While you’ll need to get a little creative, there are plenty of ways that you can play with your cat without spending a dime on cat toys. We highlighted 10 different options here for you to consider. After you check out this list, you might be able to come up with a few of your own that are perfect for your cats!
The 10 Tips on How to Play With a Cat Without Toys
- Hide and Seek Image Credit: Mantikorra, Shutterstock
Effectiveness: Moderate
Ease of Completion: Challenging
This is one of the most creative and fun ways that you can play with your cat. It’s all about hiding and finding each other, which turns into a great bonding activity. Just know that your cat will likely do a better job of finding you, and it might take you a while to find them! Teaching your cat hide-and-seek is no easy job. But if you already have a strong relationship with your cat and don’t mind the training, playing hide and seek with your cat might be a great way to spend time together. Pros
Great way to bond with your cat
Can keep your cat entertained for a long time
Cons
Challenging to teach your cat
You might not be able to easily find your cat
- Tricks Image Credit: DSchmidtArt, Shutterstock
Effectiveness: Moderate
Ease of Completion: Moderate
While dogs are associated more with tricks and obedience, that doesn’t mean you can’t teach your cat a trick or two. Use treats as motivation, and see what you can teach your cat! Just don’t expect your cat to keep listening if you stop using treats. Cats are listening to get the reward, and you need to keep rewarding them if you want them to keep obeying. Pros
You can keep teaching new things
A great bonding activity
Cons
It can be challenging to train cats
- Fetch Image Credit: Life is a Dream, Shutterstock
Effectiveness: High
Ease of Completion: Moderate
This is a game that people commonly associate with dogs, but it’s perfectly possible to play it with your cat too. Some cats will naturally play fetch with you, while you’ll need to train others with treats. If you’re training your cat with treats, keep in mind that you’ll need to give them a treat every time to keep them listening. But if you have a cat that just enjoys playing fetch, you can play with them without using treats as an incentive! Pros
Great bonding activity
Keeps your cat both mentally and physically stimulated
Cons
Not all cats will fetch
It’s not easy to train cats
- Shadows and Light Image Credit: Seika Chujo, Shutterstock
Effectiveness: High
Ease of Completion: Moderate
Few things drive your cat as wild as shadows and lights. There are many different ways that you can set up shadows and light displays for your cat, but any way that you can do it should be effective. The drawback here is that you can’t always get noticeable shadows or lights for your cat to play with. But during the times that you can set it up, your cat can get both mental and physical stimulation by chasing the shadows around. Pros
Easy to do
Provides both mental and physical stimulation
Cons
Not always easy to set up
- Treat Hunts Image Credit: katya-guseva0, Pixabay
Effectiveness: Moderate
Ease of Completion: Easy
Cats love hunting and they love treats. So, why not combine the two things with a scavenger treat hunt? Start with easy locations, then make them progressively more challenging as your cat catches on. Soon, you can hide treats all over the house in challenging locations and watch as your cat hunts for them like a pro. Once your cat gets the hang of things, you might find it hard to find a spot that your cat won’t quickly discover! Pros
Easy to teach
Great bonding activity
Cons
You can’t keep feeding them treats
- Bubbles Image Credit: Duet PandG, Shutterstock
Effectiveness: High
Ease of Completion: Easy
Cats are curious creatures, and when they see bubbles floating around, they’re sure to want to play. They’ll jump to try to catch and then pop the bubbles. If you don’t already have a bubble mixture, all you need to do is mix up soap and water to make your own. Pros
Cats love it
Easy to do
Cons
You might not have a bubbles mixture available
- Play Fighting Image Credit: Inge Wallumrød, Pexels
Effectiveness: Moderate
Ease of Completion: Easy
This is a great way to bond and play with your cat if you don’t have any toys around, but ensure that you’re just play fighting with them, not real fighting. You should be able to tell by their demeanor. Don’t force your cat to play fight when they’re not interested. Not only will you end up making your cat scared of you, but you also run the risk of them scratching or biting you when they’re trying to get away. Pros
Easy to complete
A great bonding activity
Cons
Your cat might scratch you
You need to ensure that your cat stays happy
- Cardboard Boxes Image Credit: Tran Mau Tri Tam, Unsplash
Effectiveness: Moderate
Ease of Completion: Easy
