Help needed with one of those clever breeds of cat!

Is he an outdoor or indoor cat? Outdoor cats generally provide their own 'enrichment'.

Is he an indoor or outdoor cat? My DD’s friend has Maine Coons and they spend the summer months outdoors, hunting their own dinner until they return to seek the cosy fireplace again. They’re rural, though, which makes it easier to do.

There are lots of toys available nowadays as well the good old standbys of paper bags, balls of paper or yarn and so on.

I hope he settles down soon!

to my mind- cats are outdoor creatures, and trying to keep on indoors just makes them neurotic and worse. I know many will disagree with me. I would never have any other cat than a moggy, with a cat flap- so s/he can choose where and when they want to go.

Hi Lucky I had a kitten who was half moggie and half Turkish Van. I had to google TV and discovered that they like water (they swim in the sea in the Van area of Turkey), and they are extremely lively and vocal. She was really lovely but exhausting.

Like you, I have had cats all my life but was constantly looking at ways to keep her stimulated. Unfortunately she was run over when she was only 18 months old so I never found out if she would become calmer as she grew older.

I would suggest you buy some proper interactive cat toys so that you can sit on the sofa and he can play with it himself.

A toy that has been very popular with my remaining cats is the Cat's Meow Pet Exerciser which runs on batteries. It's available on Amazon but much cheaper on eBay.

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Pet-Exercise-Cats-Meow-Motorised-Revolving-Fun-Play-Toy-Mouse-Wand-Tail-Indoor/383711245854?hash=item5956f8f61e:g:QG0AAOSwt55fV1J~

Other than that, you can only keep improvising with different things, or encourage your cat to be outside quite a lot. I would occasionally make a "den" for my Lottie which she could hide inside and play with things, and she liked to be up high so would frequently shin up the curtains and sit on the brass curtain rail! Sigh. I even bought a "cat DVD" which showed all the things like birds and mice which she might be interested in, but she preferred to watch David Attenborough programmes on tv and once sat through a whole hour on grizzly bears.

Good luck!

My friend has Main Coon cats x 4 and she and her husband are ruled by them.
They take up a lot of her time wanting attention and talking to.
However she did say a while ago they seem to settle down to a more sedate lifestyle as they get older are your two kittens still babies do you allow them to go out or not ?

I used to have Burmese and, much as I loved them I would never have one again, especially as we couldn’t allow them complete freedom so built a large pen in the garden. One could open doors and another was a plastic bag/wool eater. They were more like dogs than cats. I’ll never forget the first time I brought them home and one of them climbed up me and looked around the room taking everything in. I’d never known a cat do that before. She sadly got killed on the road the first time she got out. Broke my heart. The next one we had would leap across the room onto our shoulders regardless of whether he was leaping onto bare skin.

Thank you for the replies and especially for the link Sparklefizz. I've seen a battery powered flapping fish advertised too, I can see one could spend a lot of money on this!

Both cats are outdoor cats, the younger moggie is about 9 months old, Mr Clever Clogs is said to be 3. Within a day of coming home, he had discovered that at night he could go out of the cat flap, around the house, climb onto the conservatory roof and in through the bedroom window! The window is now firmly closed!

Both cats are good hunters which is a little sad but that's what cats do. It's as if the changing weather has made hunting less appealing though and they are in for most of the evening and like to be played with. I am trying to construct boundaries on time and to put toys away when I've had enough but it is quite difficult. Also we are both busy people with activities and outings so such a demanding cat is quite a surprise. He is very lovely but quite a character.

Maybee, you have made me laugh.

It is the uncomprehending chaos of a cat with the mind of a dog which has come as such a surprise. I worked in a rescue centre for a while and one Siamese cat was rehomed four times until she settled. She used to just take herself off to another house if she didn't like her rehomers and so they returned her to the rescue centre. Strange animals!

LuckyoldBeethoven my daughter’s neighbour’s cat does the cat flap/fence/sun room roof/window lark too. Unfortunately, into my daughters house, not its own house! My dd has her own cat who looks askance at this interloper which even appears in the middle of the night in my DD’s bedroom from time to time.

