Make a Cat Toy (From Rabbit Pelt)

If you raise rabbits for meat and have saved and gone through the whole tanning process for your rabbit pelts, but now you don't know how to use them or what to make. Here is a simple little pattern to make a cat toy.

What you need:

• Rabbit pelt or part of one

• Sharp knife blade

• A marker

• Thick thread and needle

• Cotton ball

• Catnip oil

Start with your rabbit pelt fur side down and with your marker draw a circle 3 inches in diameter. Cut it out using a sharp knife blade. When working with rabbit pelts it is best to use a knife to cut instead of scissors. A knife will give you a nice clean cut whereas scissors will cut a lot of the fur off.

Next, with the circle of fur, draw a line around the outer edge about a quarter of an inch away from the edge. This is your guideline for were you are going to sew.

Now you can start sewing. Use a basic running stich along the line your drew. Don't pull your needle all the way through to the fur side, double it back right away then pull it through always staying on the skin side of the pelt. Doing it this way will avoid your thread and needle getting tangle in the fur. Once you get about five stiches in pull them tight and continue pulling your stiches tight every so often. Sometimes it might be necessary to use a hard surface to push the needle through. I use an old stone coaster.

Before you pull it closed all the way take a cotton ball and spray it with the catnip oil. Place the cotton ball in the cat toy and pull the thread to close it.

Cut the thread close to the needle to leave the string attached to the cat toy to be able to use it to play with your cat. Tie the thread off in several knots to keep it secure.

Lastly go find a cat!

Note: these can also make great gifts for people who love cats.

Bonus! The pompom base pattern can be used for many different crafting projects with a few variations. Like instead of catnip oil use your favorite essential oil to make an eye catching air freshener. You could also add beads to the string for a cute bag charm or keychain.