How To Build a Cat Condo

A cat condo, or kitty habitat, is one of the easiest pieces of furniture for the home carpenter to make, and can be made out of scraps left from other projects. You will need:

• excess lumber
• carpet remnants
• rope
• angle brackets
• nails, screws, etc.

If you don't have a supply of odd bits of wood from your own projects, scout the local yard sales and moving sales. Moving sales are your best bet - many home enthusiasts are reluctant to part with their excess building supplies unless they are moving. Garage and yard sales are also a great source of carpet remnants.

The easiest cat condo to make is the center pole with side platforms. You may have to purchase some pieces for this - the center pole should be at least 4x4 for strength and stability, so buy a suitable length at a home store if you can't find it in your scavenging.

A center pole cat habitat needs a wide base; the taller the center pole, the wider the base you will need to keep it from tipping. A 5- or 6-foot pole will need at least a 4 foot base, so make sure you have a large enough area in your home for a habitat of this size.

1. Attach the center pole to the base with a long bolt, and use angle brackets on all four sizes to provide stability. You may want to carpet the base before attaching the pole, then cut a 4x4 hole in the carpet so that the pole sits directly on the wood.

2. Platforms can be staggered around the pole by cutting a 4x4 notch in the side of a piece of plywood and then attaching it to the side of the pole with three angle brackets. There should be at least a foot between the platforms. Putting them on first the 'north', then the 'east' and then the 'south' side will create a stairstep effect and allow cats to easily navigate the platforms. You may want to make a 'crows nest' or kitty-cup to set on the top of your habitat, or just a flat platform. Cats love heights, so there will usually be a cat on the very top of whatever structure you invent.
3. Bitter experience - it's easier to carpet the platforms before they are attached to the pole than afterward. Use regular carpet tacks and cover the entire wood, top and bottom, cutting out the pieces where the wood is notched to attach to the pole.
4. When the platforms are in place, wrap the center pole completely in a good thick rope. Get rope at least a half-inch thick - anything less than that won't last long when attacked by kitty claws. Start from the bottom and wrap up - secure the rope to the pole periodically with nails. Don't use tacks - cats will pull these right out of the wood. Use regular carpenter's nails with a head to hold the rope in place. Put a nail in the rope every few turns around the post. Then when the cats wear through the rope in places, you will only have to replace from nail to nail instead of the whole length.
5. Depending on your supply of wood, you may want to make one or more of the staggered platforms a hiding-hole by building a box enclosure on it. It can either be opened on both ends or just one end, but make sure there's room for a cat to turn around if it has only one side open or you'll have to periodically rescue a trapped cat.
6. If you need to lure your cats to their new 'high-rise' condo once it is constructed (and in my experience, you will have to keep pulling them off the uncompleted habitat during construction), rub some catnip into the rope and carpeting and they will be investigating it in no time.