Stark Raving Cat

Catnip Joints, Cat Toys, Cat Lover Gifts

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About Cats, Catnip and Cat Toys

Top Ten Bestselling Cat Toys

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Since we launched the hand-sewn Catnip Joint in 2014, we have sold thousands of cat toys on our sites on Etsy, Amazon Handmade and here on our main website. Here’s a list of our ten most popular cat toys over the past few years.

1. Catnip Joints

Cat with Stark Raving Cat's Catnip Joints

Besides the novelty value of Catnip Joints (see all the photos of cats with a joint hanging out of their mouths), cats actually love to play with them. The joints are labor-intensive – yards of heavy fabric are hand cut, then sewn, reversed, filled with freshly ground catnip, sewn again, trimmed and sealed, and then packaged. Truly a high-quality handmade product from start to finish.

Catnip Joints reviewed by Ashley Batton on Etsy
My cat is seriously obsessed with these and I highly recommend them to anyone with a high energy feline. Our cat is about a year old and loves to get into stuff. With these, I just throw one in a box, one under the couch and keep one handy. It keeps her busy for hours. Bonus – it looks hilarious when she runs around with it stuck out of her mouth like a joint. Love these.

2. Scatterballs

One of the few toys on this bestseller list that doesn’t include catnip – yet numerous cat owners review them thinking the reason their cats go nuts for them is because of catnip. Nope, no catnip, just bright colors, a special “pillow” shape that doesn’t roll like most balls but a bouncy response when batted by cats, all these attributes make Scatterballs a perfect cat toy. See Scatterballs – Why So Rare?.

3. Glow in the Dark Kicker

Perfect size for any cat, large or small, this kicker features an embroidered cat in a flying saucer.

Cat with Screeming Meemie

4. Screeming Meemies

This goofy green felt lizard is packed with 5-Star Catnip that will drive cats crazy.

5. Rocket Ship Catnip Toy

All aboard to the feline Space Shuttle.

7. Baby Yoyo Catnip Cat Toy

For cats who are also Mandalorian fans.

8. Three Joint Nirvana Gift Set

Take a set of three Catnip Joints and slip them into a handmade sari bag from India and you have the perfect gift for any cat for any occasion. Popular for both cat birthdays and the holidays.

9. Bunny & Carrot Catnip Toy Set

Where’s dat wabbit? Get two toys for the price of one with this cute set.

Cat with Baby Batnip

9. Baby Batnip

First introduced as black catnip-filled felt bats for Halloween, the brightly colored versions have become bestsellers. Attached to a wand or cord, these high flyers offer hours of cat fun.

10. Telescoping Wand with Clip and Cord

Perfect complement for any catnip toy. The cord we provide is extra bouncy and can be replaced when you and your cat finally wear it out.

5-Star-Catnip

Though technically not a toy our 5-Star-Catnip is the magic ingredient in all our toys that contain catnip, and is a perennial best seller all by itself.

Also called Gunpowder Grind in our Acme toys, this catnip is finely ground in our workshop every week to release the potent oils that affect cats. Because all our toys are handmade, the catnip is fresher than toys manufactured overseas and then shipped to warehouses and finally to stores where many of the toys sit on shelves for weeks or months. Cat owners wonder why their cats don’t react to those toys the same way they do with ours. It’s all in the freshness of the catnip. You can take a tin of our 5-Star Catnip and use it to refill existing cat toys (if not sewn shut) or simply sprinkle and rub a tiny amount on any toy. Discover more more about catnip.

Men Who Love Cats Love Stark Raving Cat

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Men who love cats are trending. Now they can get stylish cat toys with special guy-appeal: Catnip Joints, Batnip and Best Cat Dad Ever Pins. StarkRavingCat.com handcrafts them with a heaping dose of humor – purrfect gifts for cat daddies, or any cat-lover.

Men Who Love Cats Love Stark Raving Cat

Move over cat ladies: cat dudes are hot – and they’re looking for cat toys to match their man cave, cat cave, and even their bat cave. Good news: StarkRavingCat.com has heard their need and handcrafts unique toys with cat dudes in mind.

“Cat-love no longer bears social stigma – for either sex,” notes Kate Heyhoe, founder of StarkRavingCat.com.

“A few years ago, The New York Times wrote that modern cat ladies are hip, saying ‘Having a cat is like wearing a badge of independence.’ Now, posts like #guyswithcats on Instagram and MenwithCats.com feature photos of proud men with their cats. I’ve seen burly bikers nuzzling Fluffy, and ‘Guys with Kittens’ calendars. Headlines like ‘10 Reasons to Date Guys with Cats’ prove that manly cat-love has finally come out of the closet,” adds Heyhoe, noting that TV’s Cat Daddy Jackson Galaxy has also made a huge impact. (Even tech billionaire Larry Ellison loves cats: he recently bought a Hawaiian island, one with a sanctuary for 400 feral cats.)

