A long tail that keeps moving after the ball stops.
The ball stops and the tail keeps going. That extra second of movement after everything should have settled is what brings a cat back for another attempt rather than walking off.
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Colour: Pink
Why you'll love it
A ball that comes to rest is finished. A tail that carries on twitching for another second reads as wounded prey, which is precisely the cue that makes a cat pounce again.
The length lets a cat grab it in the front paws and rake with the back legs, which is a different play pattern from chasing and burns more energy.
Thermoplastic rubber flexes rather than cracking, so it survives being bitten in a way hard plastic does not, and it has no coating to come off.
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Most toys have one problem in common: they stop. A ball rolls to a halt, a mouse comes to rest, and at that moment the cat's interest drops away because nothing is happening any more. The window in which a cat will take an interest again is short, and a toy that goes completely still usually misses it.
A long light tail extends that window. The ball settles, but the tail carries on whipping for a moment afterwards, and that residual movement is often enough to trigger another swipe. Chaining a few of those together is the difference between fifteen seconds of play and several minutes.
At 25 centimetres overall it also works as a kicker. A cat can hold the ball end with the front paws and rake the tail with the back legs, which is the grappling behaviour that gives an indoor cat a genuine physical workout rather than just a chase.
That combination is unusual and it is why this outlasts most balls in a toy box. Chasers get the bounce, grapplers get something to hold, and cats that do both get a toy that suits whichever mood they are in. It is also light enough to throw, so it works for interactive play as well as solo.
The TPR ball is the durable half; the tail is the consumable. A cat that kicks and bites will work the plush loose over time, and the point to retire the toy is when the tail starts detaching from the ball rather than when it looks scruffy. Loose plush and any thread that comes away are things you do not want swallowed.
Like most cat toys with a moving part, it makes noise on a hard floor at three in the morning. Putting it away overnight solves that and has the useful side effect of keeping it novel, since a toy that is always available stops registering as a toy within a fortnight.
In the box
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The details
Loved by real pet parents
This was the first thing that got her doing the rabbit kick. She grabs the whole 25 cm of it in her front paws and goes at it with the back legs, which tires her out far more than chasing ever did. Ours is the green one, for what that is worth.
Good toy, and at 50 g she can send it a fair distance with one paw. The plush tail ends up soggy from being carried about in her mouth and takes a while to dry, so I would happily have a spare to swap in. The ball end wipes clean in a second.
She hides from anything new for a fortnight as a rule. This one she was batting round the kitchen on day two, I think because it moves oddly rather than coming straight at her. She sleeps with the tail under one paw now.
She took to it immediately and it was the favourite for about three weeks. Then she chewed through the tail near the ball and I took it away, as the listing advises. The ball itself is untouched, so it is the tail that decides how long you get out of it.
Throw it across the room and the ball settles, but the plush tail carries on twitching for a second, and that is the moment she launches. A normal ball is finished the instant it stops rolling. This gets a second pounce almost every time.
The bounce is genuinely unpredictable, which is the whole point, and she loves it for that. It also means it ends up under the sofa several times a session and I am down on my knees with a ruler. The pink has gone rather grubby too, though that is fair after two months.
Hard plastic balls in this house end up with a chunk bitten out of them within the month. This one gives when he bites and springs straight back, and there is no coating on it to come away in bits. Three months on it looks the same as it did.
It performs exactly as described, the tail flutters and she goes after it far more readily than a plain ball. The purple is a good deal paler than it looked, closer to lilac really. The cat could not care less, so take that as you will.
At 50 g he can pick it up by the tail and fling it himself, which he does, and then he chases it. The rubber has enough give that he can get his teeth into it without anything cracking. Best thing we have bought him this year.
Good questions
It is sewn in, not glued, so it holds up to normal play. Like any plush toy, retire it once a cat has chewed the tail loose rather than waiting to find out.
It gives them something to chase and kick without you. The supplier claims it keeps a cat's mental health in check, which is more than a toy can promise, and daily wand play does more.
Yes, no bell or rattle. It is one of the better options if your cat plays at night.
Only once it starts coming apart. Check it regularly and retire the toy when the plush is detaching from the ball or threads are pulling free.
It is one of the better single toys for it, because it covers chasing and grappling. Pair it with a few minutes of wand play, which is the thing most indoor cats are actually short of.
The ball is audible on a hard floor, so a cat playing overnight will be heard. Put it away in the evening if that is a problem.
Last reviewed 30 August 2026