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Domestic cats, especially young kittens, are known for their love of play. This behavior mimics hunting and is important in helping kittens learn to stalk, capture, and kill prey.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Poirier |first1=F. E. |last2=Hussey |first2=L. K. |title=Nonhuman Primate Learning: The Importance of Learning from an Evolutionary Perspective |journal=Anthropology and Education Quarterly |volume=13 |issue=2 |pages=133–148 |date=1982 |doi=10.1525/aeq.1982.13.2.05x1830j |jstor=3216627|doi-access=free}}</ref> Cats also engage in [[Rough-and-tumble play|play fighting]], both with each other and with humans. This behavior may be a way for cats to practice the skills needed for real combat, and it might also reduce the fear that they associate with launching attacks on other animals.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hall |first=S. L. |chapter=Object play by adult animals |chapter-url= https://books.google.com/books?id=jkiTQ8dIIHsC&pg=PA45 |title=Animal Play: Evolutionary, Comparative, and Ecological Perspectives |editor1=Byers, J. A. |editor2=Bekoff, M. |publisher=Cambridge University Press |date=1998 |pages=45–60 |isbn=9780521586566 |access-date=25 October 2020 |archive-date=26 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210126043154/https://books.google.com/books?id=jkiTQ8dIIHsC&pg=PA45 |url-status=live}}</ref>
Cats also tend to play with toys more when they are hungry.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hall |first=S. L. |title=The Influence of Hunger on Object Play by Adult Domestic Cats |journal=Applied Animal Behaviour Science |date=1998 |volume=58 |issue=1–2 |pages=143–150 |doi=10.1016/S0168-1591(97)00136-6}}</ref> Owing to the close similarity between play and hunting, cats prefer to play with objects that resemble prey, such as small furry toys that move rapidly, but rapidly lose interest. They become [[habituation|habituated]] to a toy they have played with before.<ref>{{Cite journal |title=Object Play in Adult Domestic Cats: The Roles of Habituation and Disinhibition |last=Hall |first=S. L. |journal=Applied Animal Behaviour Science |date=2002 |volume=79 |issue=3 |pages=263–271 |doi=10.1016/S0168-1591(02)00153-3}}</ref> String is often used as a toy, but if it is eaten, it can become caught at the base of the cat's tongue and then move into the [[intestine]]s, a medical emergency which can cause serious illness, even death.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=MacPhail |first=C. |title=Gastrointestinal obstruction |journal=Clinical Techniques in Small Animal Practice |date=2002 |volume=17 |issue=4 |pages=178–183 |doi=10.1053/svms.2002.36606 |pmid=12587284|s2cid=24977450
===Reproduction===
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