The old ball of yarn isn't cutting it anymore when it comes to
cat toys.
As with kids'
toys and adults' favorite board games, diversions for pets have overwhelmingly
gone digital. A slew of apps and other tech toys are now being marketed to our
cats and dogs. (OK, marketed to us, who then run out and buy them for our cats
and dogs.)
Your kitty can
make new use of an old iPhone or Android tablet, thanks to a suite of
animal-friendly apps available for download. And in the digital age, you no
longer have to wrestle the ball from Fido for a game of fetch.
Friskies, the
cat-food company, has been producing digital games for cats since 2011. Titles
includeCat Fishing, JitterBug and Pull
'n Play, and each involves tempting cats to chase moving targets on
the screen of a phone or tablet.
"All of the
Friskies Games for Cats are inspired by things that pique that amazing
curiosity unique to cats and their spirit of imagination and discovery,"
Friskies' parent company, Nestle Purina, said in a statement.
The company says
its games have more than 2.7 million downloads, an average of about 20,000 a
week on iTunes. YouTube hosts nearly 12,000 videos
of cats playing the
games.
Cat Fishing,
which encourages cats to paw at digital fish swimming across the screen, has
mostly positive iTunes reviews: "Downloaded this months ago and my buddy
Hobbes still comes running whenever he hears the bubbles that signal the start
of the game. He cannot get enough of this app!"wrote
user Butters867.
JitterBug has
fewer raves in the rating section, with some dissatisfied pet owners saying
their cats simply ignore the game.
Oh, those
finicky cats. That's where hardware comes in.
FroliCat, a
PetSafe brand, makes toys that mimic old-school yarn and fake mice to keep cats
occupied like they're chasing the real thing. Other games use a laser to focus
the cat's attention and send it on a wild goose chase.
PetSafe has seen
more demand for the cat toys since it acquired the line from another company
three years ago.
"You do see
an uptick in people pampering their pets and wanting to give their pets a way
to interact when they're not home," said Jason Hart, director of marketing
for PetSafe.
The company is
interested in producing high-tech toys for dogs too, Hart said, but finding
electronic toy concepts that appeal to dogs at the right price point has proved
difficult. Dogs are pretty hard on toys, after all.
Tablet and
smartphone apps such as Airship Software's Game for Dogs are out there, but owners may be wary
of dogs getting too excited and destroying their devices.
"Perhaps I
should have thought this one out a little better," user JackSpratsmom
wrote in an iTunes review of Game for Dogs. "90lb Golden Retriever vs iPad
screen?? I'll let you figure out the outcome of that one."
For dogs,
hardware could be the way to go. Some new technology is interactive for both
owner and pet.
For the rangy
dog, there are toys such as the Go-Go
Dog Pal, a remote-controlled toy that resembles a small animal on
wheels. Pet owners can buy a raccoon, skunk or woodchuck version that races
around the yard while the dog gives chase.
Other gadgets
take even less effort on the part of pet parents.
Fetch machines,
which launch balls for a dog to chase, have been around a while. Brookstonecarries a version. And there's one
available from Go Dog Go.
Both let you
train your dog to reload the launcher and play on its own while you're at work.
If you're an
avid fitness tracker who takes your dog along on your runs or hikes, you can
now obsess about Fluffy's "steps," too. That's right -- there's a pedometer
for dogs.
And in these
"record everything" times, pet owners can even strap a GoPro harness and camera onto their dog to get a new
perspective on their pooch's workout routine.
Pet owners, the
future is now.
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