hi! i've been reading recently that laser pointer toys aren't ideal for cats because there's no payoff of catching anything at the end. however, since i've been working from home, i've noticed mine stalking reflected points of light in the morning (like a tiny reflection from a water glass or TV screen). he'll sit there motionlessly chirping at it until the light finally changes. should i be taking steps to prevent that or am i overthinking this? i don't want him to get stressed out!
So the issue isn’t so much getting stressed by lights, but the possibility for obsessive fixation on points of light and potentially hurting themselves. You see it with cats and dogs too. Basically, they learn that chasing lights or shadow is interesting, but then they fixate on it, and suddenly they spend all their time watching for points of light and chasing them and don’t do anything else. It gets to be a physical risk if they’re lunging at point of light on a wall or chasing them full speed throughout the house.
I generally discourage animals from light-chasing when possible because it’s a behavior that is hard to extinguish once it’s really taken hold - because it’s self-reinforcing for pets, you have to work a lot harder to eliminate it. I’d talk suggest talking to a behaviorist in person and having them come observe, because they’ll be able to help you pinpoint what you need to do far more effectively than a person on the internet can.
