Chase a Bait Using a Fishing Rod Toy

You either haven’t bought these fishing rod toys yet, or you have bought them but simply can’t get your cats to play with them. We were in the latter group and eventually learned that how willing a cat is to play with the fishing rod toy comes down to your technique and enthusiasm. Since cats (even domesticated ones) have an instinct to hunt, having a baited fishing rod toy in your toolset is an absolute must.

You won’t have much luck if you’re simply waving the bait in random circles in front of your cat. Instead you need to think like a cat and figure out what triggers their predatory instincts.

Here’s an example: Think about those occasional movie scenes where a hunter or predator slowly creeps toward a seemingly unaware deer. Keep that image in mind. Your bait (e.g. a feather, mouse or worm toy) will replicate the deer. Instead of waving the bait around in fast motions, you’ll make it creep slowly, stop and repeat. You want your cat to believe that the bait is unaware of the cat’s presence.

Eventually, your cat will go into pounce mode (lying low and shaking its butt). Keep the slow movement going, and your cat will eventually pounce and successfully catch its prey! Repeat a few times, then rotate the bait to keep your cat’s interest going. This is just one of many ways to use the fishing rod and bait toy to entertain your cat. You could give your cat a bit more of a challenge by adding hiding spots for the bait. We did this by placing the pillow and duvet in random shapes.