How to Tame a Hyper Kitten

Here's the deal with kittens: They don't need you to have fun. Your counters, carpet, couch, bed, drapes, the dog's tail and everything else in your house provides the youngsters with plenty to swat at, chew and mess around with. But volunteering yourself for playtime not only lessens the chance you end up with a destroyed house, it also limits your kitty's hyper behavior because she'll be exhausted after playing with you. Dragging yarn across the floor, dangling a piece of string above your kitten's head, hiding your hand under the sheet and making it crawl across the bed -- all these things allow your kitten to expend energy so she's less hyper later in the day.

Still, avoid allowing your kitty to play with yarn or string by herself. If she decides to chow down on the material, she could run into serious problems.

You can't expect to play with your kitten all day, so give her some fun toys to play with herself. Some kitties love simple toys, such as a plush fish or a cardboard house. Others need something livelier, something that will bounce around when they hit it. Ideas include aluminum foil balls, straws, toys that chirp or squeak when touched and a circular track with a ball stuck inside. Do not leave toys with tiny bells or squeakers inside of them out for your kitty if you cannot supervise her. In the case of aluminum foil balls, ensure the foil is tightly compacted and only provide them if you can keep an eye on her.

Scratching posts serve a few purposes. They obviously dull down your kitten's nails and give her an appropriate area to scratch, but large-and-in-charge scratching posts are like miniature houses for your kitten. A post with lots of ledges to climb and jump on, caves to duck into, bells and feathers to smack around and, of course, lots of sisal rope or another similar surface to scratch can provide your hyper feline loads of entertainment. She'll hopefully burn enough energy on the scratching post that she isn't tearing through your house like a tornado.

Showing your hyper kitten a chipmunk or bird outside is akin to showing a dog a piece of cheese. She'll probably stop on a dime, flick her tail back and forth and sit there as the critters run up trees, fly from branch to branch and tease her from within their safe confines. Consider hooking a bird feeder or a suet holder onto a tree branch to attract more animals.

Treat dispensers aren't only reserved for canines. The normally round objects allow you to store bits of your kitty's food or a few treats inside. As she rolls it across the floor, the food falls out and she scoops it up. Because there's something tasty inside, the dispenser will have her full attention, at least until she empties it.