Heyhoe adores men who are cat-crazy. “At StarkRavingCat.com we didn’t set out to target men, but we soon realized that guys were buying our Catnip Joints in droves. And women were buying them as gifts for their cat-loving men friends. Our favorite toys, Wand, Worm and Feather Toy Set and Scatterball Sampler Set, are great gifts for any cat-lover, man or woman, but they also fill a special niche for guys who don’t want pink or frou-frou cat toys.”

Catnip Joints have become trendy props for cat photos and videos on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. Stark Raving Cat’s Catnip Joints look amazingly like the real thing, but these joints are filled with premium catnip – all leaves, no stems – and potent enough to fire up even the most lethargic cat. They come with a gift card explaining they’re “legal in all 50 states…for recreational use.” Buy them in sets of three or five, or as a Paraphernalia Pack, with a telescoping “roach clip” that extends 32 inches. The Nirvana Pack features a handmade Indian stash bag, a dimebag of catweed, and three Catnip Joints

Cat daddies will be superheroes when they bring home a Baby Batnip. Our original black Goth bat has been replaced by more colorful Baby Batnips. Cats capture the Batnip in the air, swat the wings, bite the head, and kick it with their feet. An optional Telescoping Wand with Clip and Cord make Batnips crawl, bounce, and fly.

“Cats and bats go together,” Heyhoe explains, “not just on Halloween, but all year long.” On Instagram, there are over 50,000 posts using the hashtag #batcat, while the tag #Baturday puts the ‘bat’ in #Caturday. “We’ve added our own hashtag for #BATNIP, and photos of cats and Batnips are already starting to pop up.”

“My fellow cat ladies get special love at StarkRavingCat.com, too,” notes Heyhoe. They can dress like their cat, with Matching Neko Bell Earrings and Cat Collars . Neko is the traditional Japanese Lucky Cat, and the painted copper bell has a charming jingle to it. “It’s the purrfect gift for the cat lady in every guy’s life,” she adds, “because it says I love both you and your cat.”

About StarkRavingCat.com

StarkRavingCat.com makes hip, handmade toys, cards and gifts for cats and cat-lovers, created by Kate Heyhoe in 2014. The small batch, artisanal products range from catnip joints to greeting cards to cat-themed jewelry, and are made near Austin, TX, USA. Besides the web-store at StarkRavingCat.com, there is also a Stark Raving Cat shop on Etsy at http://www.etsy.com/shop/StarkRavingCat, and the company welcomes wholesale inquiries. Kate Heyhoe is an award-winning cookbook author turned Professional Cat Lady; she runs the Coffee and Cats Community on Google Plus and can be found catting around on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, with CEO Tamale the Cat. Hi-res product images and samples are available. To showcase these goods in new product and holiday gift guides, Contact us.

Our Favorite Reviews

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Christmas Cat

Catnip Joints

“Your product speaks for itself. No offense, but I really wasn’t expecting much when I placed my order. Team Mookeet is so very picky about their catnip, I’ve pretty much stopped buying other brands. Just about everything I’ve tried has ended up in the trashcan. They are seriously that picky. When your package arrived, they barely even let me open it. They were tearing into the package and just about had it open on their own. Their previous brand of choice has always been safe in the ottoman. They never try to get to it. Not the case with your nip. They tore the lid off the ottoman repeatedly. It’s now in the cabinet above the refrigerator because that’s the only place they can’t get to it. Paws down the best catnip I’ve ever purchased. And that’s saying something as I’ve bought just about every brand you can think of. So long story short, thank you for making the best nip toys in the entire world. We are looking forward to your spring line of goodies.”

— Jacqueline Bond & Team Mookeet (10 cats) on Instagram)

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Catnip Joints

“Hands down you guys have the best catnip! Of all the catnip toys we have it is the joints that continue to provide entertainment – to them and to us. We usually put all of the toys in the cat house in the AM and again in the evening before we go to bed. Throughout the day we usually see one of the cats sitting in the party house, a little latter we may hear a sneeze and then shortly thereafter they explode out of the house running or they go to find/stalk the other cat. It is so fun to watch. After Christmas I ordered a kicker from one of the other vendors and they seemed to really like being able to hold on and kick it, but it only lasted a short while, they still lay on it in the cat house, but the joints are still providing delight – we find them all around the house.

Thanks again for all of the kitty goodies…it is a gift that provides delight every day.”

— De Ann Doonan, via direct email

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Batnip in Black

“Barely got the box open when my cat pounced on this thing. She’s super-finicky about what she’ll play with, so I have to admit I was hesitant to pay this much for a cat toy. Order came lightning fast and my cat is obsessed! Very well-made and works even better with the Telescoping Wand with Clip & Cord. Definitely worth every penny – it’ll surely last a long time and keeps Stella’s interest for a long time! She’s a bit tubby, so keeping her active is critical. Can’t say enough good stuff about this product or this company. Won’t ever buy cat toys or catnip anywhere else again!”

— Lisa (verified owner) review on product page

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Lots of Etsy Reviews