Waggle your felines (Leather Waggler Cat Toy)

Member Name: Tracy_1127

Product:	Leather Waggler Cat Toy
Date:	28/07/09 (49 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: see review

Disadvantages: see review

I'm aways on the look out for toys for my boys (cats) to play with and recently I decided to try and get some that were attached to a wand. The reason for this is one of my lads likes this particular kind of toy and I hoped to get him running around a bit as he's prone to putting on weight.

I often use zooplus.co.uk because it is listed on Quidco so I can get some cash back at the same time. While browsing the toy section on zooplus I saw these leather wagglers and decided to try them. I bought two because I always buy two of everything for my boys or they squabble over it! Each one should have been £1.99 but they were on offer for 99p each.

The wagglers have a 65cm wand and on the end about 8 strips of leather about 8 inches long. This of course makes it perfect for avoiding scratches on your hands as your hands are nowhere near excited claws!

When I received mine I hurriedly opened one only to find the plastic blob on the opposite end to the leather strips came off. It's not necessary to use the toy but it just fell off in my hands and left behind a tiny bit of glue which I removed. This made me wonder how the toy would stand up to feline fury so I tugged on the leather strips a few times to see how secure they are. They are actually very secure.

The idea is you hold the wand and run the strips along the floor or the wall etc or flip it up in the air so your cats can chase it. The strips are about half a centimetre wide and various colours so they should catch your cat's eye and make them want to catch it.

I started with my lad who favours these kinds of toys and ran it along the floor in front of him, he immediately wondered what it was and started to play. Next I got a cardboard box out and tipped it on its side then ran the leather strips along the top and round the sides and back while my boy sat in the box scrabbling around after them. Finally I tried to get him to trot around a bit by sweeping this across the floor quickly and it worked, he ran after the leather strips. I repeated all this with my other lad when he came to see what was going on so I was in the centre of the lounge with one in either hand while my boys raced around me!

So it was a succes but I have a couple of little gripes. Firstly the plastic blob that fell off as I opened one. This is small enough for a cat to swallow and choke on so I suggest anyone who buys one of these should check how secure that bit is. You can just make it out in the picture above, right at the end of the handle. Secondly you have to be careful with how fast you flick the leather strips around. Remember they are leather and if you flick them very fast they can have a whip effect which is not what you're aiming for! So care is required to make sure this doesn't happen. If you're not sure how fast you can flick these without that happening practise before you get your cat in the room.

Overall though they're quite good fun for cats, my boys have played with theirs several times and as the leather strips are indeed leather they don't pull them to pieces like other materials. They can be used fast or slow, on the floor or in the air, behind things, on top of things or to tickle your cat with and will thoroughly excite them into a playful feline frenzy! I'm deducting a star because of my gripes but at 99p these are a bargain toy that many cats will love.

Summary: Good fun for cats and recommended by my boys.