Do you have any advice on keeping cats in doors that just... don't seem interested in any enrichment you give them indoors? Sorry if that sounds really confusing, I'm having trouble putting it into words. But my childhood cat (may she rest peacefully), was an outdoor indoor cat, she was adopted to be a mouser and we lived on farm land sort of. And she would not play with ANYTHING except for like, twist ties. And she had no interest in anything else besides sleeping and love. (cont)
I actually consider us very lucky that she loved being pet, lol. But she was always wanting to go outside, except for when she got too old and sick. And there didn’t seem to be anything I could do to make being inside as interesting? Is there anything you’d suggest for I guess more uh, difficult to amuse cats? I fully agree cats should be inside unless under supervision. This cat disappeared for long periods of time, TWICE. But because when she stopped eating mice, she got very sick. (cont) So with our new cat that adopted us, my folks won’t keep her inside, because they want her outside hunting mice and staying healthy from what they provide for her. Except we could do that fine with wet food because we know that now, and didn’t with Diamond. It’s quite frustrating! Any advice you’d have for more “difficult” kitties would be much appreciated!
So, I am by no means an expert on cat behavior, and I’ve been lucky in that my cats have adjusted well and don’t seem to struggle with the enrichment we provide to them (they don’t try to dart outside or anything). The main thing I can think to recommend, and I think this is what works for our household, is actually another cat. The cats honestly keep each other entertained and stimulated more than anything we provide to them. They thrive on the companionship first and foremost. Cats are social creatures, it’s why they form colonies when feral, except for the occasional solitary cat (as with dogs, some just won’t dig others, and that’s fine).
I also think enrichment toys where the cat has to work for their food might help; they make a lot of toys and items like that now where the cat has to use natural play and hunting instincts to get their food out of the toy; it helps them to slow down if a cat is a fast eater, but it also just generally helps them get that hunting instinct out, makes them work for their food like a cat might if it was hunting mice. Puzzle feeding toys and whatnot are great for mental stimulation!
Keep towers and trees and platforms high up, for kitties who love to be up and express their climbing instincts. Cats seem to prefer to sleep and rest up off of the ground. And our cats love having hidey-holes and tunnels and dark places they can go and chase each other into and such. They also make moving toys, like we have this little battery-powered mouse that will skitter across the floor and our cats seem to LOVE that; a mouser might be interested in a toy like that, that is constantly moving around and they can experience the “chase” as it were? Trick it into thinking it’s getting actual prey, haha.
And one big part of transitioning a cat indoors that prefers being outside is honestly just ignoring their pleas to go outside and eventually they’ll give it up and find ways to entertain themselves indoors. Like a dog, though, you can make the experience positive for them with treats and nice things, little constantly-moving fountains are lovely for cats to get their water from and maybe things like cat grass would appease them some? My followers may have better advice, because again, I haven’t dealt with this myself, mainly because I think in our multi-cat household, they keep each other stimulated and content. I also don’t know how reputable this source is but it hits on some good key points, too, it looks like:http://www.catbehaviorassociates.com/what-is-environmental-enrichment-and-why-does-your-cat-need-it/
Hopefully that helps sooooome and if my followers have anything to add, please do!
Like when we transitioned Caspian into being indoor-only, I thought it was going to be such a hassle because he LOVED to hunt and kill outside and never was very people-affectionate. And even now he sticks to himself most of the time, but he seems to have adjusted well enough to indoor life, and he loves interacting with the other cats and the dogs when he’s feeling playful. Oddly enough, that little loser loves to play with, hunt, and bunny-kick tennis balls??? Maybe it’s the texture, maybe it’s that they roll and he gets to “chase” them, but he just adores playing with the dogs’ tennis balls. Little weirdo! XD
