DIY toy guide

Paper-Plate Treat Weave

A slow-feeder puzzle woven from a paper plate and fabric strips

A paper plate threaded with strips of soft fabric or ribbon, creating a tangle of nooks that hide kibble or treats — a quick, disposable foraging puzzle that slows down a fast eater and gives the brain a workout.

Difficulty
Easy
Time
15 minutes
Cost
Free

🧺 You will need

  • A sturdy paper or thin cardboard plate
  • Several strips of soft fleece, old T-shirt fabric or wide ribbon
  • Scissors
  • A little of your cat’s dry food or favourite treats

🔧 How to make it

  1. Cut a ring of small slits around the plate and a few across the middle, spaced a couple of centimetres apart.
  2. Thread strips of fabric in and out through the slits so they stand up in loose loops and tufts across the plate.
  3. Trim any long, trailing ends so nothing is long enough to be chewed off and swallowed.
  4. Scatter kibble or treats down among the fabric loops so they nestle out of easy reach.
  5. Put the plate down and let your cat nose, paw and forage the food out from between the strips.

💡 Tips

Foraging for food is mentally satisfying and naturally slows down a gulper, which can help with digestion and boredom alike. Start easy with the treats sitting near the top, then tuck them deeper as your cat gets the idea. Because it costs nothing and takes minutes, you can make a fresh one whenever the old plate gets grubby.

Safety: Keep the fabric strips short and firmly threaded so they cannot be pulled off and swallowed, and supervise any cat that likes to eat fabric or cardboard. Discard the plate once it is chewed or soiled rather than reusing it, and count any treats used as part of the daily food ration.

📝 Notes

A genuinely free, five-minute puzzle made from a plate and fabric scraps. Use wider fabric loops for a beginner and a denser weave for a puzzle-savvy cat who has mastered the easy version.

← Back to Toys & Enrichment