Thread: Fetch?

Mine don't have a regular game of fetch, but they will pick up and carry various stuff. Mostly (watching Bertie do this as I type) a grey mouse toy and also one of the jangly plastic balls that has tooth friendly spaced slits.

I think you "train" them, if you really want, by finding something they will happily bite on (paper or foil scruntched up) and then get them to swap it for a treat. fter a while they should associate bringing you the toy as a treat trigger. Sadly, you may then get other stuff brought to you too. Think real mice and even maybe a hairbrush. lol

We were "lucky" with Raggles, he taught himself!!

I was working from home on the computer and he wanted to play and would not leave me alone. So in sheer desperation I screwed up a post-it note and threw it down the stairs. Raggles chased after it but came back without it and started to claw my leg for more attention. I then threw another screwed up post-it and off he went. When he returned he had it in his mouth!! I then stopped working and spent the next 30 minites playing fetch with him. From that point onwards ( he was about 5 months old at the time), he constantly brings toys or balls of paper to us for him to play fetch with. If you ignor him he will trot off and get another item until you have a pile of objects at your feet!! Our other 3 coonies all refuse to play fetch but will chase after Raggles to try to get to the thrown object before him.

Only one of ours plays proper fetch,thank goodness,but started off much the same as Steves,he brought his favourite mouse one day & dropped it at my feet so I said clever boy & threw it not too far away & he brought it back with a look that said it was rather a pathetic throw,I said clever boy again & threw it so when he brought it back yet again made more of it,that was the start of fetch with him , the others tend to sit & watch & wonder how running backwards & forwards with the same toy can be so much fun....

We discovered quite by accident that Jimmie would play fetch. He was 5 months old when we adopted him and we knew upon bringing him home that he was extremely active and loved to play. He turns most everything into a game. When we took a small length of rope and dangled it he would jump straight up into the air, off all four feet. Then we discovered if we threw it across the room he would race after it, pick it up and bring it back. He will do it over and over again; we usually tire out before he does. He also races into the kitchen when he hears the icemaker; he seems to love ice cubes and will carry one through the house and bat it around until it melts. But back to playing fetch, here's a video of him in action.
YouTube - jimmie_fetch.AVI

Freyja refuses to chase after anything if she thinks that's what's expected, despite my efforts to teach her. Wicca, om the other hand, loves to play fetch, and like Jackie and Steve, was discovered quite by accident. We were trying to hang xmas baubles on the tree and wicca was sat in the middle of the decs driving me mad, so I luzzed her favourite toy across the hall into the next room. She shot after it and I only clicked we were playing fetch after the 6th or 7th throw! Freyja watches Wicca hurtling after all sorts of things with a look of disdain on her face - I can tell she this wicca's letting the side down as everyone knows that people are here for the service and entertainment of cats; not the other way around!

I was lucky with Moshi, she just started doing it by herself, usually wanting to play at 1:00am! Wonderfully, she seems to have taught Moto how to.

They both started with a soft ball from Pets at Home - they seem to like them because they can pick them up easily. Also, straws from McDonalds ;-) They're great for chasing, but rubbish for throwing any distance!

Does he chase when you throw?

Thanks for the suggestions everyone!

He does chase when I throw, he just doesn't retrieve...

One thing that seems to work with Moshi is "winding" her up, i.e. getting her favourite ball and waving it and false throwing until she's ready to pounce on me! Sounds mean, but she brings it straight back when I do that, just like she wants more :-)

He's probably already doing it, just not to you. I discovered Moshi could when I went to sleep having thrown all the balls off my bed, to wake up with them all back on it!

You're probably right, he does carry things around quite a bit just doesn't bring em to me!

That's really quite classic with the balls on the bed, made me giggle