I was a servant to a very fluffy Ragdoll cat from 2006 thru 2022.  She was beautiful, as a kitten she was mostly all white with a couple drizzles of chocolate markings on her forehead, one ear was brown, the other was butterscotch.  Sounds like a sundae, except she was a feline who loved to get into trouble.

Started in November of 2006, I would buy her and my other cats Nuzzler and Bongo these spongy, bouncy, “glitterball” toys that they sell in pet stores, at cat shows, in crafting departments.  Most normal cats would chase toys and maybe even play fetch
like a dog, not Snuggler.  Unbeknownst to me, she not only was chasing them but dunking them into her water bowl as well!
I would find one or two, sometimes they were smashed flat like a neon colored pancake. I had zero idea that she was actually ingesting the spongy, bouncy, neon-colored balls.

Unfortunately, week before Thanksgiving she had stopped both eating and drinking her kibble and water, another weird habit she began was making “smacking” noises with her mouth, she would just lie around very lethargic.

In felines, if a cat does not eat for one or two days, they can go into liver failure rather quickly so I rushed her to the veterinarian.
First vet didn’t do an X-ray, just bloodwork and kept her overnight for “observation”, she still was not eating or drinking.  Her bloodwork told me something was up so I took her to a second vet.  of course, their X-ray machine was down.  Next day I found myself looking at a stomach full of glitterballs!  Snuggler had ingested NINE of them!

Can you picture a cat being full of craft supplies?  Me neither!
luckily they did emergency surgery and yep, it was nine cat toys.  Vets stitched her up and after a week she was fine, like nothing happened! 2 Grand later I took my mischievous Ragdoll cat home after doing a CLEAN SWEEP of toys, no more round fuzzy bouncy things!

They still sell these items at pet stores and cat shows everywhere, they come in bright neon colors, red,orange, blue, pink – they are fun fun fun – but I beg of every cat parent out there, always always supervise your cat when it comes to playing.

Cats are like perpetual toddlers who never “grow up and learn their lesson” like some kids can do. If it is on the floor, whether it be a ball, a grape, a raisin, a vitamin pill, a small mouse, string, shoelaces, feathers – it IS fair game to be sniffed, chewed and maybe ingested!

Some breeds of cats suck wool, shred paper, bite the TAILS off of their cardboard felt mice, roll super balls down the tub drain – Honestly ,the sky is the limit.

Balls come in foam, mylar, rubber – most pets will either chase or ignore, some might fetch or hide them, but there will ALWAYS be a cat with an affinity for chewing blankets, Sisal scratching posts, carpets, broom bristles, with a cat you can NEVER EVER be too
careful! Supervise always, put away toys,shoelaces, feathers, wand toys, when play time is over.

Cats have barbs on their tongues for grooming themselves, this is an excellent comb for the fuzzy self-cleaners.  Unfortunately, the same tongue also makes felines more likely to swallow something they shouldn’t.

Your cat is your perpetual toddler child, an important member of your family,  chose wisely what your purr machine will entertain.