:24AM PDT on May 22, 2011

Thanks

Past Member .

1:45PM PST on Feb 1, 2011

my Little Man B00 steals my nail files and pens off my desk, claims any cardboard box in the house and sleeps on top of paper bags...it isnt pretty to look at but he is happy and that counts to me. the only store bought toy he will play with is little fake fur mice, which he uses only to play fetch with me in the mornings.

Teresa W.

8:53AM PST on Jan 22, 2011

interesting

3:06AM PST on Dec 23, 2010

lol some good ideas, another one >> chicken feathers. I often walk around and whenever I see a nice feather I have a new toy for my cats. The pencil one sounds very familiar, whenever I want to write down something I can search under the couch etc first :)

Carolanne P.

11:18AM PDT on Oct 9, 2010

Collect feathers from your local duck pond or nature sanctuary. I had one cat that used to go nuts if I dropped a cotton bud on the floor. They also love a laser or torch light shone on a wall & any noisy, crinkley paper.

Merelen K.

9:59AM PDT on Oct 3, 2010

My cat used to be fascinated by shoes. Not just the laces, either. He loved to stick his arm in to see if anything was in there.

Sara M.

1:44PM PDT on Sep 19, 2010

I agree with all the above mentioned ideas with one exception, the wine cork. This is because the cat can chew it into pieces that can then become lodged in his/her mouth. I had a group of rescue kittens and one of them, Moe, was choking. When I opened his mouth I was able to extract a piece of styrofoam he had found. If I had not been there I would have had a dead cat on my hands and that is unthinkable. Cats can't call 911 or run to a neighbors with their hands on their throat indicating "I'm choking." so it is best to be very careful not to let them have access to anything that can't be swallowed or spit out. Wine corks and styrofoam can’t absorb saliva so it remains lodged in their mouth until the muscles finally work it further down and cause suffication.

Margaret B.

5:15AM PDT on Sep 6, 2010

My cats' favorite toys are all mostly "unintentional" cat toys.