If you have cardboard boxes lying around, it’s easy to turn them into something that your cat will love. We recommend cutting out holes of various sizes in the cardboard boxes and stacking them together to create a playhouse for your cat. But keep in mind that cardboard won’t last forever, and there’s a good chance that your cat will scratch at it to exercise their claws. Pros
Easy to set up
Works when you’re not at home
Cons
You might not have cardboard boxes
Your cats can destroy the boxes
- Paper Balls Image Credit: Bondar Illia, Shutterstock
Effectiveness: Moderate
Ease of Completion: Easy
If you’re looking for the easiest cat toy that you can make yourself, it has to be a paper ball. Simply take a piece of paper and crumple it up. Roll it around in front of your cat, and they’ll do the rest. It’s not a real cat toy, but that won’t stop your cat from having fun with it! The paper ball won’t last forever, but it’s easy to make a new one. Another great perk about this toy is that your cat can use it to entertain themselves while you’re away. Pros
Easy to set up
Works when you’re not at home
Cons
Your cats can destroy the paper balls
- Paper Bags Image Credit: Lightspruch, Shutterstock
Effectiveness: Low
Ease of Completion: Easy
If you have a few paper bags, simply put them on the floor, and your cat will find a way to do the rest. They’ll climb in them, turn them into great little hidey holes, and find other ways to play with them. While it’s not the most active way for you to play with your cat, they’ll still love the bags. These also make great toys for your cat when you’re not around. Pros
Easy to set up
Works when you’re not around
Cons
Doesn’t provide an active way to play with them
Why Cats Need Toys While this whole guide is dedicated to how you can play with your cat without toys, the truth is that your cat needs some sort of mental and physical stimulation to get through the day. Wild cats get this stimulation by patrolling their territory and looking for food, but indoor cats can’t really do that. Playing with your cat enables you to keep up their mental and physical fitness levels. Toys can make this a much easier process. So, technically, your cat doesn’t need toys, but if you don’t give them any, you will need to take extra time each day to play with them and ensure that you’re meeting all their needs. Our Pick for Best Catnip Toy: Well-designed toys will keep your cat happy and engaged. For a sturdy, fun toy that will look nice in your living room, we recommend Hepper’s Catnip Stick Toy! These toys are designed to look like prey and double-bagged to stand up to your cat’s sharpest claws and teeth. Plus, they’re filled with organic catnip and handmade in the USA.
At Pet Keen, we’ve admired Hepper for many years, and decided to take a controlling ownership interest so that we could benefit from the outstanding designs of this cool cat company!
Image Credit: Chewy, Unsplash Boredom Signs in Cats Your cats need entertainment and mental stimulation, and they generally do a good job of letting you know when they’re not getting it. It’s still up to you to pick up on the signs, though, and you can only do that if you know what to look for. Here are highlighted four different signs that you have a bored cat. Keep in mind, though, that these signs could also be your cat trying to tell you something else entirely.
Excessive vocalization
Scratching
Soiling outside the litterbox
Aggressive behavior
Conclusion It doesn’t matter if you have a hundred cat toys or zero, the important thing is that you take the time to bond with your cat and give them the mental and physical stimulation that they need to thrive. While it’ll require more work for you if you don’t have any cat toys, you don’t need to run out and buy them. In fact, if you take the time to bond with your cat every day, you might end up with a closer relationship than if you just left a bunch of toys lying around!
Featured Image Credit: Impact Photography, Shutterstock
While you’ll need to get a little creative, there are plenty of ways that you can play with your cat without spending a dime on cat toys.
We highlighted 10 different options here for you to consider. After you check out this list, you might be able to come up with a few of your own that are perfect for your cats!
The 10 Tips on How to Play With a Cat Without Toys
1. Hide and Seek
Effectiveness: Moderate
Ease of Completion: Challenging
This is one of the most creative and fun ways that you can play with your cat. It’s all about hiding and finding each other, which turns into a great bonding activity. Just know that your cat will likely do a better job of finding you, and it might take you a while to find them!
Teaching your cat hide-and-seek is no easy job. But if you already have a strong relationship with your cat and don’t mind the training, playing hide and seek with your cat might be a great way to spend time together.
