Here at Paws for Thought we have a tradition at Christmas of hanging a filled stocking on the pen of every cat taking a holiday with us over Christmas, loaded with any treats they’re allowed. Do they know it’s Christmas? Not really. To your cat, it’s the time of year when it gets cold outside and the humans put up a tree inside (but then the meanies don’t let the cat climb it).
Setting aside a date to treat your cat is definitely a worthwhile thing to do. When your cat is snoozing away its old age, it’s good to be able to remember that in their prime you threw them a really good party at least once a year. Here’s some suggestions for a cat celebration…
Everyone’s invited
Most importantly of all – if you have more than one cat, the party must include all of them. Your other cats won’t understand that only Tiger is allowed to eat the bowl of tuna because it’s Tiger’s birthday. Tuna all round!
A Little is Enough
It doesn’t take much to make a cat happy. Their favourite expensive cat-food – a chewy meat stick – five extra minutes of fuss from their favourite human. Too much of anything good is a punishment rather than a treat.
Add Herbs
Is your cat one of the many who enjoy cat-nip? A new cat-nip filled treat, or even a sachet of cat-nip sprinkled on their favourite sunny spot will get them rocking and rolling. If you’re not sure – get hold of some cat-nip and test them. Or even some silvervine sticks, which are meant to be stronger than cat-nip.
Designed for Cats
Cats really don’t appreciate human party traditions. Cake is definitely not good for cats (unless it’s a small one made of meat). Balloons raise static in their fur and bounce like big predators creeping up on their prey. Don’t get me started on what happens when a spooked cat takes a claws-out swipe at a balloon… Cheering and shouts of ‘Happy Gotcha Day!’ sound like humans being cross. Instead, treat your cat to a quiet day – sing to them quietly, turn down the TV a notch and leave the vacuum switched off.
Let’s Play!
Give them a play time at dawn or dusk. Even elderly cats will spend a minute or two taking a swipe at a feather toy and young cats will love to be encouraged to leap around like kittens. A length of shoelace, a toy mouse on a string or a ping-pong ball are all cheap ways of entertaining a cat, and its those low-light times of day that a cat is really alert for.
Just Add Box
And oh yes – find them a cardboard box to curl up in. One that looks as if it really isn’t big enough for them but with a bit of squishing and wriggling…
We’re not sure whether we should sing to our residents when Paws for Thought’s actual birthday rolls around in April, but trust us – we will make sure that every cat in our care is happy on that day (and every day).
