# Cat Trees/Condos Question



## Vyxxin (Mar 1, 2007)

I was wondering what works best. I'm going to buy a cat tree/condo for my young kitty but don't want to waste money on something that isn't likely to be used. I know that each cat is an individual, and they have their own personalities and preferences...but in YOUR experience, what works best:

Tree/condo with lots of "perches"
Tree/condo with hidey and some "perches"
Tree/condo with many perches and sisal
Tree/condo with hidey, some "perches", hanging toy

The main question is, for YOU, what gets used the most. I don't care if using is them sleeping in it...I'd like to know what kitties do with these things a majority of the time


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## queen of the nile (Aug 16, 2003)

I guess I would pick the condo with many perches + sisal. I don't actually have a point of comparison, though. My cat condo is entirely carpet, but I "thinK" they would scratch it more often if some of the 'legs' were sisal. Right now, there is only a 2 foot high section that they routinely scratch on. This always seems weird to me, because all the other 'legs' are over 4 feet high :roll: . (and one of the cats is scratching my couch to shreds)

My cats mainly use the condo for sleeping, playing with each other and perching. To me, the most important thing is to have a very tall condo. Mine is over 6 feet tall, and the cats always jostle for the top spot. As long as there is enough perches as there are cats, it should be fine. Mine do not use the cubby that is attached, because there are far more comfortable beds available.


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## Heidi n Q (Nov 22, 2006)

I have a large cat tree for our herd of housecats. I like the curved perches as they can sleep safely without rolling out of them. When the tree is placed near a window I observe that it gets more use during awake time, otherwise it is just a sleeping perch for 1-4 cats at a time. They like the higher perches.
Heidi


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## Leazie (Apr 14, 2007)

We have several cat trees/condos throughout the house. They like having the sisal to scatch on, and they like bigger rounded perches to lay on. It's a must to have it near a window!

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## Bethany (Jul 19, 2006)

I think it really depends on the cat. My cats seem to prefer dens to perches. I don't think I've ever seen Misty higher than the back of the sofa and even Stormy doesn't try to get to the upper reaches of the bookshelf. I think if I got a tall cat tree they'd gravitate towards the hidey-holes and ignore the low perches.

For example, I got one of the those cute cat jungle gyms from Target and neither of them ever voluntarily used anything but the low hidey and the hanging mice.

However, other cats definitely like to try to get as high as felinely possible!


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## doodlebug (May 13, 2006)

As you can see by the variety of answers you're getting...it all depends on the cat. :lol:


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## coaster (Dec 1, 2004)

I think you can leave the hanging toy out of your decision. That will probably get destroyed/ripped off within the first few days, anyway. :lol: 

The only criteria I'd emphasize is: get one as tall as you can afford; if it's free-standing, make sure it has a wide heavy base and won't tip if a cat uses it for a launching pad.

Say, Heidi -- are those real branches on your cat tree?


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## callipoe (Jan 23, 2007)

Just thought I’d add my two cents worth. We have been in the market for a cat tree for a few months now but all the trees we saw were fairly pricey. Plus, we weren’t able to find something locally and would have had to get it shipped. Last weekend we decided to try to make our own cat tree, using the instructions on http://cfhs.ca/athome/build_your_own_cat_tree/ . 

It was actually really easy and only took about a day to complete. Since we purchased wood on sale it was pretty cheap too. Actually, the fabric to cover the tree was the most expensive part of the whole project. I’m not sure how handy you are, but making a homemade tree was a great option for us.

Before we upholstered it:










Once it was finished:










It’s still a bit of a work in progress – we’re planning on adding a cubby on the flat shelf close to the bottom sometime soon. Our 6 month old kitten Annie loves it though – especially the top perch! She also really likes the tall sisal post. She uses it as a scratching post but also sometimes just climbs it to get to the top perch.


