homemade cat tower

[maureen brad]

Love the cat tower. I have seen a picture of something similar on-line. I think there is one in Jackson Galaxy's ' Catification' book as well.

 You have inspired me to get busy with this. Hubby is out of town on business and I need a project.

For what it is worth, I think Gracie is most definitely a GS mix. She is adorable.

 

[maureen brad]

I meant to ask you, did you use a nail gun when you made the tower?

 

[gmm80]

@Maureen - I did not use a nail gun, I used wood screws and a drill with a screwdriver bit. It ended up being quite heavy when completely assembled, I'm guessing at least 100 lbs. I had two different sets of fosters that I needed to keep separated and I ended up moving the thing from the downstairs room to an upstairs room, and back downstairs again a few days ago. I don't know how well nails would have held up with all the lifting and dragging that was involved. I got really lucky when I found the drawers, they are made of actual wood and not particle board, so it's quite sturdy. I just ordered some sisal rope to wrap around some of the posts, so I'm hoping I will be able to attach that with my staple gun.

Gracie is adorable, but I don't think I will ever get another puppy again, at least not a large breed. It's a lot of work! 

 

[gmm80]

Thanks to everyone for the compliments! I'm still trying to think of ways I can make it more fun. The two groups of fosters I have now are 7-months old and 4-months old, so they mostly just sleep on it. I fostered a pregnant cat last summer and I had her kittens with me until they were two months old. I know they would have loved climbing and jumping around on it. At that time all I had was a scratching post and bunch of different sized cardboard boxes I had cut holes into and taped together, but they loved that too.

I'll post more pics as I make modifications! I see a few threads on cat trees here, but unfortunately most of the pictures are missing. I would love to see some other homemade creations!

 

[kntrygrl256]

That is awesome!!

I have been looking into making my own cat tower/beds for my cats too. I have gotten all kinds of designs and thank goodness I work at a warehouse where I can get most of my supplies free it won't cost much. The ones in the stores are so expensive and with a little imagination it's so easy and inexpensive to make them at home.

Thanks so much for sharing.

 

  T.  

 

[kittywhiskers]

I love your cat tower!
I think putting sisal on the legs for them to climb would be a great idea. I'm all for recycling old furniture but never thought of making a cat tower from drawers. Well done!

 

[maureen brad]

gmm- thanks. I know I have wood screws around here somewhere.

 I had to laugh when you said you would not get another puppy. I used to train dogs for a living. Puppies are cute but my next dog will be an adult dog. I just cannot keep up with a puppy.

I got some drawers today , 8 of them from a dresser my neighbor had hauled outside with a free sign on it.They are wood and that makes me happy. 100 lbs is okay. If I have a problem with that well, that is what god gave me a husband and sons for. Lol.

 

[MoochNNoodles]

I love the tree!!  Please post updated pics when you get the sisal on!  

The tree being sturdy is a big plus for me.  My 2 year old son has climbed on our tree.  Of course I corrected him for it; but still it's something I have to watch all the time.  Our tree didn't tip; but it's also not so easy to anchor.

 

[gmm80]

@Maureen, glad you found some drawers! Sound like the project was meant to be! Please post some pics when you are done.

Yes, puppies are exhausting! Gracie's trail of destruction is long and varied. A friend of mine just got a miniature dachshund puppy and she says she knows how I feel, but I tell you, being jumped on by a 5 lb. puppy does not compare to being jumped on by a 60 lb. puppy. 

 

[triciarich]

Love it!!!! Great job

 

[gmm80]

Has anyone out there ever made a scratching post with sisal carpet? I set out to buy some today, but the guy at the carpet store said it was really hard to work with. There wasn't a smaller piece I could handle to check it out. I ended up leaving with a remnant of this tiger striped carpet. It could be cute, or hideous. I don't want to put a lot of work into it just to have it be ugly. This will be a separate post I'll be attaching to my original green cat tower. The tiger carpet was free, so no loss if I don't use it.  A small scratching post I have is covered with sisal, but it appears to be fabric, rather than carpet. I haven't had any luck figuring out where to get sisal fabric.

This is the carpet - the stripes would run the opposite on the finished post. I'm kind of leaning toward not using it. Maybe if the tower was black it would be kind of cute, but the orange/black with the green doesn't seem quite right to me.

IMG_20150208_190557521_HDR.jpg

• gmm80
• Feb 8, 2015

 

[Norachan]

I've used sisal rope but not sisal carpet.

The rope is very course but hard wearing. I coated the inner post in glue first of all, nailed one end of the rope to the post, twisted it all the way down until the post was covered and then nailed the other end. It's lasted quite well, considering how much use it gets.

I like that tiger print.

 

[gmm80]

@Norachan  - I have some sisal rope, but the thing I want to cover is a 6 foot tall cardboard tube. I thought carpet or fabric would be easier than dealing with all that rope. I may go back to the carpet store tomorrow and look at the sisal again. 

 

[Kat0121]

 
I've used sisal rope but not sisal carpet.

The rope is very course but hard wearing. I coated the inner post in glue first of all, nailed one end of the rope to the post, twisted it all the way down until the post was covered and then nailed the other end. It's lasted quite well, considering how much use it gets.

I like that tiger print.

I like it, too. I think it suits a cat tower perfectly

 

[nezumi]

You could dye the carpet I imagine.

 

[mservant]

That carpet is way too cool not to get used!  

How large is the diameter of the tube?  The larger the diameter the easier it would be to handle I reckon.  Harder to do with cardboard than wooden post as with the latter you could glue then tack in place.  If you can't fix it on the cardboard tube you could try glueing and tacking on to some of the flat wood surfaces of the tower that your cats could stretch up to as extra scratch options for those that like different surfaces?

I didn't make it myself but I do have a sizal carpet covered scratching tunnel.  It has about a 10" diameter so not as tight to fix to as yours but having had a look at it just now the carpet seems to have been fixed with glue only, so guessing they used some extra strong kind of glue.  The inside is lined with a softer, fluffy, fabric which has been rolled over the ends so helps to hold the carpet.  Guessing if you have edges it helps to hold them down with an easier to handle fabric which you can stick more securely.  Or you could wrap sizal rope round the weaker points for added hold?

 

[mservant]

This is the sizal carpet covered tunnel, tucked in at the bottom of Mouse's climbing frame back when he was 6 months old. (The toys were only tied on for a day as he pulled the frame over with one caught round his tail).

P1010403.JPG

• mservant
• Feb 9, 2015

  

 

[gmm80]

The cardboard tube is 6" in diameter. I thought I would use a combo of heavy duty staples and glue to attach the carpet. I played around with the tiger-striped carpet a bit. There's a mesh backing, and I found it's a little easier to bend if I pull that off. I'm wondering if the sisal carpeting might be the same. I actually thought about using the tiger carpet for a tunnel similar to the one you have. Home Depot has cardboard tube concrete forms that are 4'x12" that would be perfect for that project.

 

[kittywhiskers]

(The toys were only tied on for a day as he pulled the frame over with one caught round his tail).

This happened to Amber too but it was round her leg. Thank heavens I was at home when it happened!

 

[mservant]

This happened to Amber too but it was round her leg. Thank heavens I was at home when it happened!

That's what stuck with me.  I don't think Mouse would still be here if I hadn't been right there.  One lesson you don't want to learn from experience.  

That 4' x 12" tube sounds great for making a tunnel @gmm80.   I wished the one I have was longer as it would be even more fun, though maybe 2'  - 2'6" would be big enough for my place as it's pretty small.    Heavy duty staples sound good for the project but not sure I'd be strong enough to get them right through!  Can't wait to see what you come up with.