Mother Nature Delivers the Purr-fect Interactive Cat Toy

Patsy was bouncing up and down at the lanai door, convinced she'd discovered the greatest cat toy ever—far more entertaining than the rubber strip that had recently fallen off our laptop. This toy moved.

When I looked closer, I discovered why. A small black racer snake had somehow made its way into our kitchen and was slithering along the track of the sliding glass door.

We had no intention of letting Patsy play with her exciting new toy.

Normally I might have picked it up, but this little guy was lightning fast, and I wasn't completely sure what kind of snake it was. It was also so tiny I was afraid I’d break some bones if I grabbed its wriggling body. So I grabbed a large plastic cup. After a brief game of "catch me if you can," I finally managed to trap it and release it safely outside the lanai.

Patsy was not impressed.

She stood by the slider for the longest time, pacing back and forth, searching for her missing toy. Then she went out onto the lanai and inspected the other side of the glass, convinced it had to be hiding somewhere. She even yowled at me a few times.

Was she blaming me for making her new toy disappear? Or was she simply asking me to get it back?

We'll never know.

Actually, Patsy has a history of preferring Mother Nature's toys. For years, we've had a gecko family living behind our outdoor light. We call them our Greeter Geckos. There's something cheerful about arriving home and seeing three little heads popping up above the light to welcome us.

One of our Greeter Geckos

Occasionally, one of the geckos makes the unfortunate decision to come inside. My husband says they can squeeze under the door. We try to rescue them, but our success rate isn't great. They are way faster than 80-year-olds. Sometimes we don't even realize one has gotten in until Patsy comes dashing into the living room, proudly carrying her latest discovery.

Like many cats, she has a particular way of presenting her hunting trophies. She'll drop a mostly dead gecko at my feet as if to say, "Look, Mom! I got you this great gecko!"

And then I'm faced with a dilemma. Do I freak out? Praise her hunting skills? Or gently scoop up the poor thing and try to put it outside—or, if it's too far gone, put it out of its misery?

So when a little black snake appeared in the kitchen, Patsy probably thought she'd hit the jackpot.

Snakes aren't unusual around here. One of our neighbors recently found a corn snake sunning itself outside her third-floor screen. The important word, however, is outside.

Casey observing the Corn Snake

Everything turned out fine. Well...for everyone except Patsy. She lost the most exciting cat toy she'd ever found.

The next night Patsy was prancing around, attacking my feet. With her claws extended, she grabbed at my slipper until I shooed her away. A little later I looked down and discovered she'd left a ribbon at my feet. She had retrieved it from her toy box. Although she brings toys to me all the time, she'd never chosen that ribbon before. I'm guessing she wanted me to play "snake" with her. So I picked up the ribbon and wiggled it. She attacked it with all the enthusiasm she'd shown the night before.

Convinced we'd have other reptilian visitors, hubby immediately ordered a snake grabber from Amazon.

"It's padded so you don't have to worry about hurting the snake!" he announced proudly.

Well, that's a relief.

Now I just have to figure out where to store it. If I hang it in a closet, by the time I find it, the snake will probably have completed a tour of the apartment and be asking if the guest room comes with complimentary lizards.

As a matter of fact, it does – but you’ll have to negotiate with Patsy.

P.S. Sadly, there are no photos. We were much too busy corralling one determined cat and a very fast snake to think about grabbing a camera. You'll just have to imagine that the rubber strip in the photo is wriggling.