Nepetalactone, an ingredient in the mint-like herb known as catnip, gives cats a “high.” There are several ways to give your cat catnip. Purchase high-quality catnip in the form of a plant, dried leaves, flake, pellet, spray, or cultivate your own. Make simple toys for your cat to play with or purchase refillable toys that you can fill with fresh catnip. Keep an eye on your cat’s behavior and exercise caution when feeding it catnip. Use catnip to help with training, if needed.
1. Give Your Cat Loose Catnip
Depending on the amount of nepetalactone present, different varieties of catnip are more or less potent. When purchasing loose catnip, seek for varieties that have more leaves and blooms than stems. The latter have a stronger effect and contain more of the chemical.
Cats can safely chew on or consume dried catnip, which can be added to toys or lightly scattered throughout your cat’s play area (e.g. approximately one tbsp, or 0.5 oz). Make sure to keep loose catnip in a closed container if you purchase it. Place the container away from your cats in a high cupboard.
2. Use a Catnip Spray
Purchase a spray, as it will contain less nepetalactone and have a lower dose of catnip (a cat attracting chemical compound). With the use of catnip spray, you may direct your cat toward some items of furniture or toys while keeping it away from others (for example, sprinkle your cat’s bed to keep it away from the couch). Look for a spray that is entirely natural and free of any additives or preservatives.
3. Grow Fresh Catnip to Give your Cat
For a continuous supply of the herb, purchase a catnip plant, or cultivate it indoors. Plants for catnip can be grown outside if you have a garden. Make sure plants have enough light and water. Give your cat cut-off leaves as needed for them to chew, paw at, brush against, or consume. For subsequent use, fresh catnip can be dried and kept.
4. Give your Cat Organic Catnip
Choose catnip from brands that are grown naturally while shopping. Organic catnip is typically fresher and more effective than catnip of lower quality, in addition to being devoid of chemicals and pesticides. Fresh, dried, flake, pellet, oil, spray, and organically cultivated catnip are all available for purchase.
5. Freeze Catnip to Keep it Fresh
Catnip should be kept in the freezer to maintain its potency. The herb’s essential oil won’t dry up while freezing, which would lessen the herb’s potency. Before freezing, place the catnip in a freezer bag or other plastic container and tightly seal it. When necessary, take catnip out of the freezer and thaw it.
6. Give Your Cat Catnip Toys
Purchase refillable toys at a pet store or online in place of those that are already scented or packed with catnip. Low-quality catnip that soon loses its power may be found in pre-filled toys. To ensure that the catnip is constantly potent enough to affect your cat, you can continually replace refillable toys with high-quality, organic catnip. Use a clean, spare sock to create a straightforward catnip toy. The sock should be filled with a pinch or two of catnip before being tightly knotted. To keep the catnip potent, replace it every week or so. Alternately, use a needle and thread to sew the top shut.
Stick to the fundamentals when providing catnip toys to your cat because cats frequently amuse themselves by playing with common household items. Fill a tiny paper bag with a pinch of catnip (fresh, dried, pelletized, or flaked). Make a tight ball out of it to play with for your cat. Make the bag into a tight enough ball so that your cat cannot open it.
7. Don’t Give Your Cat Catnip Too Often
Catnip’s effects can completely disappear if given to cats too frequently. To keep your pet’s catnip “high,” which often lasts for 5 to 15 minutes, choose to give it to them only once a week. Your cat may need up to two hours for their behavior to get back to normal, during which time they won’t be affected by catnip. Rationing won’t be a factor in all situations. Catnip does not cause an allergic reaction in about 30% of cats, and kittens often do not respond to catnip until they are 12 weeks old.
8. Use Catnip for Training
Use catnip to train your cat to stop scratching furniture and other valuable household items if this is a nasty habit. Get a can of catnip spray (online or at your neighborhood pet store) and spray it on your cat’s scratching post. Your cat will choose the attractive surface of the scratching post over the couch or kitchen table when it has an intense want to scratch.
