A growing body of peer-reviewed research on indoor cat enrichment has identified specific environmental features and owner interactions that reliably improve cat welfare indicators, moving beyond intuition to evidence-based enrichment practice.
Indoor cat enrichment has matured from folk wisdom to evidence-based practice over the past decade, with validated welfare assessment tools allowing researchers to measure the outcomes of specific interventions. The evidence supports a clear enrichment priority list: interactive play, vertical space, window views, food puzzles, predictable routines, and olfactory variety. What does not work well is passive enrichment — toys left on the floor that cats investigate once and ignore — because cat predatory motivation requires moving targets that simulate prey. The practical implication is that owner participation in play is not optional for indoor cat welfare but an essential daily welfare investment.