Remember if you want the show notes to learn all about how to exercise your cat in your inbox go to the website and we’ll send you the link each week to the podcast and the notes that go with it.
Weekly Fun Fact
Female cats are typically right-pawed while male cats are typically left-pawed.
Cats make more than 100 different sounds whereas dogs make around 10.
In The Pawtime Press
Cat Found On Flight
Imagine sitting on a plane and a black cat walking under your seat! This is what happened to one passenger on an air cananda flight.
Cute Alert!
We know cats love boxes and small spaces, but have you ever seen a cat literally pour itself into a glass. I think this should definitely have a ‘don’t try this at home’ warning.
Cat Saved From Rubble In Italy
The owner of a cat begged rescue crew to find her cat that was missing for 5 days in Italy under all the rubble and imagine her joy was he was found and returned to her.
Pawsome Pet Shoutout
This week we are featuring Chomsky who posted a cool video of herself getting some exercise. Go say Hi To Chomsky over on Instagram.
Remember if you want your pets to be internet famous then post a picture of your pet on Twitter or Instagram using the hashtag #loveyourpetspodcast
Each week we will pick the coolest pets from around the world to feature.
In The Spotlight: 5 Ways to Exercise Your Cat
If you worry about your cat being overweight or becoming over the advised weight for their size then there are lots of things you can look at to address this issue. A plan to exercise your cat more is obviously one of them but you can also look at their current eating habits.
Review Their Diet
The first thing I would do is take a look at what they are eating and the portion size. It may be that you need to change their food to a low fat option or make sure that you are giving them the correct portion size.
We all love our pets and it can be easy to forget that more often than not animals will not say no to food. They will often just keep eating.
Also take a look at what treats you are giving them, it can be easy to forget the extra treats and not include those when looking at what your cat has eaten.
If you are unsure what or how much to feed your cat then speak with your vet and they will be able to give you some advice. They will also be able to tell you how much weight your cat needs to lose.
Hide Their Treats
If you do want to carry on treating your cat then a good way to get them up and moving is to hide their treats around the house, perhaps on higher counters that they need to jump up and down from.
You could also hide them in their toys to encourage them to play with the toy to release them.
We recently reviewed the Dreamies Cat Treat Toy and while it didn’t prove popular with all cats it is certainly a toy worth looking at.
Play With Them
Cats sleep 70% of the day so in order to keep your cat active you need to play with them. There are lots of toys you could make to get them moving, for example, a piece of string attached to the end of a stick. Or you could visit your local pet store and invest in some store bought toys.
Laser pointer toys can be really fun to play with your cat and can be bought quite cheaply on websites like Amazon.
It might take a while to find a toy that you cat loves to play with and keeps their interest. Toys with catnip inside can often prove to be very popular with cats.
Walk Them
It may sound unusual but it is possible to walk your cat. You can purchase a harness and lead from your local pet store to do this.
It’s hard to say if you cat will like it or not. Most cats I have seen being walked have been used to it from being small. An older cat might not take to it as well.
However for people who live in the city and have an indoor cat then this is the only way to really get them out in the fresh air without fear of losing them.
Make an Activity Centre
I know my cat loves cardboard boxes and paper bags and these are items you have around the house and are free.
You can make a nice activity centre out of them and it gives your cat something to play with when they are home alone.
Cats also love cardboard boxes to scratch, so it’s a great way to keep your furniture safe.
