Nothing is worse than a bored cat, particularly when they take that boredom out on, say, your new sofa. Keep kitty interested, and you'll keep your furniture and feet intact. Bonus points for doing it with things you have around the house!

1. Mirrors

Particularly fun if your cat has never seen its reflection, as cats tend to go nuts the first time they see a mirror. Lean a mirror on the wall or place it on the floor and watch the cat go nuts. If its hair rises on end when it looks at itself in the mirror, avoid touching it, since that's a good way to get your hand mauled!

2. Ping Pong Balls

If you have a hard floor (not carpet, it doesn't work quite as well) bounce a ping pong ball on the floor. The noise instantly attracts cats, and they're fascinated with them. Make sure to pick up the ping pong ball afterwards, or you'll be woken up at three in the morning to the sound of ping pong balls bouncing around your house.

3. Empty Boxes

Working from home, I get a lot of packages in the mail. I discovered that if you leave a box open on the ground, cats like to sit in or on the box. Any sort of carton works great for this, especially those with hand holes on the sides for them to look out of.

4. Shoelaces, String, Yarn

Pretty much a staple of cat toys. Drag the shoelace on the ground, and cats will chase after it. Hold the shoelace in the air, and watch the cat jump and try to catch it!