from my experiences the flat platforms get alot of use and everything else gets ignored...

height is better than length also

oh and use dark color carpet

 

So I changed it a bit...

 

That's gonna be a pretty awesome cat tree.

 

Two more....

Which ones do you guys like best?

 

i like them all so, i have 3 cats in my house, and 2 of them would like the first 2 (i like the very first one after the changes) and they would use the whole thing, but as crio pointed out, the platforms get used the most... our elderly cat would like the last one best probably

 

I like the first one after the changes, I've been watching a new cat show and that's the kind of tree the cats always like, but they always say the higher the better so if anything I would add height. He also says that creating a place for cats to hide is encouraging a small personality and behavior problems, so that's just something to keep in mind.

 

I agree with height being better, especially for Ben to get away from the dog.

He also says that creating a place for cats to hide is encouraging a small personality and behavior problems, so that's just something to keep in mind.

I'm not sure this is necessarily true. My family did TNR growing up, and cats either already seemed to have behavioral problems or were fine. If a feral cat needs to hide, you better give him a place to do it, or you'll get scratched up a lot (not saying Ben is feral, just explaining you don't make a cat feel comfy by forcing them into the open). Just my experience.

I'd also not have any hidey boxes on the bottom. Your cat doesn't want to feel trapped if the dog scares him in there.

 

I agree with height being better, especially for Ben to get away from the dog.



I'm not sure this is necessarily true. My family did TNR growing up, and cats either already seemed to have behavioral problems or were fine. If a feral cat needs to hide, you better give him a place to do it, or you'll get scratched up a lot (not saying Ben is feral, just explaining you don't make a cat feel comfy by forcing them into the open). Just my experience.

I'd also not have any hidey boxes on the bottom. Your cat doesn't want to feel trapped if the dog scares him in there.

I have no idea if it's true but I thought I would mention it just incase. He says that on every episode and it did change the cats behavior so maybe it works for some cats? IDK

 

hum... What is the name of this show??

 

I think it's called "my cat from hell" but I'm not positive. It's on animal planet.

 

My dad and I built our cat tree from scratch when I was younger, and our cats absolutely loved it. From our experience, the sisel rope gets used up fairly quickly, so be prepared to replace it (as well as the carpeting in some places) regularly as they wear through it. Our cats loved scratching the tops of the top platform edges, so we had to replace that whenever they got down to the wood underneath.

I like the first design after the changes the best, and I think the cats would prefer that one at least until they get all elderly. The trick with DIY trees is they tend to get wobbly over time if the design isn't well supported, so you may want to add some braces to support the top two platforms. I'll see if I can take a picture of our cat tree when I stop by my parents place tonight so you can see what we went with for design ideas.

As for the hidey hole discussion, hidey holes are nice to have for the cats to retreat to when they feel bothered by company or vacuums. I don't find it makes the cats hide permanently due to shyness, but if you put a heating pad in there like we did some winters you might have them disappear for a few months other than feeding time So if you plan on adding heating pads, stick to the open platforms if you want to encourage the cats to stay in places easier to pet. Definitely have hidey holes OFF the ground however, as was mentioned, so they don't get trapped and so you don't get sneaky ankle pounces

 

Okay, so I'm scatterbrained and realized once I got home that I forgot to take the picture of the cat tree while I was there... I'll have to take a pic when I see them Saturday instead, sorry! I'll try to describe it instead.

There are four legs that run pretty much from the floor all the way up to the top of the tree. The middle section is a box with hidey hole cut outs on two sides, with one side on a hinge so you can open it up for extracting the cat, putting in a heating pad, vacuuming the inside, etc. There is a ramp leading up to a hole in the floor of the box, and a hole at the top for them to climb on top. Above the box there is the top platform with a hole in the middle so the cats can hop up. The top platform has a border all around it. All vertical legs are wrapped with sissel rope, otherwise the rest is carpeted.

This tree has survived the last 16 years of cat ownership (all cat stages too, including both kitten and elderly) and heavy cat traffic with no modifications needed other than replacing sissel and carpeting occasionally. Our previous attempt at a cat tree was a tad more fanciful and was constantly falling over when the cats jumped onto it from angles we didn't expect from nearby furniture

 

Well we have gathered supplies! Time to start the build! Pics to follow tonight!

 

yay!

 

Can't wait to see your progress !

 

Dear California, Please become your own country.

 

The pics are not working

 

How about now? I was trying to get them all to be right side up lol

 

Yep, very nice. I'm sure he'll be a happy kitty.

 

Lol he has no intrest in it what so ever...

 

Rofl, typical cat Sprinkle catnip all over it, he'll get the picture. Lookin good so far!