"They are the only two cats I have ever seen play with that toy!" the rescue foster lady, Jill, said when she introduced us to our kittens last year. "They love it!"
I looked at the plastic disk about 12 inches in diameter that she was pointing to. The center had a circle of corrugated cardboard for scratching, and a ping pong-sized ball rolled around it on an outside track. Tibby and Milo were too nervous to play then, but we made sure to buy one just like it on our first kitty shopping spree.
It was impossible to know if they liked it, though, because Lucy stole the ball every time. Over the next year or so, they did use the scratching part of the device, and recently I ordered a replacement cardboard piece. The box was waiting on the stoop this afternoon when we returned home from work, and I wasted no time fitting the new scratcher in place. Heidi was out with Lucy, and so on a whim, I also dropped a hard catnip ball into the outer groove and gave it a little push.
Oh my! In seconds Tibby and Mila were batting the ball back and forth, pouncing and rolling and diving to get a better angle. It was impossible not to giggle as they played so energetically and so together, and I was reminded of what a warm feeling it is to please your pets.
I looked at the plastic disk about 12 inches in diameter that she was pointing to. The center had a circle of corrugated cardboard for scratching, and a ping pong-sized ball rolled around it on an outside track. Tibby and Milo were too nervous to play then, but we made sure to buy one just like it on our first kitty shopping spree.
It was impossible to know if they liked it, though, because Lucy stole the ball every time. Over the next year or so, they did use the scratching part of the device, and recently I ordered a replacement cardboard piece. The box was waiting on the stoop this afternoon when we returned home from work, and I wasted no time fitting the new scratcher in place. Heidi was out with Lucy, and so on a whim, I also dropped a hard catnip ball into the outer groove and gave it a little push.
Oh my! In seconds Tibby and Mila were batting the ball back and forth, pouncing and rolling and diving to get a better angle. It was impossible not to giggle as they played so energetically and so together, and I was reminded of what a warm feeling it is to please your pets.
No comments:
Post a Comment