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## Vyxxin (Mar 1, 2007)

I DID think about making one, figured out costs (locally) and decided, depending on what all it had, it may be cheaper to buy. But you're right, they're expensive and shipping costs too...I'm still debating, but even if I build one...I'd like to know what the pros and cons are of individual designs  Quick question, where did you get your tubing and sisal and what kind of fabric did you decide on? I noticed a LOT of people that make (and sell) cat towers insist on carpet as "the only acceptable fabric" but what do you all think?


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## callipoe (Jan 23, 2007)

Vyxxin said:


> I DID think about making one, figured out costs (locally) and decided, depending on what all it had, it may be cheaper to buy.


Actually, a few weeks ago I had a different design in mind too. When we sourced the wood to make it however, it would've been too expensive (more than $100 for the wood alone) so we put the plans on hold. The design we used didn't require as many flat pieces - the sono tube perches really make a difference to the price.



Vyxxin said:


> I'd like to know what the pros and cons are of individual designs


I think it really does depend on the cat. When we first adopted Annie, we purchased a sisal scratching post with a perch on top. The perch is about 2' high, and Annie loved both the perch and the sisal right from the start. In fact, she was always very good about only scratching the post (not the furniture) and really likes it on her new tree too. I'd definitely get a tree with a sisal post if I were you. One option might be to add the sisal yourself on one leg of what ever tree you do get if it doesn't already have it.

We also bought Annie a one level high condo at the same time as the scratching post. It's carpeted and gives her a place to hide if she wants to. From my experience, she rarely uses it - mostly as a step to get to higher things! I don't think I've ever seen her use it as a scratching post. I wonder if maybe it's too low to the ground though - she loves to be high up.

I also have a suggestion about hanging toys. I wouldn't bother to pay extra to have them on a tree - you can just do this yourself. I purchased some elastic cord at wal-mart and then just attached some interesting toys to her scratching post. I usually just use the staple gun to attach them to the underside of her post and make sure that the staple is hammered in well so that her claws won't get hooked (just in case).



Vyxxin said:


> Quick question, where did you get your tubing and sisal and what kind of fabric did you decide on? I noticed a LOT of people that make (and sell) cat towers insist on carpet as "the only acceptable fabric" but what do you all think?


I bought most of the supplies that I used at our local hardware store (Kent building supplies). Really, it was mostly 2'' x 4'' lumber and one sheet of MDF (I didn't even use the whole board). I also bought the sono tube there - you can just purchase it by the foot. All the wood was pretty cheap - under $40 for the wood and sono tube combined. This also included having the wood pre-cut. I purchased the sisal at Canadian Tire, but I think that Walmart also has it. I wish I would've bought a thicker diameter sisal though - it took forever to wrap the posts!

I used microfiber for the fabric. It wasn't cheap, but I liked the way it looked and I've heard that microfiber is pet friendly. The reason I went with fabric was mostly that I had trouble finding some cheap carpet. I think it probably depends on what kind of look you want too - we're planning on buying a microfiber sofa in the near future so the microfiber tree made sense. One of the drawbacks of the design we choose is that I think it looks kinda flimsy. If I were to build it again, I'd probably use 4'' x 4'' lumber to do the post so that the tree would look sturdier. I think maybe using carpet to do the upholstery would have helped with this too.


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## Heidi n Q (Nov 22, 2006)

coaster said:


> Say, Heidi -- are those real branches on your cat tree?


Yes. The cat tree has four different types of tree limbs (bark) to appeal to the discriminating scratcher.


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## Kelae (Sep 4, 2004)

I just wanted to say that the money I've spent on cat furniture is far and away the best money I've spent on the cats. They use their cat trees for playing, scratching, sleeping and surveying their domain. I would imagine your cat will enjoy what ever you end up getting. As several others have mentioned, you should try and place it near a window... good for keeping tabs on the neighborhood and for basking in the sun.


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## coaster (Dec 1, 2004)

Kelae said:


> I just wanted to say that the money I've spent on cat furniture is far and away the best money I've spent on the cats. .


I just wish new cat owners realized that. A couple weeks ago at a local pet store I spent 15 minutes trying to talk someone out of buying a cheap scratching post.


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