What kind of rough housing can I do/play with my Kitten?

Question

I have two 9-10 week old male kittens. They love to play rough with each other, like biting their tails, "wrestling" with each other. What kind of games can I do with them that is rough as well. I don't want to pet them. I want to have fun with them, make them feel like I am fun and a friend, not just someone that feeds and pets them.

Answer 1

Playing with them now is not only a lot of fun for you both, it's also a GREAT way to bond with your kitten. It will help ensure that your kittens have an emotional attachment to you and not just to the other kitten.

Pretend your hand is another kitten and "wrestle" with them, imitating their moves. Grab them (gently, but quickly) around the belly, roll them onto their back, and make "spider" movements with your fingers. The kittens WILL scratch, so prepare yourself for that; it doesn't hurt much and it's in a worthy cause.

You can also play with them using toys. There are commercially available cat toys that are basically a bundle of fluff on an elastic cord; you can make one yourself from a piece of fabric and some kitchen string. We call it "cat-fishing" -- you toss the ball of fluff/cloth, the kitten chases it, you reel in the cat and it scrabbles and scratches at the fluff.

We have one cat who plays with marshmallows -- the big kind, not the ones you put in hot cocoa. We toss one across the kitchen floor and the cat plays hockey with it, batting and skittering it back and forth with us.

But the absolute BEST cat toy is... a laser pointer. We have a cat who loves the laser pointer so much that she gets excited if one of us picks up a pen. You can make a cat spin around in tight little circles by drawing them on the floor with a laser pointer, and if you then get them running down the hall and move the pointer up the wall, the cat will LEAP up the wall chasing the moving red dot.

Answer 2

Walmart had some wonderful cat toys. One is a fold up cube that a cat can play in. It's around $3 and is easily stored. What I did, I bought two. I connect them, they have velcro, and my kitten adores it. I also take balls, cat toys, and put them on top. When I touch the top to get her attention she pops the ball up into the air. Mine loves this game. You just have to be careful of the claws.

Another fun thing to do is a string long enough for them to chase while you run slowly with it.

My kitten plays "go fetch" her favorite thing is for me to bounce her toy mouse, or other toy, down the steps. Her favorite toy is the soft thing that goes around pencils. She'll bring it back up to me and I'll toss it down the steps again, letting it bounce on the wall or steps. She'll play this until she wears out. She's 1 year old now and still loves the game.

Answer 3

I am assuming you are a male cat owner. Men interact with their cats differently than women and play with them a little more roughly than most women would.

Just be sure you don't let them get into the habit of biting your hands. Believe me, when they get older and get their "big" teeth it won't be a fun thing for you.

I had two male kittens and just loved watching them play together. I just sort of supervised to keep them out of serious trouble. Then, when they were all tuckered out I would pet them and let them go to sleep on my lap.

So that's a woman's perspective.

So just be yourself. Sounds like you have good sense and a nice creative imagination.

Answer 4

I have two kittens as well. They're a little older than yours, but still love to play fight with eachother. I reccomend any sort of string toy you can drag around on the floor. You can get them a few little balls that make noise when they roll, but the inanimate mice that just lay there don't seem to score any points with mine. I don't reccomend using your hands to play. (I find new claw marks everyday from where they got carried away while I was petting them!) Good luck with your kittens!

Answer 5

okay i have two male kittens as well and what i do is put your hand on their stomachs and move it around and they'll start to bite you but not very hard or you could cut some string and move it around and run aroundnthe house and have them chase it good idea huh? I have had a lot of experience trust me!!

Answer 6

I'm with old cat lady.......you definately don't want your hands--or anyone else's--asociated with 'play time' and toys can definately be fun for all of you :) And I have to ask if you mean you don't ever want to "pet them"? Sometimes most cats like to be stroked even if it's only for a few seconds....so I'm hoping that's not what you meant 'cause that's the best part of interaction with our pets to me..........kinda like we--or most of us humans appreciate a good hug.

Answer 7

You can tumble them around (carefully - they're still just babies, after all!) and play "mouse under the covers". You can also get things like fishing-pole toys and let them chase those - my cats LOVE when I pull those out, and you can play tug-of-war when they catch the bait. There's all sorts of other things that you can do too, just use your imagination and see what kinds of things get them excited.

Answer 8

Use toys and strings and thing like that. I've owned four cats over the years and learned quickly they didn't like rough housing like a dog.

Answer 9

try a feather duster - they are lots of fun and u can control it with the handle while they go crazy for it. They like the feathers because it reminds them of another animal, and they will love you for playing with them.

Answer 10

we use a child fishing pole with something feathery on the end(no hook) and cast around the house for the cat to hunt
satin ribbon attached to a ruler is great for them to chase while you make it dance around
and remote control cars!