The key to a happy and healthy cat? Enrichment! Cats thrive when they're surrounded with ample opportunities to play, hunt and explore.
There are plenty of ways to create a fun and stimulating environment for your cat right at home, whether through food, toys, cat furniture, or interactive play sessions. Here are some easy ways to add enrichment to your home this winter and all year long!
Set up a window perch for observing wildlife
A window perch like a cat hammock or cat tower allows your cat to enjoy the sights and sounds of the outdoors, from the warmth and safety of your living room. Add a blanket with your scent and a couple of their favourite toys to make the spot extra inviting.
Utilize vertical space
Elevated surfaces like cat towers, bookshelves and floating cat shelves encourage exercise through jumping and climbing and provide your cat with different vantage points to survey their environment. The more perches and vertical climbing space you can offer your cat around your home, the better!
Install a catio
A catio is a secure outdoor enclosure where your cat can play and lounge in the sun, while staying safe from common outdoor hazards like vehicles and predators. Catios can bring enrichment to your cat's life year-round and don't require a large outdoor space to set up.
Use items around the house
Items you probably already have lying around your home like empty toilet paper rolls, crumpled Post-It notes, or even a simple paper bag can be great sources of enrichment for your cat!
For an easy DIY food puzzle, drop a few treats or kibble into an empty paper towel roll, or into an empty shoebox or meowbox with holes cut out of the lid and sides (make sure that the holes are large enough that your cat can fit their paws through). The challenge of "earning" their treats simulates the thrill of the hunt and sharpens kitty's natural problem-solving skills.
Offer exciting scents
Silvervine toy, $7, the meowbox shop
Cats rely heavily on their sense of smell to explore the world, and you can bring this sensory experience indoors by offering toys filled with valerian, silvervine, and catnip, or cat-safe plants like cat grass. Sprinkling fresh catnip onto a scratcher or using it to refresh an old toy is another easy way to add enticing scents to your cat's living environment.
Introduce novelty through toys and treats
meowbox delivers feline enrichment to your door every month or bi-monthly, featuring new and exciting goodies such as kickers, wands, teasers, catnip toys, dental toys, and delicious treats in a variety of flavours and textures. Kitty will never have a shortage of fun surprises to discover, and unboxing day will become a special bonding ritual for you and your cat!
Looking for tips on how to play with your cat using your new meowbox toys? Click the meowbox you last received here and check out our free Meow-to Guide under that theme (currently available for select themes only).
Check out these blogs for more feline enrichment tips:
- What is Sensory Enrichment?
- What is Social Enrichment?
- How to Add Feline Enrichment to Your Home Decor
- How to Offer Your Cat Enrichment Through Food Texture