We've had three Maine Coons all the typical gentle giants of the breed. The current one is certainly not very active at all! Like all cats he likes a box to sit in but once he's tried out that box he's not interested any more.

I’ve had a Maine Coon who lived to a ripe old age and was the most laid back cat I’ve had. I’ve also had a Burmese and a Bengal/Oriental cross and both were high maintenance. The B/O went on a 5 day hunger strike when I left her alone for what she thought was an unacceptable amount of time. Cost me a lot of money at the vet.
That said my cats are all outdoor cats and I spend a lot of time conversing with them.

Beautiful cat jane10
beethoven given time I’m sure your new cats will settle with you and calm down a bit. It happens with age too.
While young it’s not unusual for any breed to shimmy up curtains and sit on curtain poles or cooker hoods.
My DD’s cat loves to lie on the mantelpiece, over the warm fire, like an ornament.
Persevere and you will gain joy and devotion from your new family members. ? ?

Have so enjoyed these cat stories. With DH’s balance so uncertain another cat would be too big a risk (he could trip over a bus ticket) so we are catless. I do so miss them despite the considerable extra work and keep thinking perhaps we could rehome an elderly bereaved cat - or would Cats Protection think us too old to be fair to an animal?

That would be age-ist GrannySomerset.
Contact RSPCA or Cats Protection or Battersea, wherever is near to you. If you and your DH have been cat owners before and you are willing to offer one a home I’m sure you would be welcomed to do so.
Often the older mature cats are overlooked for rehoming as many people want young, playful cats.

We've got Siamese cats. Lots of toys (which they prefer getting out of the basket rather than actually playing with) and a cat tree with extra dangling bits. And the radiator cat bed is popular (see left)

I think that rad cat bed advert is from Amazon - very cheap

Luckyoldbeethoven A laser toy is also great for an energetic cat as long as you're careful not to shine it in their eyes. I got one so I could lie on the sofa and shine the red spot on the wall and my lovely Lottie would go crazy chasing it and leaping athletically in the air, which wore her out. You can get them everywhere, even Sainsbury's.

www.wilko.com/en-uk/wilko-cat-laser-pet-toy/p/0479017?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIiKa-8--x7AIVhLHtCh2V8wi8EAQYBCABEgIKc_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

We had a Russian Blue cat at home ( Smokey ) and he was brilliant, a beautiful looking cat and very " talkative " once he'd adapted to his new home.
Mum had brought it home one day from the lady she used to help at an antique shop. The poor cat used to be on its own a lot and used to cry when my mum left so the owner gave it to her.
She had the cat for years and it must have been in its 20's when he died. I can remember mum being inconsolable.

We have two Russian Blues. They’re rescue cats and as daft as brushes, so affectionate. They do nothing at all, ever, except sit on our laps or drape themselves round our necks.

We’ve just been away and one of them seemed to be rather laboured with his breathing when we got back yesterday. I took him to the vet, who suspected fluid on the lungs. X-ray and full exam this afternoon. The verdict is that he’s a fraud as the vet can find nothing wrong with him, he’s probably just miffed that we’ve been away and that’ll be £250 thank you. ???

I’ve always thought of Maine Coons as being very laid back: always wanted one.

My BiL used to go away and leave his cats with us. One was an oriental tabby. She'd been once or twice previously, only allowed out through the front door and supervised. On her next visit she got out of the cat basket, went straight round to the conservatory and out of the catflap, which she had never used before. We caught up with her sitting in the garden with a big smirk on her face.

Puzzler61 we had a Norwegian Forest cat once who loved to sleep on the mantlepiece. Only trouble was that she'd fall deeply asleep and roll off setting fire to her large fluffy tail as she fell past the fire. What a horrible smell burnt fur makes.

We had to change all the door handles to stop the Burmese from opening them. We timed him once and it only took him a matter of seconds to open every downstairs door.

Oh no, how dangerous jane10 ! I can imagine that singed fur smell.