Pros
Great way to bond with your cat
Can keep your cat entertained for a long time
Cons
Challenging to teach your cat
You might not be able to easily find your cat
2. Tricks
Effectiveness: Moderate
Ease of Completion: Moderate
While dogs are associated more with tricks and obedience, that doesn’t mean you can’t teach your cat a trick or two. Use treats as motivation, and see what you can teach your cat!
Great way to bond with your cat
Can keep your cat entertained for a long time
- Great way to bond with your cat
- Can keep your cat entertained for a long time
Challenging to teach your cat
You might not be able to easily find your cat
- Challenging to teach your cat
- You might not be able to easily find your cat
Just don’t expect your cat to keep listening if you stop using treats. Cats are listening to get the reward, and you need to keep rewarding them if you want them to keep obeying.
Pros
You can keep teaching new things
A great bonding activity
Cons
It can be challenging to train cats
3. Fetch
Effectiveness: High
Ease of Completion: Moderate
This is a game that people commonly associate with dogs, but it’s perfectly possible to play it with your cat too. Some cats will naturally play fetch with you, while you’ll need to train others with treats.
You can keep teaching new things
A great bonding activity
- You can keep teaching new things
- A great bonding activity
It can be challenging to train cats
- It can be challenging to train cats
If you’re training your cat with treats, keep in mind that you’ll need to give them a treat every time to keep them listening. But if you have a cat that just enjoys playing fetch, you can play with them without using treats as an incentive!
Pros
Great bonding activity
Keeps your cat both mentally and physically stimulated
Cons
Not all cats will fetch
It’s not easy to train cats
4. Shadows and Light
Few things drive your cat as wild as shadows and lights. There are many different ways that you can set up shadows and light displays for your cat, but any way that you can do it should be effective.
Great bonding activity
Keeps your cat both mentally and physically stimulated
- Great bonding activity
- Keeps your cat both mentally and physically stimulated
Not all cats will fetch
It’s not easy to train cats
- Not all cats will fetch
- It’s not easy to train cats
The drawback here is that you can’t always get noticeable shadows or lights for your cat to play with. But during the times that you can set it up, your cat can get both mental and physical stimulation by chasing the shadows around.
Pros
Easy to do
Provides both mental and physical stimulation
Cons
Not always easy to set up
5. Treat Hunts
Effectiveness: Moderate
Ease of Completion: Easy
Cats love hunting and they love treats. So, why not combine the two things with a scavenger treat hunt? Start with easy locations, then make them progressively more challenging as your cat catches on.
Easy to do
Provides both mental and physical stimulation
- Easy to do
- Provides both mental and physical stimulation
Not always easy to set up
- Not always easy to set up
Soon, you can hide treats all over the house in challenging locations and watch as your cat hunts for them like a pro. Once your cat gets the hang of things, you might find it hard to find a spot that your cat won’t quickly discover!
Pros
Easy to teach
Great bonding activity
Cons
You can’t keep feeding them treats
6. Bubbles
Effectiveness: High
Ease of Completion: Easy
Cats are curious creatures, and when they see bubbles floating around, they’re sure to want to play. They’ll jump to try to catch and then pop the bubbles. If you don’t already have a bubble mixture, all you need to do is mix up soap and water to make your own.
Easy to teach
Great bonding activity
- Easy to teach
- Great bonding activity
You can’t keep feeding them treats
- You can’t keep feeding them treats
Pros
Cats love it
Easy to do
Cons
You might not have a bubbles mixture available
7. Play Fighting
This is a great way to bond and play with your cat if you don’t have any toys around, but ensure that you’re just play fighting with them, not real fighting. You should be able to tell by their demeanor. Don’t force your cat to play fight when they’re not interested. Not only will you end up making your cat scared of you, but you also run the risk of them scratching or biting you when they’re trying to get away.
Cats love it
Easy to do
- Cats love it
- Easy to do
You might not have a bubbles mixture available
- You might not have a bubbles mixture available
Pros
Easy to complete
A great bonding activity
Cons
Your cat might scratch you
You need to ensure that your cat stays happy
8. Cardboard Boxes
If you have cardboard boxes lying around, it’s easy to turn them into something that your cat will love. We recommend cutting out holes of various sizes in the cardboard boxes and stacking them together to create a playhouse for your cat.
