Things that work

Over the years, I have invested in a ton of what I call "Cheap Plastic Crap" (a term I learned from Mark). I've learned that most of it is exactly that, and it rapidly gets tossed away after it fails to perform for the reason for which I purchased it. This reason may or may not be the normal manufacturers intended use. I've therefore become more careful about what I purchase and bring home. I've been known to lug something around a store for a half hour, only to finally put it back. There are too many things we really need around here (cat food, cat litter, paper towels) that are already consumables/disposables, without bringing home more "stuff" that I ultimately have to throw out.

However there are a few pieces of plastic that I can highly recommend.



The "ball-in-a-ring" is one. Yeah, it's a pain to keep buying those cardboard inserts, but cats and kittens love this toy. When they get bored, put it away and pull it out again in a few months. Here's the fuzzball from Barton modeling the one in our cat facility. Her two buff brothers are at Cornerstone Veterinary Hospital tonight in the off-site adoption cage. She's already on hold for adoption, so didn't need to join them.



Shower-rings-in-a-chain. Best darned toy for .50 cents you can find (one $1 set of 12 rings will make two chains of 6). I learned about this enhancement toy for confined cats at a presentation given by a Cornell vet this summer. I thought "huh, sounds like a waste of time, but you never know." And indeed, the cats play with these regularly, and it was the best tip I've gotten in a long while, and put my attitude right in the trash where attitude belongs.

You must click on that photo to see Espie's sweet little sneer.



Lawn chair pads on top of the cages. This was a risk. When I saw these sturdy but thin chair pads with their velcro loops at My Favorite Store (cough, cough) I initially bought only three, knowing that my idea could degrade into another episode of Cheap Plastic Crap. But the three pads, attached to the top of the wire cages so the cats could lie on them when they were at large, worked out wonderfully, and took the place of the towels that I used to lay on top. The towels were constantly mussed up or thrown on the floor, and when the cats were inside the cages they would pull them down inside, often destroying the towel in the process.

The fur comes right off these with a lint roller, and so far they have stood up well to cat claws from both above and below. The next time I was at the store they were almost out (except for bright orange!) so I purchased four more (in yellow). At $5.95 each it "seemed" pricey, but when you realize the cheapest cat bed you can buy is $15.00 (and will last 1/3 as long), $5.95 doesn't seem quite as expensive.