Directly below, observe: ye olde scratching post, perched upon by Nikki, who prefers to be above the action whenever possible (particularly as the "action" in question generally consists of "three young whippersnapper-kitties tearing around the house at breakneck speed for hours at a stretch").
(The other kitty in this picture is Shadow, one of the aforementioned whippersnappers, though at 6 months old, definitely no longer tiny!)
I made this post a few months back out of old scrap wood and some sisal rope from the hardware store.
At the time I was quite pleased with how it turned out, and the kitties seemed to like it...but as the younglings grew, it got to the point where I started hearing something akin to "thumpthumpthumpCRASH!" in the wee hours of the morning. In short, Scratching Post 1.0 simply could not withstand the force vectors being unleashed upon it by the thundering horde of adolescent feline feet as they made their daily semi-midair circuit about the house.
Hence, that black stuff arranged rather artlessly on the base: gaffer's tape. Which is awesome stuff, to be sure, but not something I want stuck all over my kitchen floor.
Sooo...this week I determined that some modifications were in order. My initial intention was, merely, "stabilize the base". I got a bit carried away, though, and the Super Mario-esque results (so far) can be viewed below:
(The three sections of 2x4 under the base aren't permanently attached, the unit is just resting on them for painting purposes, i.e., so the bottom would not get stuck to the plastic sheeting I put down to protect the garage floor from paint drips.)
I plan to add some additional surfacing (little sisal mats on top of the two smaller "perches"), and some kind of thingy to hold food/water dishes in such a way that they won't be tipped over easily. Then I shall put it in the kitchen, where it will serve as a combination kitty lunch counter / scratching post / bird-watching station. Yay!
Seriously, though, I am really happy with how this turned out, especially given how expensive most cat furniture (even the crappier sort) is. I'm a cheapskate at the best of times, and being presently Between Jobs, I am, shall we say, even more inclined toward frugality than usual, making it tremendously satisfying to put stuff together using material I just happen to have on-hand (in this case, wood scraps and leftover paint).
5 comments:
Wow, a whole cat center. I'm always impressed with this sort of thing, mainly because "building things" does not seem to be among my aptitudes. And made with stuff from around the house - awesome!
ps: Thanks for your (email) help on things to read.
Thanks to the wonders of the internet I now know more about the cats from a household thousands of miles away than the felines of my neighbors!
Anne seems to be the ideal homeowner: Always busy with some new project. My inclinations, on the other hand, tend towards "give him four walls and a table for his computer and he's happy". Which is, ultimately, not that great an ideal, I admit :-)
Amy: Well until recently I did not even know I had any aptitude for building things that were not made of Lego! Lately I have been just amazed by how much awesomeness can be produced by means of a (powered) drill. Making cat furniture like that pictured in this post is pretty much just a matter of drilling some holes in wood and then (using the screwdriver attachment bit) driving screws into the holes to hold the pieces of wood together. Which I know sounds like the most obvious thing on Earth, but there is just something profoundly cool about doing it yourself, and hence being able to physically realize something that was previously just in your imagination.
And no problem re. email/book suggestions, I will let you know if I think of anything else!
FrF: Well back in my old apartment I mostly did the "four walls and a computer" thing, and I can certainly live that way, but lately I have really just been wowed by how much opportunity there is for cool projects in an actual house, with actual space. I wish everyone (well everyone who wants to do projects like making cat-platforms, etc.) could have the space to do so. I have been really really lucky/privileged in a lot of ways and I know being able to live in a house is a really big deal and not one I take for granted.
That set-up for the cats is great. And, what a gorgeous view. I have three cats and have always wanted something like that for them. Thank you so much for sharing. I will try it.
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