I have to be honest: I bought this more for myself than my cats. I love miniatures, and while this pool isn't tiny, it would easily work for kids who have Barbies or action heroes that "need" a swimming pool. The sides and the bottom of it remind me of the sturdy, large swimming pools you can put in your yard. It even has the same smell when you open it (just a slight, mild plastic smell). It's not one you have to inflate and deflate later when done with it. I was concerned it would be inflatable because I couldn't tell from the description whether or not it was.One of my cats. Priscilla, historically has loved the robotic swimming fish. In the past, one of her favorite things to do was to watch the fish in the water; paw them; and finally get them out of the water using a combination between her paws and mouth! She thought it was so fun to throw them onto the floor!That being said, Priscilla wasn't exactly as excited as I thought she'd be with this toy. I think she prefers to have the swimming fish in the clear jar I've used before with her. My other cat, Zoe, who's 12 and typically ignores most toys, surprisingly liked the toy. At least, she liked watching the fish in the pool. She put her paw in to touch one of the fish; realized it got wet; yanked her paw back out and walked away. I guess she thought the pool had some kind of "waterproof" water. Funny girl!I can see the potential for this being a well-loved toy for some cats. It depends on their personal interests, of course. Priscilla LOVES water, so that's why she likes most water toys. The pool just confused her. She'll play with the fish when they are in my clear vase. The pool can safely double as a portable water bowl for your cats IMO. They can be aired out if the mild plastic smell bothers you. The pool holds a lot of water! Plenty for robotic fish - or Barbie - to swim in!