Mr. Darcy's secret

Anyone trying to entertain a cat knows how hard it is to find toys that work. Here are some of the things we've tried over the years, including a grey wind-up mouse, feathers on a stick and a purple bow from a chocolate box.

The long fluffy snake? Meh. The wind-up grey mouse that ran in semi-circles? Boring. In our long history of trying to entertain our cat Mr. Darcy, we found balls, feathers on sticks and laser pointers were similarly ho-hum. Small toy mice and shoelaces evoked more interest, but it took a gift bow from a Purdy’s chocolate box to finally reveal the secret.

The bow itself, small, light and multiple-layered, was easily battable into corners and under couches. But what elevated it into another category altogether was its attached elastic cord. Cord that wriggled and skittered and waved unpredictably with every toss; it was its random flopping that fascinated. After years of experimenting, we finally knew the ingredients of a successful Mr. Darcy-toy.

This is a partly successful toy; light and flexible.

This is a more successful toy, with an extra ribbon tied on.

Which leads to the little pink mouse I bought at a pet store recently. It has four ultra-long spindly legs ending in outsize felt pads like Mickey Mouse’s clodhoppers. It has an equally long spindly tail; in total, five appendages to flop and flail. Mr. Darcy has shown his appreciation by knocking it down the stairs once and under the couch regularly.

The pink mouse, with its many movable parts.

When I found this toy – in the midst of the gift-giving season – I thought about how I knew down to the nth degree what would delight my cat. How many of us, I wondered, know what would give our “real” gift recipients a thrill equivalent to four floppy legs and a tail?

Mr. Darcy stalks his mouse. . . 

and moves in for the kill.

Oh what fun to toss it into a corner; Carol will extricate it later.