SmartyKat Hot Pursuit Electronic Concealed Motion Cat Toy, Blue

This toy is well designed and the battery lasts longer than other toys I’ve gotten. My cat, who requires a toy to be moving to be interested in it, loved this the first couple weeks. The prey was hiding and moving erratically, and fluffy—so exciting! Sadly, she is no longer interested in it as she has the movement figured out. I put it away for a few weeks at a time, and she is interested again for a few minutes, and then walks away. She will watch it from afar until it auto-shuts off (a great feature), hoping it will do something different. Picky cat...she requires a human to move toys on a wand to get her ya-yas out.

The fabric circle is too large and the toy never quite gets out from under it. My cat pounces on the fabric and that causes the ratcheting noise to start. Then my cat leaves! The toy wand needs to be longer or the fabric circle smaller. It may have something to do with my flooring, which is not shiny smooth like a polished hardwood or vinyl. But then there should be options to add on to the length of string on the toy, or a smaller fabric circle. I put the toy on the platform on the top of a cat scratching post and took off the fabric circle. At least now my cat sometimes finds it interesting. Wanted to love it, but it leaves me feeling "meh."

To say my kittens were obsessed with this toy is an understatement; that being said, it’s incredibly frustrating that after one evening of usage this toy now sits untouched and unusable. The wand is not a permanent fixture - it screws on and off. Theoretically, this is a very clever design choice - when the wand piece eventually breaks or wears out, you can just replace it without buying a whole new motor. The problem is I can find a compatible replacement anywhere!!! It bums me out because my cats really did love playing with it. If you do choose to buy this, glue the wand on immediately! This would’ve earned more stars from me if the wand didn’t fall off so easily during normal play, or if To say my kittens were obsessed with this toy is an understatement; that being said, it’s incredibly frustrating that after one evening of usage this toy now sits untouched and unusable. The wand is not a permanent fixture - it screws on and off. Theoretically, this is a very clever design choice - when the wand piece eventually breaks or wears out, you can just replace it without buying a whole new motor. The problem is I can find a compatible replacement anywhere!!! It bums me out because my cats really did love playing with it. If you do choose to buy this, glue the wand on immediately! This would’ve earned more stars from me if the wand didn’t fall off so easily during normal play, or if at the very least I could replace the darned thing! … more

My cats love this toy. I had one similar to it that they loved from a different company but the wand broke and it didn't have replacement parts. I thought this one would change that.... First when they play with it and they stop the wand it makes an EXTREMELY loud clicking noise like the motor keeps trying to move but obviously it's ment caught although it doesn't sound like it should. Second the skirt barely stays on my cats have it off in less then a minutes defeating the purpose. Last the wand is a twist on and constantly falls off within minutes of play. Overall they love it but it's practically garbage.

Here are some bullet points about my experience with this toy. - First one broke within a couple of weeks of my very gentle cat playing with it (arm stopped spinning even though the motor seemed to be working) - If the cat manages to catch the spinning part, it makes a god awful grinding noise that has mostly scared him out of touching it. -The second one somehow manages to spin the arm in such a way as to unscrew it entirely. I've had to glue it on. - Despite the fact that it scares him, my cat is content mostly to watch it spin and complains at me when it shuts off, so that's why this is getting one star. My boy is, as I said, a gentle floof, and frightens fairly easily. Yours might Here are some bullet points about my experience with this toy. - First one broke within a couple of weeks of my very gentle cat playing with it (arm stopped spinning even though the motor seemed to be working) - If the cat manages to catch the spinning part, it makes a god awful grinding noise that has mostly scared him out of touching it. -The second one somehow manages to spin the arm in such a way as to unscrew it entirely. I've had to glue it on. - Despite the fact that it scares him, my cat is content mostly to watch it spin and complains at me when it shuts off, so that's why this is getting one star. My boy is, as I said, a gentle floof, and frightens fairly easily. Yours might be less skittish and not be bothered by the sound it makes. But its lack of durability or functionality make me inclined not to recommend this one. … more

This has got to be the most annoying cat toy ever. The concept is good since it sparks the cat’s attention but the noise it make is unbearable. The fabric they use is too flimsy and gets tangled with the tail bit. Besides the ridiculous sound, the machine part is too slow and it pauses with lights flickering... I don’t get it! Cats like sudden movement not flashing lights. Also the tail or the part which spins under the fabric comes loose. Overall not a good buy.

My cat is obsessed with this toy and for that reason I’m super pleased because he gets bored of toys easily. I think it’s a great concept but needs some work. The wand toy falls off a lot or gets caught in the material of the top piece covering the wand, and will pull the material forward and get stuck. If my cat pounces on the toy the wand keeps trying to move and it makes a VERY loud clicking noise as it’s trying to keep moving. It’s like the designer didn’t stop to think of what should happen if the cat successfully catches the thing. But, my cat is more amused by this than other hunting toys so I’ll still use it, even if the sound makes me want to pull my hair out!

My cat LOVES this toy. The lights are such a great feature. I would have totally given this five stars. The major problem is that the rod that holds the toy part comes off some how.....every. single. time! So frustrating because once that's off there's no game left...except for the lights. It screws in so I'm not even sure how it's coming off. I had another brand one that this didn't happen with. Disappointed.

For the price, this is worth testing out, but there are significant design flaws that, if they bother your cat, make this a piece of garbage cluttering your floors: 1) the spinning wand (the toy part) gets loosened with each rotation, so often the toy part will disconnect so there is nothing for your cat to chase. If your cat has any strength behind their play, this toy may not be durable enough to play without assistance in reconnecting every other minute. 2) There doesn't seem to be a way to turn off the flashing lights, and they are blinding if the cover is removed. Because the spinning wand doesn't extend beyond the end of the mat, my cat lifted the mat to get to the toy. The lights For the price, this is worth testing out, but there are significant design flaws that, if they bother your cat, make this a piece of garbage cluttering your floors: 1) the spinning wand (the toy part) gets loosened with each rotation, so often the toy part will disconnect so there is nothing for your cat to chase. If your cat has any strength behind their play, this toy may not be durable enough to play without assistance in reconnecting every other minute. 2) There doesn't seem to be a way to turn off the flashing lights, and they are blinding if the cover is removed. Because the spinning wand doesn't extend beyond the end of the mat, my cat lifted the mat to get to the toy. The lights began to flash and my cat walked away blinking like it bothered his eyes, and now won't play with the toy. Two stars because this is a simple, affordable idea, but it is executed poorly. Materials seem fine, just a lack of thought into utility. … more

The box it came in was a little worse for wear, but the plastic is very durable with minimal assembly required! My cat loves to chase the toy as it moves under the concealing sheet, and there are even lights in the top that add extra stimulation. I would recommend the slow speed setting for cats that like to sit on their toys - the motor doesn’t stop if there’s resistance to the motion, so the slower speed puts less stress on the toy.