I have heard how awesome this cat toy, Da Bird, is, but I never could find it anywhere. I found one yesterday. Stephano went so insane over this toy.....I just need to have my daughter video it and show you later, it was the funniest thing ever. My daughter was running around the house dragging it, and it sort of flies like a bird, and the cat chased her all over the house. Then, when he would finally catch it, he would pick it up in his mouth and run into his room with the wand part dragging behind him. He would put it on the ground, stare at it and growl at it. Talk about wearing him out before bedtime.......this was the most perfect thing, let me tell you, he slept like a baby.

Sadly. The bird died. Almost immediately. The feathers came off right away, and he was so disappointed. He did not even manhandle this toy, he actually was carrying it pretty gently. So I took it back to Pet Supermarket this morning, they gave me a new one AND I bought a replacement feather for it. You should have seen me when I walked in with it. He could hardly wait for me to get it out of the package, and he put it in his mouth and ran down the hall with it. Cutest toy ever. But also, not made very well AT ALL. They have some knock off ones that are cheaper and look like they are sturdier, I'll have to check those out.

It was like Christmas, when I took that toy out of the package this morning, LOL!!!

Yeah, I was skeptical too when I first got Da Bird. Jem used to go absolutely nuts for this. And this is one of the few toys that Scout will get off his lazy butt to play with. I haven't had any issues with durability. I've had the same attachment for almost a year. One of the feathers (there were 4) got pulled out, but the bigger ones are holding up pretty well. I love how it flutters and sounds like a real bird too (though Monkey does not think it's too realistic ).

I've found the cheaper versions aren't quite the same. They don't make the same ..whirring noise... that Da Bird does when you move it around. At least all the cheapo ones I've tried didn't.

I've never had the feathers come off. I've had Book break the wand... break the beaded metal part, and chew the feathers but it's never come apart before.

Same thing happened to me. I keep Goop brand plumbers/marine glue on hand for all sorts of stuff so I stuck the feather ends into the glue then popped it into the red holder overnight. Stuck tight after that. Get the glue from Home Depot in the paint dept. Blue tube.

You can order the feather refills from Amazon. They are sold in 3 packs for $13, I think. I go through them like crazy at the shelter, but the cats LOVE it! Coco here loves it too, but everyone else is afraid or indifferent to it.

It's not really made to let the cat run off with the wand dragging behind. You're supposed to hold onto the handle and not let him take off with it.

I agree with Mow...the knockoffs are not as good.

You can get refills direct from the manufacturer for less than Amazon.

GO-CAT Feather Toys

It's the only toy that will get Lily off her pudgy cat butt to run around before bed! She is not a cat who loves toys so it took a few days for her to figure out what to do but now she plays with it twice a day. Loves it!
If Stephano likes to carry things around in his mouth, here's something I do with Lily to change things up: she also really loves these little catnip mice toys I get from the supermarket so every now and then, once she is starting to lose a bit of interest in the feathers, I throw her a mouse and she carries it around and mauls it for a bit. Perhaps adding a tough, carryable toy into the mix will give Stephano something to get his chompers around!

Ya, its the only toy that keeps ET fit. More than 1.5year now, its still his favourite toy.

It's the only toy that makes my 2 cats pant! It really does look and behave similar to a bird. When I first got it, my girl went nuts for it and was actually growling and guarding it like it was real prey.

My cats are so in love with Da Bird. I have to put it away in a locked closet to hide it from them or else they'll rip it to shreds. I've only been through one feather refill. Since I've been putting it behind closed doors, the feathers don't get ripped apart as much.

I agree 100%! The average lifespan of our Da Birds is about 2 play sessions. Our kitten goes bonkers and really gets his "kill" instinct going -- once he catches da bird and clamps onto it, he runs to a quiet place (dragging me with him, as I don't want to let go of the wand) with it in his jaws like a vice grip until he finally puts it down and starts to play with his catch. He breaks the feathers on the first play session usually, and they fall apart pretty quickly after that. It's a great but expensive toy, so he only gets it every now and then!

Auroraei: I'm with you on the panting. I've always wondered whether this is "safe" or not? Our cat pants almost instantly when we bring Da Bird out, out of excitement more than anything I think. After 5 minutes, he's so worked up that he's panting like a dog. It's the only time he ever pants. When he gets like that we usually take a break...