Every once in a while I replace our cats' toys with all new toys because they get dirty and beat up. Despite washing them, they still need to be replaced.  I was recently browsing at Petsmart and came across the Nylabone Insert-A Treat Cheezy Chums Cat Toys. They were on clearance at a price of $1.47 for a set of two toys, marked down from about $5, so I couldn't pass these up!


Product Details:

Nylabone Insert-A-Treat Cheezy Chums Cat Toys is a set of two cat toys. They aren't squeaky and don't make noise. One toy is a mouse made of loofah, and the body has catnip sewn inside the loofah, and it has a net covering where a cat treat is inserted. The other toy is shaped like a cheese wedge and is made of yellow felt with a net insert where the treat is inserted. The cheese wedge does not have catnip inside. The mouse measures about 2.75" long or about 5.5" long including the tail (which is some sort of silky cording). The wedge of cheese is just over 3.5" wide.

Nylabone states on the packaging that these toys help to clean teeth, reduce tartar and encourages play and exercise.


My Experience:

We have purchased just about every brand and type of cat toy there is. I had never seen the Nylabone brand of cat toys, so this was new to me. I like the Nylabone brand to begin with, as we buy Nylabone products for our dog.

These toys are made to put a treat into, but they can also be used without the treat being inserted into the little pockets. A cat isn't going to know that the little pocket is missing a treat. We use the Greenies cat treats around here, so from the start I was planning to put a Greenies treat in these. The little pocket on both toys is very small, so the size of a Greenies cat treat is about as big as you can fit into these (most cat treats are tiny anyway).My Greenies treats fit in there but if they would have been any bigger, it would have been too tight of a fit. As for the pockets, the cheese wedge has a velcro closure (the velcro closure is super tiny) and the mouse toy has no closure, it just fits into the little pocket on the side of the mouse.

So after putting the Greenies treat into the little pocket of both toys, I gave the toys to one of our cats (the other cat really doesn't care for toys). He was really interested in that treat! He loves Greenies to begin with but he can't have too many because he is on a special diet for urethral problems. He played and played with those toys. I couldn't tell if he was trying to get to the treat or if he just really liked the toys. It was probably a combination of both. He batted them all around the house and every once in a while stopped to smell the treat. I'm not sure what Nylabone has in mind as far as the Insert-A-Treat Cheezy Chums Cat Toys cleaning teeth, but the front of the packaging states that the little net pockets on the toys are "Munch 'n Clean Denta-Net Treat Pockets" - so the netting must be what helps to clean the cat's teeth. I don't know how effective this is.

The day after I first gave these toys to the cat, I remembered that Greenies will leave a grease spot if they are left on paper, cardboard, fabric, etc. So I looked at the toys and sure enough they had a bit of grease spot over the netting that had soaked through. The toys already even looked a bit dirty. So I would suggest getting a cat treat that won't leave a grease spot. Greenies don't look or feel greasy, so I'm not sure why they leave a grease spot (I discovered this when I left a Greenies treat on a cardboard box for our other cat). We now use these without the treats, as I don't want a grease spot on our hardwood floors or carpeting.

Our cat really likes the Nylabone Insert-A-Treat Cheezy Chums Cat Toys, although he doesn't play with them like he used to. But he is like that with all of his toys - he plays with them non-stop for a couple of days and then will play with them periodically in his regular rotation of his other toys. Our other cat doesn't pay attention to any toys, not even these. These are starting to get a bit dirty and a bit worn now, but that's how all of his toys get. These are pretty durable despite the fact that the mouse has sewn-on ears (the ears are still intact).

These are cute toys and can be used with or without the treat. The supposed dental action won't be as effective, though, if they are used without a treat, as the cat probably won't bite at the netting without a treat in the little pocket. But these are cute toys, especially at the clearance price, for a cat just to bat around and play with. It's hard to find a good quality cat toy for under $2, let alone a set of two toys at that price.


Price and Purchasing Information:

Nylabone Insert-A-Treat Cheezy Chums Cat Toys are normally $7.99 at my local Petsmart but I got mine on clearance there for $1.47. Online they can be found for $9.99 at Amazon.com and animartpetstores.com.

Recommended: Yes