Help! Horus is Catnip-Proof

WhenWeAreQueen ^ | September 12, 2008 | pharmamom

[pharmamom]

We bought some cat toys and Horus is less than impressed. Clearly, little balls with feathers and the fishing pole with dangly stuff are below his pay grade, not to mention beneath his dignity. I bought some catnip spray, and that doesn’t seem to catch the fancy of any of the cats. (Is it possible to have catnip-proof felines?) Tiger and Tobie, however, are having a ball with the fishing pole toy, so it was a good buy. We’ll try again with some real catnip this weekend.

[pharmamom]

Horus made a few half-hearted bats at the feathers, then turned his back on me. Can a cat have absolutely no sense of play (except he does love moths and the plastic casing off the ice cream cartons)?

[nuconvert]

How old is he? Does he like empty boxes or paper bags? How about chasing a laser light?

[1rudeboy]

Two words: laser pointer.

[tbpiper]

In my experience, the best thing you can do is buy several expensive cat toys, (the cuter you think they are, the better), take them all out, put them on a knick-knack shelf, and then let the cat have a great time with the boxes.

[Hot Tabasco]

Can a cat have absolutely no sense of play

Yes. My cat will only play with her squeeky mouse late at night long after I've gone to bed or during the day when she is home alone. Probably to break the boredom.

[Fresh Wind]

Well, a couple of real mice might get his attention...

[pharmamom]

We had a bird loose in the house (Tiger’s doing), and Horus looked completely flummoxed. We also have had a couple of chipmunks. I did spray some catnip on the scratching mat, and he is rolling around on it and now sitting on it like a loaf of bread.

I will try the paper bag thing. And the laser pointer (I have one in the car, as a matter of fact!).

[50sDad]

My brother, an organic chemistry professor, says that there is a "catnip gene"...some cats simply are not affected.

He knows this, because back in the fabulous 60's, another fellow in his graduate class undertook to synthesise the active chemical in this "Catnip Reaction." The story goes that he took a small block of this concentrated cat-hash to a nearby zoo in Texas and when nobody was looking, heaved the mindbender into the tiger cage, and "Twenty minutes later that cat was STONED, man!"

[50sDad]

My OTHER brother roomed in a apartment building where the building cat would completely clean out the mouse population, then go catch outside mice and bring them in so it would have something to play with.

[webrover]

I wouldn't introduce your cat to real catnip too early. It does work. But it can be like getting a little kid drunk. I had a cat who loved empty crunched up cigarette packs. I think it might have been the sound of the cellophane.

[50sDad]

What kind of cold hearted anti-cat person leaves a comment so vile that the Mods have to delete it?

[webrover]

If you want to freak kitty out, try wiggling a piece of cooked spaghetti in front of him.

[Mad Dawg]

Clint Junior Lightning is devoted to a little piece of a rabbit’s foot with a bell attached. The noise is critical to his enjoyment.

[DieHard the Hunter]

Ma'am, there is catnip and there is Catnip. Little-known fact. There's a chance that you're tempting kitty with the wrong stuff. Even the wrong stuff will slightly stimulate cats, but the right stuff is what you want. Could be that the toys you bought were made of the wrong stuff.

Best thing to do IMO is to visit a qualified botanist and ask him for a good source of Nepeta cataria -- that's the plant you want.

Even so, roughly one-in-three cats don't respond to catnip. Could be your cat is one of these.

And like humans, some cats are just permanently stunned, preferring to laze around and watch the world go by them. No harm in that -- if you wanted an energetic pet you would have gotten a dog.

[MRadtke]

Two words: laser pointer.

I’ll second that.

[Admin Moderator]

Just profanity. Nothing to see here, move along.

[pharmamom]

LOL. Unbelievable that cats would bring out the profane in people. Obama? Yes. Cats? Not so much. :+)

[submarinerswife]

Horus sounds boring. Get a puppy, Horus will livin up real fast.

[Arrowhead1952]

Two words: laser pointer.

LOL. No kidding. Hours of fun to enjoy until they get tired.