We have been proud owners of GoCat Da Bird Pull Apart Rod and Bird Cat Feather Toy for about two months now, and Beau is still loving it! The moment he hears me pull it out he comes running, ready to play! It’s hard to find toys that Beau will play with after a few days… so for this toy to last even past a month… :’) Bless! This toy has even got Beau doing flips and tricks which are fun to watch (and something he’s never done before. Walker on the other hand ALWAYS does flips and tricks!) The best part about this toy is, Beau lets us know when he wants to play with it! He will stand by the shelf that it’s on and will Meow for us to get it. (This isn’t very common for Beau to do.)
Price Point
I will say that we were nervous to buy this wand because in Canada it is around $15… *sigh* why Canada why? But thing is, we don’t mind spending money as long as the product is a good quality. So far, I feel like spending the money was worth it and here’s why.
It actually does sound similar to a bird…
We already knew Beau loves birds, especially since he used to catch birds and gift them to us when he was still a stray kitty. If you pull this stick fast enough it makes a nice whooshing sound that most feather wands don’t do. This is the sound that gets Beau the most excited, making him chase it around the house. His playtime with this toy is around 30-minutes before he loses interest altogether, however, if you pick it up a few minutes later he’s ready to go again! The apparatus also has a very light quality to it that lets it soar. Absolutely love it!
Durability
While I can’t tell you how long this toy’s lifespan is I can say, after two months of playing with this toy every day… it’s still alive! The synthetic feathers have started to fray a bit (as most synthetic feathers do), but the real bird feathers have been durable and have proven their right to stay in toy closet! The wand itself is pretty durable as well. Unlike most wands (which are hard and when tugged on tend to snap on us), this wand has a bend to it, which allows Beau to tug without the worry of it breaking!
Length of the Wand
I absolutely love the length of this wand. It gives a big range to allow maximum swoopage! You heard me… swoopage! Playing with the shorter dollar store wands feels like a drag now… I feel so spoiled! The length also makes it easy for us to play with Beau from the bed if I’m sitting with the hubby as he plays video games. (I know, how lazy am I?) The length also makes it easy to coax Beau into jumping on higher elements such as my dresser or our empty bookshelf that’s designated for him to jump on.
So with all these things… what are the cons?
I will say, it’s super easy for this toy to get tangled, especially if you’re playing with it at a quicker pace. It really, really depends on how you play with it though. We’ve gotten a few knots in it in the two months, but they are easy to take out. So is this a flaw of the toy, or the person playing with it?
Conclusion
I highly recommend this awesome toy. I give it a full 5/5. As always, I will be updating this page as I discover flaws or awesome tricks with it.
So let me know, have you ever tried this gadget or any similar? What toys would you recommend we try next?
I think that costs about 10$ around here? If Pipo liked feathers I would get him one, but he is more into his ‘cat Dancer’ right now. He too will paw me and beg me to pick it up:)
He doesn’t much care for the fuzzy wands or the feathery ones either. Maybe the real sounding swoosh would get his attentions.
Maybe! Beau tends to play with most dangly things, but it’s hard to keep him interested in them past a week, let alone a month :’)
Oh wow Beau that burd toy looks fabulous, we’ve never seen it here in the UK, but we will go have a look online now! Thanks so much fur sharing 🙂
Big hugs
Basil & Co xox
My sister (who also lives in the UK) was thinking about grabbing one. The online prices actually aren’t bad, and I think are better in the UK even!
Our cats like wand toys, so I will have to check this one out! I think they’d love that it sounds like a bird.
I bet! Tell me how it goes for you if you grab one!
We have one and my cats love it.
So glad to hear!
Gee, that really sounds like a pawsome toy.
WE liked your review too.
Purrs Georgia,Julie and JJ
Thanks everyone! I’m glad you liked the review and it is pretty pawsome!!
Oh sure, we have da bird. The great thing is you can buy attachments for it when the “bird” breaks or the feathers fall out. I just started playing with it again after stopping cos the long string got tangled around my neck.
I really love that fact. It’s pretty darn awesome!
Da Bird is one of our favorite toys.
It’s pretty great eh?
My cats never liked DaBird, but I am prepared to take blame as operator error. Chuck LOVES the Neko Fly Kittenator, which I highly recommend to anyone. Angel likes that long ribbon of fleece fabric attached to a rod; I drag it around the outside of the box she’s in, and she goes after it. I tried a laser light years ago, but both cats just looked at my hand, not at the red dot! OH!
Yeah Beau completely ignores lasers, which is kinda hilarious. I have heard really great things about the Neko line, I haven’t tried them just yet because they’re out of my price range at the moment, but I really want to!
I’ve been meaning to get Bear one of these. At last year’s BlogPaws conference, I got a couple wand toys and Bear went completely crazy for them – always begging me to play. Not knowing better – we played for hours a day – and then he was just all of a sudden DONE. No more playing with the wand toys – in fact, I thought he was done with ALL wand toys. This year, I got two more and I’ve limited the time we play with them each day … so far so good. Of course, it probably helps to have a sister you want to show up all the time 😉
ps – We get knots too … and I can’t tell you HOW many times I’ve whacked myself in the face with the toy. It’s embarrassing!
HAHAHA! I haven’t whacked myself in the face just yet. I have knocked my hubby in the face though :’) That’s always fun!
Glad Beau is enjoying the toy! We have Da Bird toys but boys have gotten bored. Goro still plays with the wand (not feather), though 🙂
Haha, Oh Goro. :’) You’re an oddling <3 Sad to hear they've gotten bored though 🙁
We been using it on and off for years. We don’t let anyone just sit and chew on the feathers or they will not last long. The string broke a few times, but no biggie. For play value with no nip on it, it is up there at the top.
Absolutely! I’m not a huge fan of all the nip toys to be honest.. especially because Beau isn’t effected by them. It’s really hard for me to find non-nip ones though in our local store… odd…