For Comfort: Cat beds, shoe boxes, soft fleece bedding, cat nip.

For De-stressing: Calming spray (please inquire first), Feliway diffusers, kennel-sized scratch pads, and reading books to cats.

For Play: Cat toys (cat nip toys, balls and mice), sisal-rope scratching posts for the play rooms, Kicker toys because sometimes you just have to play hard, and Fishing-pole toys so humans can safely interact with the cats.

What Else: Audio CD of bird sounds, Old IPAD to play cat games.

These items, along with attention from our wonderful volunteers can make a world of difference to a scared, depressed, or un-socialized cat, and will make a world of difference in helping the kitties become more relaxed, social, and adoptable.

Tips and tricks on how to help your cat live healthy and happy!

So whether you are working with a cat in your home or at the shelter, you need to proper tools to be successful. Some cats like to climb and some like to go under or inside things. Some cats like to scratch vertical surfaces and others like to scratch horizontally. Every cat is different so it is important to provide a variety of things. You will find that some cats need to warm up to the idea of a "new" thing...after all, it must be their idea!

How would you feel if someone was constantly bobbing something in your face like some people do to cats? You would be annoyed! So, you need to think about the natural behavior of a cat which is hunting. So, get engaged with your cat with the fishing pole toy and make it a game where your cat is hunting its prey - small, darting-type movements. That is when you will earn cool-cat points with your feline. Watch Jackson's video and learn from a pro!

Rule number one - Don't use your hands when playing with kittens or cats! Really -- a kitten that bites will often grow into a cat that bites and that is dangerous. Teach proper play behavior with interactive and solo cat toys. Did you know that using a laser pointer can be a source of frustration for a cat? Yes, it is true so for proper feline engagement, you should learn the right way to incorporate the use of a laser pointer. This video shows you how as well as a wide variety of other cat toys to try with feline!

We all know that cats sleep a lot - up to 18 hours a day! But when they are up, they are happiest when they are doing something like playing or engaging their brain. If there is only one cat in the house then that responsibility falls on the pet parent. All cats will play, no matter their age but you may need to get them warmed up to the idea. Don't give up if they don't play right away as you might have to find the right activity. If you have a cat that is food-motivated, you can try the brain game in the video and/or also try clicker training. There is something really cool about a cat that can High-5 on cue!

If you know anything about cats and you also have an IPAD, you know that felines find it fascinating! So why not engage that even more with some fun cat games on the IPAD. Anything to make a cat happy, right?!

More ideas!

Even more ideas!