Devon Rex & senior cat enrichment toys

A Devon Rex and a 15-year-old cat under the same roof — that's a big energy gap to manage. Indoor cats really do need active stimulation to stay mentally healthy; without it you get boredom creeping in as lethargy, overeating, or over-grooming. The good news is that interactive toys — ones you control — are far more effective than anything a cat plays with alone, and they're also much easier to use in a way that doesn't overwhelm your elder. Quick questions before I point you anywhere: is your Devon Rex showing any restless or destructive behaviour, and does your senior cat react badly when the young one gets boisterous — hiding, hissing, that sort of thing? And roughly how many minutes a day do you have to play with them?

That's exactly the right instinct — separate sessions are the key move here. It protects your senior completely and lets the Devon Rex go full throttle without an audience that stresses her out. Now, for the Devon Rex, you need something that can genuinely tire out a high-drive cat in 10 minutes. Standard wands often don't cut it. Can I ask: does the Devon Rex tend to leap and aerial-chase, or is she more of a low stalk-and-pounce hunter?

Perfect — feathery and aerial is exactly what Da Bird was built for. My recommendation is the Go Cat Da Bird feather wand. It uses real guinea fowl feathers on a swivel so it spins and flutters exactly like a bird in flight, and the sound it makes through the air triggers a genuinely deep prey response. A 10-minute session with this will take the edge off even a Devon Rex. For your senior, you simply put it away and do her session separately with much calmer, slower movements — Da Bird works just as well at low intensity for gentle play. One wand, two very different sessions. The feather attachment does wear out, but replacement lures are cheap and easy to find. It's the single most effective wand on the market for a cat like yours.

Yes — drain the tank first. Do the Devon Rex's session before the time of day she typically pesters your senior, usually evenings based on what you've described. A properly tired Devon Rex is much less likely to chase. Beyond that, make sure your senior has at least one elevated resting spot the younger cat doesn't use — cats feel safer when they can get up and away. You don't need to separate them entirely; you just need your senior to have reliable escape routes and her own calm space. The play sessions do most of the heavy lifting.

Great choice. Start the Devon Rex sessions at full energy and watch her settle noticeably within a few days. Go slowly and gently with your senior — even five minutes of soft wand play can be enriching at her age without tiring her out. You're already doing the right thing by treating them as two cats with completely different needs rather than trying to find one solution for both.