The Washington Post just put out an article titled How to Keep Your Cat From Losing Its Mind, and I couldn't be happier! The author Karin Brulliard touched on so many topics that I feel most cat owners ignore: that indoor cats are bored beyond belief.
If you're one of my clients you may have heard me say before that I believe that cats are not as domesticated as we make them out to be. They still have those desires to hunt, stalk, and pounce and instead of encouraging those behaviors in appropriate ways, we make them settle by giving them a cat condo and calling it quits. That's not good enough.
I'm not saying let your city slicker cat outside, or fill your homes with expensive carpet covered cat condos, but I do want your creative juices to start flowing. I certainly had to think outside the box when we adopted our cats, and I admit I have a difficult time coming up with new and exciting ideas. So I turn on an episode of My Cat From Hell and Jackson Galaxy inspires me! Creating fun spaces for them that encourage them to jump, climb, and watch 'prey' (they have visual access to my flock all day) keeps them happy and entertained and I don't have jerk cats that tip over cups or claw up things they aren't supposed to.
I bet you didn't know that urinary tract problems in cats can be caused by boring indoor living! Pandora Syndrome is the term for the litany of health and behavior problems that can be caused by a stuffy, boring, depressing environment for a cat. Now that alone should get you pumped to start creating some exciting things for your Garfield.
Before you get started, make sure to tailor anything to the wants of your cat. Not all cats like cat condos if they're bush dwellers that prefer to stay on the ground in dark cozy hiding spaces. Rethink how you feed them as well. I feed all of our cats off the ground - it forces them to jump up to their food and water. You can even try using food puzzles for cats which can help them lose weight! Read this article in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, it's pretty awesome!
Here's a list of some things to think about to create a cat friendly home:
- Does your cat have visual access to wildlife? Think about a catio or use window bird feeders where your cat can watch them upclose from the indoors.
- How are you feeding your cat? Cats are not cows and get bored from 'grazing' their food that is out all day/night. Consider set mealtimes, food puzzles, or an automatic feeder on a timer.
- Do you encourage your cat to climb to high places? Think about installing some simple shelving or moving furniture around to facilitate natural climbing behaviors.
- Does your cat have a way to act out natural hunting skills? Think of a 'wack-a-mole' type toy, or any toy with erratic movements.
- Is your cat bored with the toys you currently have? Odds are they are probably out 24/7 sitting in the same cat toy box on the floor. Consider rotating toys and putting unused toys away out of sight. Also move toys around from room to room.
