Games and Activities

Throw the best cat party ever with these fun kitty party games, crafts and more!

Mouse Hunt
Before the party, purchase small toy mice, and write one guest’s name on each mouse in marker. Be sure to have one for every child.

On party day, hide the toy mice throughout the party room. When you are ready for the game, tell the children to hunt for the mouse with their name, while acting like kittens.

For a second round of this game, let the children hide each other’s mice and then search for them.

Mother Cat Game
To begin the game, ask the children to sit in a circle, and choose the birthday child to be the Mother Cat in the first round. After the Mother Cat has left the room, select three children to be Kittens. All of the children should cover their mouths with both hands and only the three Kittens start saying Meow, Meow, Meow.

When the Mother Cat returns, she must listen carefully to find all of her Kittens. When she has found all three, another child is chosen to be the Mother Cat, and the game continues.

Copy Cat Game
In our cat version of Follow-the-Leader, ask the children to act out their movements like a cat!

For the first round, let the birthday child be the Cat and act out simple moves, such as licking a paw, purring, scratching behind the ears, pouncing, or taking a cat nap. The other guests must be Copy Cats, and act out all the same moves. Set the timer for two minutes, and then choose another child to become the Cat and create moves for the Copy Cats to imitate. Continue this way until each child has a turn, or until they tire of the game.

Who Has the Ball of Yarn?
Begin by explaining to the children that cats love to play with a ball of yarn. In this game, they get to be kittens hiding a ball of yarn from their owner!

Have all the children sit in a circle, with a chair in one spot that is facing away from the circle. Place a ball of yarn on the floor behind the chair. Whoever sits in the chair becomes the cats' owner, and the rest of the children are the kittens. For the first round, let the birthday child sit in the chair with his/her back to the rest of the children.

Choose another child to hide the yarn behind his/her back. When the yarn is hidden, all the children in the circle chant "Meow, Meow, Who has the Ball?"

Now the child in the chair must try to guess who has the yarn. When he/she guesses correctly, the child who had the yarn is the next to sit in the chair and try to guess. Continue until everyone has had a turn, or until they tire of the game.


Cat, Cat, Dog
Select one person to be “it” first, and have all of the other children sit in a circle on the floor.

The child who is “it” walks around the outside of the circle and taps each child on the head, saying "Cat" with each tap, until he or she randomly decides to tap someone and say, "Dog!"

The "Dog" jumps up and runs around the circle after the child who is “it”, who tries to get to the "Dog’s" empty spot in the circle and sit down before the "Dog" tags him or her.

If the "Dog" does not catch the child who is “it” before he or she sits in the empty spot, the "Dog" becomes “it” and the game begins again. If the "Dog" manages to tag the child who is “it” before he or she sits down, then the child who is “it” must play another round.

Cat And Mouse Craft
Your friendly cats will enjoy making their own mouse in a mouse hole! Before the party, collect and wash an empty soup can for each guest. Cover the cut edge of each can with black electrical tape to prevent little fingers from being scratched. Using gray felt, cut out tear drop shapes for the body of the mice. You will also need black construction paper, pompoms, strips of yarn, markers, and goldfish crackers.

On party day, let each child tape a piece of black construction paper around an empty soup can. This will become their mouse hole. Then let them create a mouse using a piece of gray felt you cut beforehand. First they glue on a pompon for the head, and a length of yarn for the tail. Then let them draw on the eyes with a marker. Next, lay the mouse hole on its side and have the children place small fish shaped crackers inside the mouse hole. Add the mouse, and they’re done! The children can take home their mouse hole at the end of the party.


Design a Cat Bed
Collect a variety of small boxes before the party, and cut an opening in each. On the party day, let each guest decorate a miniature cat bed of their own with construction paper, markers, crayons, plastic gems, and foam shapes. Provide some fabric or inexpensive washcloths to tuck inside each box as the cat’s blanket.


Kitty Cat Bakery
Bake sugar cookies using fish, cat, or bone-shaped cookie cutters before the party. On party day, set out little paper cups of frosting and sprinkles. Let each guest decorate some cookies and eat them, or take them home as party favors.


Cat Bowl Decorating
Provide each child with a new, clean, plastic cat bowl, and let them decorate it with markers, paint pens (for older children) and stickers. Then they can fill their cat bowls with Kitten Chow (cereal snack mix)!


Cat Puppets
Make paper bag cat puppets using colorful lunch bags. Provide triangle pieces of felt for ears, and pipe cleaners for whiskers. Let the children glue these on, and then use markers to draw the eyes and other decorations. Allow time for the children to play with their puppets.


T-Shirt Activity
Older children will enjoy decorating plain T-shirts using fabric paint pens or foam stamps in cat and paw print shapes (from a craft store). Let the shirts dry during the party, and have your guests take them home as party favors. They may want to sign each other’s shirts, too!

Freeze Dance
A few rounds of Freeze Dance will get everyone moving to their favorite songs! To play, have all of the kids start dancing when you turn on some music. After a few moments, turn off the sound and say “Freeze!” Anyone still moving is out until the next game begins. You'll find that as kids drop out, they like to become sideline judges for the rest of the game!

Continue play by starting the music again and stopping it randomly as before. Continue playing until only one dancer remains. If desired, you can award a small prize to the winner, like a CD or a music-themed favor.

More Activities...

Kitty Best in Show
This idea can be expanded to become the theme for the party. Ask each guest to bring their favorite stuffed cat…

Name That Cat
Which team can identify the most pictures of famous cats?

Kitty Cat Trivia Game
Fun for kids of all ages! Guests take turns picking questions from a hat, but will they know the answer?

Kitty Costume Activity
With simple craft supplies, your guests can create their own cat mask, collar, and tail…

Short on time? Birthday in a Box offers more than 100 party themes, thousands of party items, and personalized merchandise, such as banners, invitations, thank you notes, and more... all delivered to your door!