Animal games and fun

DIY Cat Toys with Cardboard

 
Josie F. Turner
By Josie F. Turner, Journalist specialized in Animal Welfare. Updated: February 22, 2018
DIY Cat Toys with Cardboard
Cats

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Did you know that in the wild cats spend 40% of their time hunting? For this reason, it is so important to dedicate hours of play and fun to our cat, since it is the only way they have to express their natural instinct. Thus, toys allow us to keep the animal entertained and busy for hours, decreasing their chances of suffering stress or anxiety, as well as obesity.

Today, there are a variety of cat toys available on the market, however, why not recycle materials that we no longer use to make them ourselves? In addition to favoring the environment, we will save a good sum of money. Keep reading this AnimalWised tutorial on DIY cat toys with cardboard and learn to make 6 easy homemade toys.

You may also be interested in: DIY Cat Toys

Contents

  1. DIY cat toys - cardboard
  2. Homemade cat toys - toilet paper rolls
  3. Other household toys for cats with recycled material

DIY cat toys - cardboard

It's no secret that cats love cardboard boxes. So much so, that the simplest and cheapest home toy we can offer them is an empty box. However, it is not the only one and therefore we show below some simple home toys for cats - made from cardboard boxes!

Cardboard labyrinth

To make this toy, you will only need to collect the following materials:

  • Cardboard boxes
  • Scissors
  • Adhesive tape

The ideal is to use boxes of the same size to make a simple and fun cat cardboard labyrinth. Once achieved, follow these steps:

  1. Cut the top of all boxes.
  2. Join the boxes by gluing the walls with glue or tape. The shape of the labyrinth is entirely up to you, so let your imagination fly and allow your cat to jump from box to box.

Cardboard tunnel

As you know, cats love to hide. Although a tunnel made with cardboard boxes has the disadvantage of being rigid in comparison to the fabric tunnels that we can buy, it has a great advantage, since it doesn't cost any money! To make this toy you will only have to do with these materials:

  • Scissors
  • Scotch tape
  • Three or four medium boxes

Now, follow the instructions to build the home tunnel:

  1. All boxes must have an inlet opening and an outlet opening, so that you can cut them by cutting the remaining sides.
  2. Join the boxes to form the tunnel with tape.
  3. If the tunnel is very long, cut one or two circular holes in randomly selected areas. You can make one on the top of a box and another on one side of another, for example, the goal is to offer the cat different stimuli that makes them want to explore all parts of the toy.

Catch the prey!

This cat toy made from cardboard is extremely interesting because it promotes their natural hunter instinct. To do this, you will need:

  • Two shoe boxes
  • Rolls of toilet paper
  • Scissors
  • Ping-pong or rubber ball

Once the materials have been obtained, follow these simple steps:

  1. Take one of the boxes and cut several strips to form several obstacles inside the cave.
  2. Insert the strips inside the second box creating a labyrinth.
  3. In the labyrinth, you can also put rolls of toilet paper.
  4. Grab the lid of the box and cut holes making them match the holes in the labyrinth so the cat can easily catch their "prey".
  5. Close the box and drop the ball for the cat to catch and catch.

To see the step by step of this last toy, which is the most elaborate of all, see our YouTube video in which we show how to make this DIY cat toy with cardboard.

DIY Cat Toys with Cardboard - DIY cat toys - cardboard

Homemade cat toys - toilet paper rolls

Do you always dispose of toilet paper rolls once they are bare? Stop doing it! Making these simple homemade cat toys with toilet paper rolls you can give them a new lease of life and save some money at the same time.

Cardboard ball

In general, cats prefer smaller toys but, do you know why? Very simple, because they resemble the size of their prey. Felines that do not go out of the house much do not have the possibility to hunt and, therefore, we must cover this necessity through the game. To make this toy, you get:

  • A roll of cardboard
  • Scissors

Now, follow these instructions:

  1. Cut five rings from the carton roll.
  2. Take one ring and insert it into another.
  3. Take a third ring and insert the other two into it, and repeat this process until you finish all the rings and get a ball.
  4. Want to add more excitement to the toy? Put in some cat treats!

Surprise toy

This toy is very simple and will allow us to provide our cat with a kong - a very basic version, but equally as effective! To achieve this, it will only take one roll of cardboard, nothing more! Close one of the ends of the paper roll by pressing your finger on one side and then the other, pushing the cardboard inside to cover the hole. Then introduce several goodies or cat treats inside and close the other end in the same way. Offer the toy to your feline and watch how they have fun while trying to figure out how to get their treat!

Cardboard pyramid

If you have accumulated a good number of toilet paper rolls, this toy is perfect! It requires:

  • Various rolls of cardboard
  • Glue
  • Sheet of paper or cardboard (optional)
  • Treats

Now follow these steps:

  1. Prepare the base of the pyramid with four rolls, gluing them together.
  2. On the base, glue three rolls and, on top of them, two more.
  3. Finally, place the last roll to form the tip of the pyramid and let the glue dry.
  4. Once dry, introduce several treats into the rolls and let your cat have fun trying to remove them.

Source: activities-mpc.es

DIY Cat Toys with Cardboard - Homemade cat toys - toilet paper rolls

Other household toys for cats with recycled material

The previous toys are just some of the many DIY cat toys with recycled material that we can make at home. As you can see, with a simple cardboard box or a simple cardboard tube obtained from toilet paper, we have the option of preparing a large number of toys that will keep our cat entertained for a long time.

You should definitely check out our YouTube channel for more fun DIY ideas for cats and dogs and lots more informative content!

DIY Cat Toys with Cardboard - Other household toys for cats with recycled material

If you want to read similar articles to DIY Cat Toys with Cardboard, we recommend you visit our Animal games and fun category.

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DIY Cat Toys with Cardboard