Easy to complete
A great bonding activity
- Easy to complete
- A great bonding activity
Your cat might scratch you
You need to ensure that your cat stays happy
- Your cat might scratch you
- You need to ensure that your cat stays happy
But keep in mind that cardboard won’t last forever, and there’s a good chance that your cat will scratch at it to exercise their claws.
Pros
Easy to set up
Works when you’re not at home
Cons
You might not have cardboard boxes
Your cats can destroy the boxes
9. Paper Balls
If you’re looking for the easiest cat toy that you can make yourself, it has to be a paper ball. Simply take a piece of paper and crumple it up. Roll it around in front of your cat, and they’ll do the rest.
Easy to set up
Works when you’re not at home
- Easy to set up
- Works when you’re not at home
You might not have cardboard boxes
Your cats can destroy the boxes
- You might not have cardboard boxes
- Your cats can destroy the boxes
It’s not a real cat toy, but that won’t stop your cat from having fun with it! The paper ball won’t last forever, but it’s easy to make a new one. Another great perk about this toy is that your cat can use it to entertain themselves while you’re away.
Pros
Easy to set up
Works when you’re not at home
Cons
Your cats can destroy the paper balls
10. Paper Bags
Effectiveness: Low
Ease of Completion: Easy
If you have a few paper bags, simply put them on the floor, and your cat will find a way to do the rest. They’ll climb in them, turn them into great little hidey holes, and find other ways to play with them.
Your cats can destroy the paper balls
- Your cats can destroy the paper balls
While it’s not the most active way for you to play with your cat, they’ll still love the bags. These also make great toys for your cat when you’re not around.
Pros
Easy to set up
Works when you’re not around
Cons
Doesn’t provide an active way to play with them
Easy to set up
Works when you’re not around
- Easy to set up
- Works when you’re not around
Doesn’t provide an active way to play with them
- Doesn’t provide an active way to play with them
Why Cats Need Toys
While this whole guide is dedicated to how you can play with your cat without toys, the truth is that your cat needs some sort of mental and physical stimulation to get through the day.
Wild cats get this stimulation by patrolling their territory and looking for food, but indoor cats can’t really do that. Playing with your cat enables you to keep up their mental and physical fitness levels. Toys can make this a much easier process.
So, technically, your cat doesn’t need toys, but if you don’t give them any, you will need to take extra time each day to play with them and ensure that you’re meeting all their needs.
Our Pick for Best Catnip Toy: Well-designed toys will keep your cat happy and engaged. For a sturdy, fun toy that will look nice in your living room, we recommend Hepper’s Catnip Stick Toy! These toys are designed to look like prey and double-bagged to stand up to your cat’s sharpest claws and teeth. Plus, they’re filled with organic catnip and handmade in the USA.
At Pet Keen, we’ve admired Hepper for many years, and decided to take a controlling ownership interest so that we could benefit from the outstanding designs of this cool cat company!
Well-designed toys will keep your cat happy and engaged. For a sturdy, fun toy that will look nice in your living room, we recommend Hepper’s Catnip Stick Toy! These toys are designed to look like prey and double-bagged to stand up to your cat’s sharpest claws and teeth. Plus, they’re filled with organic catnip and handmade in the USA.
At Pet Keen, we’ve admired Hepper for many years, and decided to take a controlling ownership interest so that we could benefit from the outstanding designs of this cool cat company!
Boredom Signs in Cats
Your cats need entertainment and mental stimulation, and they generally do a good job of letting you know when they’re not getting it.
It’s still up to you to pick up on the signs, though, and you can only do that if you know what to look for. Here are highlighted four different signs that you have a bored cat. Keep in mind, though, that these signs could also be your cat trying to tell you something else entirely.
Excessive vocalization
Scratching
Soiling outside the litterbox
Aggressive behavior
Conclusion
It doesn’t matter if you have a hundred cat toys or zero, the important thing is that you take the time to bond with your cat and give them the mental and physical stimulation that they need to thrive.
Excessive vocalization
Scratching
Soiling outside the litterbox
Aggressive behavior
- Excessive vocalization
- Scratching
- Soiling outside the litterbox
- Aggressive behavior
While it’ll require more work for you if you don’t have any cat toys, you don’t need to run out and buy them. In fact, if you take the time to bond with your cat every day, you might end up with a closer relationship than if you just left a bunch of toys lying around!
Featured Image Credit: Impact Photography, Shutterstock
