This stationary food puzzle offers a wide array of obstacles. This board can be used for dry food and treats or wet food can be placed in the tongue module. It can be rearranged in any configuration and each of the four pieces can be used separately or all together as shown in this video.
The Doorway Dangli by Petsafe
Stethoscope-like arms grasp door frame.
In the video clip of the Doorway Dangli you can see the creativity and challenge that can be incorporated in order to make cats work for their meals. Sometimes the smartest kitties are the ones waiting for the others who are doing all of the work to dispense some kibble! We call this opportunistic foraging! The orange cat in this video Peaches, had actually become blind in this clip, and while not successful in this video, she is still a master forager despite her handicap!
This toy can be made more difficult by hanging it higher so that the cat must work harder to reach up and bat at the toy.
Adjusts to different sized kibble & varied difficulty.
The Pipolino –
A versatile and adjustable food puzzle available in a variety of sizes for many different species. Weight can be a challenge for many cats so do not be deterred by the size of this toy. In fact, it can be made more challenging by placing smaller food puzzles inside, cat toys or adding weights to impede movement and obstruct the flow of food. Great for multiple cat households. Buy your Pipolino here.
Hold a decent amount of food for multiple cat households and also lots of room to add smaller food puzzles like the versatile ping-pong balls from Fundamentally Feline.
Many different sized holes too accommodate a variety of different dry food diets.
When your food puzzle is as big as you are! No matter if you are a master forager like Hitchinson!
The Digger by Catit
Another great beginner toy that can be used for wet or dry food. This is a stationary puzzle that hones your cats paw fishing skills!
The Foraging Toy Starter Kit by Fundamentally Feline –
The Foraging Toy Starter Kit.
The Starter Kit is three toys in one! You get two foraging eggs (or four small mini eggs) and an upcycled tennis ball tube container essentially for free! That’s right, Ingrid schleps around town collecting tennis tubes, washes them, drills holes in them, and essentially gives them away!
Fill all three toys up individually or, if your cat reaches master forager level, you can fill the eggs and place inside the tube so that your cat has to work extra hard to obtain the kibble from two toys at once.
This toy can be easy for beginners or utilized combined for increased challenge so its difficulty level is a range of one to two stars. You can also tape up the two or thee holes in the tube to make it a one holed toy.
An example of it being used for a master forager!
Erratic movement of the eggs keeps cats active.
Parker vs Tupperware
This video just goes to show how incredibly easy it is to DIY your own food puzzle. Quick, simple, and inexpensive!
The Fantasy Board by Trixie Pet –
This stationary foraging toy offers multiple puzzles in one including an area for wet food. Food does not always need to be the focus. The ping-pong ball section is like a feline rooting box and can be filled with water for cats that enjoy playing with water. The floating balls add a play component. Novelties can also be added like blades of grass tied in knots, and sticks and leaves for a seasonal fun offering.
Brain Mover by Trixie Pet
A more intricate food puzzle with multiple components. Wet cat food can also be used in the wells making it a versatile and challenging game for your cats. This toy is for the experienced forager!
Ice, Ice Baby!
It really can be this easy to get your cat started!
Some cats are very slow starters and need to be gradually eased into the concept of working for their food. Some families also cannot afford the fancy stationary foraging boards not knowing if their cat will take to using them. This is our compromise! An ice cube tray is incredibly easy and often free or at least inexpensive if you do not already have them sitting around the house. Once your cat has developed the skills to scoop the food out of the little wells with their paw, investing in a more intricate foraging board will not seem so risky.
**This can easily be used for canned food too!
The Busy Buddy Kibble Nibble dog toy by Petsafe
Keep an open mind because dog toys can be great for cats too! They are often heavier which provides a greater challenge and they usually hold more food for multiple cat households.
This Busy Buddy toy can be made increasingly more difficult by filling smaller objects and placing them inside this puzzle so the cats have to get food out of two objects at once. A weighted object could also be adding for increased challenge.
Hitchinson shows you how here!