A crocheted cat toy is just the ticket for happy kitties. Store-bought toys can be pricey, and they have strange manufacturing odors. By crocheting cat toys, I ingrain my scent onto the yarn. This makes the toy especially tantalizing to my cats. I have three of them: Bubbles, Saxophone, and Sprinkle. They really love playing with yarn, so I decided to come up with a  pattern.

Cat Toy Pattern

Crochet Legend:
sl. st. = slip stitch
ch.     = chain
sc      = single crochet
inc.   = single crochet increase (2 stitches in 1)
dec.  = single crochet decrease ( 1 stitch in 2)

Using a G-size hook,
Ch. to desired length, ch. 1 ( I did 265 ch. for reference)
Sc in base of first ch. stitch on opposite side and each ch. until the end, ch. 1
Sc on other side until the end, then sl. st.
Ch. 6 and sl. st. on the other side, ch. 1
Sc 6 in ring, ch. 1
Inc. in ring, sl. st. together and ch. 1 (12 stitches)
*Sc in next sc, then inc.* around and sl. st. together and ch. 1 (18 stitches)
*2 sc in next 2 sc, then inc.* around and sl. st. together and ch. 1 (24 stitches)
*3 sc in next 3 sc, then inc.* around and sl. st. together and ch. 1 (30 stitches)
Sc in each sc around 5 times, making sure to sl. st. and ch. 1 at the end of each row (5 rows) (150 stitches)
*3 sc in next 3 sc, then dec.* around and sl. st. together and ch. 1
*2 sc in next 2 sc, then dec.* around and sl. st. together and ch. 1
*Sc in next sc, then dec.* around and sl. st. together and ch. 1 (Stuff at This Point)
Dec. around to finish ball. The cat toy is done now, or more can be added. I added some free-style frills for extra enjoyment.

Free-Style Additions to Cat Toy

Before finishing off and while at the base of the ball, Ch. 18, sl. st. in 2nd ch. from hook and in each ch. down. Sl. st. in same space and in next sc. Ch. 26, dc in 3rd ch. from hook, dc 8 more in same ch. for a 10-stitch popcorn. Sc down the rest of the row and sl. st. in same space. Sl. st. in next sc and repeat the first row. Ch. 18 and make a 3 dc cluster in 3rd ch. from hook, ch. 2, 3 dc cluster in next ch. sl. st. in the rest of the chains and in the same space. Repeat row one again. Sl. st. across the diameter for extra support. Leave a long tail when finishing off so that there is extra string.
Optional: For added strength, sew the top part where the single crochets meet the ball. Keep the ball as centered as possible and the string from bunching.

After finishing the cat toy, I decided to try it out with my kitties. They each smelled it and batted it. Maybe next time I could add some catnip. I’d say the cat toy was a hit though because now they take turns dragging it around the house and kicking it.