I don't really know exactly how to play with Bella. Jamie, her sidekick, runs after balls and such. Bella gets bored very, very quickly. I used to dangle the "cat dancer" for her and walk around with it, but she's bored with it now. And of course she looks up to my hand holding the toy, seeing that I'm the one manipulating it, and then seems uninterested. SMART KITTY!!

She likes roll-y things -- pens she loves, for example. Also rolls of toilet paper, which she routinely shreds. I got one of those puzzle toys - the cardboard box with shapes cut out, where you can put a ball or something in. Jamie loved it for a couple of days. Bella didn't. Also: Jamie seemed cleverer than Bella about getting the balls out!

Is there any toy at all someone could suggest? I would LOVE to play with Bella. Her primary playmate, of course, is Jamie, and the two girls are now pretty bonded. Bella is especially fascinated by Jamie, gazing at her, lifting her head when she hears her, and so on. Someone on the forum wrote to me that of course cats are more bonded to each other, and that I'm not a cat, so . . . . I'll try a toilet paper roll. Beyond that, I just don't know.

Straws usually go down well. You can also tie them to door handles or such and fold them in half.
Ping pong balls are great of you have hard floors, and if you don't, you can throw one in an empty bath.
Old shoe laces with knots in can be entertaining, as can ribbon.

Other non playful suggestions would be to try clicker training, mental stimulation is just as important as physical. You could also try getting them used to wearing a harness, with the aim to take them on 'walks' around your garden, block, local woods etc, eventually. It's important though, to remember that you have to be persistent and follow through with this kind of training. Trying it for 5-10 minutes isn't enough, and then you have to employ distraction techniques to be able to get them to settle down and realise that they can still do everything they used to with or without a harness.

A 5-10 minute session with catnip & valerian 'rabbit kickers' does wonders for my four. Once they stop 'killing' them and just sit and lick them, they have had enough and they will be quite happy for the rest of the evening.

IMO if you can get your cat to play with a cat dancer like toy, that is pretty ideal because you can control the "energy burn" and it really does satisfy their need really well (a hunting simulation basically). But what I've found is that different cats favor different kinds of attachments for it. My Oriental, Neytiri, really goes wild over the small mouse-like attachments. To a lesser degree she also loves to chase the bird attachments. Serafina goes nuts over birds, moths, and other flying things attachments. She shows considerably less interest in mouse-like attachments. Gaga prefers the larger, furrier types of attachments, which neither of the other two like.

_________________
The little monsters 3

In addition to what Brian said:
Cat dancer type toys can't be simply "dangled" in front of the cat. Quasar would never chase that.
You need to make the toy seem like prey. Any self-respecting prey would not hang out in front of the predator. It needs to act like prey.
Our da-bird makes himself visible to Quasar, just to catch his attention. Then, da-bird (or da-mouse) hides and scurries. It flies about and makes noise in its flight. It particularly likes to hang out at the opening to one of Quasar's tunnels. Quasar loves to hunt by running through a tunnel (we have 3) to pounce on his prey.

Once Quasar is engaged in chasing da-bird, he flies about the house - into different rooms and up and over various pieces of furniture.

In fact, da-bird will keep teasing Quasar until Quasar is so completely pooped out and goes to lie, panting, on the tile floor to cool off.

Does your teaser really tease Bella?

_________________
~ Kyenta

My Raiden isn't much of a player. He does like the cat dancer. I make it do rolls and he jumps for it. I snake it around and he will chase it. But not for long. There is a Kickstarter campaign for a little mouse that runs around the house. I don't have the room for something like that. It would end up under the furniture. LOL. Raiden has a ton of toys. My DSH finds the toys and amuses himself with them. If I use a wand toy on him, he catches it and wants to run with it. Cats are amusing and there are a million different toys out there for them. Most are not very expensive to try out. You may try some kicker boys and see if Bella likes them. Catnip is usually the attraction. Empty toilet paper rolls and paper towel rolls seem to be pretty great toys. One of the latest DYI toys I've seen is a decent size cardboard bock turned on it's side and empty water bottles tied inside it. The video's I've seen show the cats loving it. However, it seems that you want Bella to interact with the toy with you.

Thanks for all the suggestions!

My Oberon likes the fishing toys with mouse like toys on the end, especially ones that squeak when they bounce on the floor (electronic or mechanical squawk). Walmart has some he likes and they are under $6 . He tries to run off them in his mouth, and will tug the toy like a dog. He has eviscerated several, and I put the little noisemakers back in and sew them up with the strongest thread I can find. I am considering getting some Kevlar thread. My daughter says the noisemakers sound like animals dying and that is what appeals to their predator instincts.

Laser toys are good for dealing with boredom too. It should be noted that Bengals do not have brakes. If you are not careful, they can slide into you while in pursuit of the light dot, claws fully extended...

_________________

Bringing a cat outdoors can present some problems. Cats can run pretty fast when frightened or startled. You will not be able to catch your cat. Having the cat in a fenced in back yard isn't much help as they can hop over in an instant. A harness and leash is a safe way to have them outside, always with you at the other end -- never tie up the leash and leave the cat OR there are great portable enclosures that will keep your kitty safe while outdoors. Bengals can get bored, especially, but it really isn't safe to just let them outdoors without any supervision. Many people do, however. Just a personal preference.

_________________
The little monsters 3