Fur, weight and a body a cat can actually get hold of are what separate a toy that gets caught from one that gets ignored. This plush rodent runs about on its own along changing, uneven routes, and when a cat finally pins it, the thing under their paws feels like something worth having caught: soft-bodied, fur-textured and roughly the size of the prey they were built to chase.

The motor drives it in short scurrying bursts rather than a smooth line, so it stops and starts the way a small animal does when it suspects it has been spotted. That changeability is what stops a cat learning the pattern and losing interest by the second week. Switch it on and let it go, since there is nothing for you to hold, which makes it genuinely useful for the hours when nobody in the house is free to play.

• Motorised plush rodent with a fur-textured body
• Scurries in unpredictable stop-start bursts
• Soft enough to grab, bite and carry off
• Runs on its own for independent play
• Yellow, grey and khaki options
• A three-colour set is also listed

On what it is, and on chewing. It is the same soft motorised rodent either way, and we would rather point that out than let the photographs surprise you. Supervise the early sessions, and take it away and replace it once a determined cat starts opening the seams.

Who it's for: Indoor cats with a strong prey drive who need something to hunt while the house is empty during the day.