{"id":4109,"date":"2020-04-06T04:50:19","date_gmt":"2020-04-06T12:50:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/?p=4109"},"modified":"2020-04-06T04:50:19","modified_gmt":"2020-04-06T12:50:19","slug":"mindful-monday-creative-and-fun-isolation-activities-for-you-and-your-pets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/?p=4109","title":{"rendered":"Mindful Monday \u2013 Creative and FUN Isolation Activities For You and Your Pets"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"How many days have we been under house arrest now\u2014I mean, safe at home? I guess it\u2019s different for each state and community. Some states still don\u2019t have the mandate (or even the suggestion) to stay at home when at all possible. For me, it\u2019s day 45 because I was sick for 3 weeks before the virus interrupted our life.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re like me and those I\u2019ve talked to, you have \"\"probably gone through several emotions with regard to this\u2014eager to get back to your life, antsy or angry, wondering when this sequestering will end, and then perhaps reluctant or calm acceptance. As I wrote in a \"\"post last week, the only ones who are truly enjoying this new (temporary) way of life are our pets. We could take a lesson from them, don\u2019t you think so?<\/p>\n

You may have already established some new rituals and activities with your cats and dogs. Many dogs are getting walked more often than usual. Those pets who love, love, love to eat, may be getting more food treats because we\u2019re home and cooking and eating more, so they\u2019re in the kitchen, begging, and probably eating more.<\/p>\n

Our cats are cuddling more. And Lily is dragging out\"\" more of my socks, slippers, and other items of clothing. (Probably because I\u2019m not putting things away as promptly\u2014I mean those days of drop-in visitors is over, right?)<\/p>\n

If you and your pet are starting to get a little cranky or bored, maybe it\u2019s time to get creative. Get off the couch and have a little fun with your pet. This might be a good time to catch up with your cat\u2019s or dog\u2019s grooming tasks. It\u2019s spring, after all. Comb out her shedding winter coat before it tangles with new fur and creates mats. While you\u2019re at it, if appropriate, trim her nails.<\/p>\n

\"\"Maybe you\u2019ve thought for years about building your cat a catio. Now might be a good time to do it\u2014that is if you or someone else in the household has at least some skill with a hammer and nails.<\/p>\n

Create a cardboard jungle for your cat using all of those boxes Amazon delivers to your house, lately. Tip: Let the boxes sit outside \"\"in the sun for 24 hours or so before bringing them into your house. Cut windows and doors in the boxes and stack them to create the fort or castle of your cat\u2019s dreams.<\/p>\n

Fill a box with shredded paper and hide treats in there.<\/p>\n

\"\"Teach your cat a trick. Don\u2019t know how? The Internet is full of interesting ways to do this.<\/p>\n

Pull toys from the bottom of her toybox so she thinks she\u2019s getting something new to play with. Make her a new toy. There are several sites showing how to make interesting dog toys. Here\u2019s one with ideas for making cat toys. https:\/\/www.onecrazyhouse.com\/easy-diy-cat-toys\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Order toys over the Internet.<\/p>\n

Here are a couple of sites with additional ideas for providing enrichment and creating bonding activities for you and your cat during these unusual times. Now go have some fun with your cat (or dog). https:\/\/petwelfare.org.au\/2017\/07\/05\/enrichment-activities-cats\/<\/a><\/p>\n

https:\/\/lifeandcats.com\/enrichment-for-cats\/<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

How many days have we been under house arrest now\u2014I mean, safe at home? I guess it\u2019s different for each state and community. Some states still don\u2019t have the mandate (or even the suggestion) to stay at home when at … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[38],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4109"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4109"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4109\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4110,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4109\/revisions\/4110"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4109"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4109"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4109"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}