MY CAT’S CATIO: ENCLOSED BALCONY, OUTDOOR PRIVATE PATIO FOR CATS. BUILDING A SAFE, OUTDOOR PETS ENCLOSURE.
Wahhh! My spoiled Scottish Fold, Basil Farrow, now has a Catio — a cat patio, like the ones featured in the New York Times article! Need I say that he adores it?
When it was ready to use, Basil very carefully approached the catio with his sideway-feet.
He sniffed the screen door, and felt the straw mat…
… and gazed through the plastic fencing at the yard.
“Wahhh!” he said, proudly sniffing the fresh air. “I’m an outdoor cat now!”
Well, sort of. Basil Farrow is too precious to brave the elements… so he’s only allowed on a hyper-clean, protected balcony with parental supervision!
Basil’s grandpa closed up the two “open” sides of the balcony with a staple gun and sturdy plastic netting (don’t use chicken wire, which has sharp edges, or splintered wood). He put an old Body Shop beach mat on the ground.
The staircase is closed off with a plastic baby gate, locked with a string and hook. Oh Basil Farrow — he keeps pawing at the door and trying to escape!
The baby gate cleverly slides into a plastic magazine rack, so Basil can’t pull the corner open and squeeze through. He rests his head on his Japanese mouse-mouse pillow, hoping and waiting…
Basil Farrow loves watching the birds and squirrels, and lying down in the sun. It’s a great compromise: your housecat stays safe, while getting a taste of the outdoors.
Have you ever seen a Catio, or considered building one for your cat(s)? What are your thoughts on indoors vs. outdoor cats?
PS: Anyone going to see D’espairs Ray on their US and Canada concert tour in August? Here are the dates.
PPS: Dir En Grey announced a North American concert tour with Apocalyptica, August to September 2010. Dates here. WHO’S GOING?
Japanese Word of the Day: Karesansui = Japanese rock garden (literally, “dry landscape”)
Song of the Day: The Cure – Lovecats (maoo!)
This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 14th, 2010 at 13:15 and is filed under Art + Design, Scottish Fold Kawaii. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
July 14th, 2010 at 21:36
Kirill says:First? Awwwwwwwwwwww!!
July 14th, 2010 at 21:42
John says:huggy
July 14th, 2010 at 21:46
San Smith says:cuuute!!
July 14th, 2010 at 22:13
Kat - RocknRollBride says:waahh! i want to make something like this for Henry and Rachel now! cuteness..
ps look how BIG they've gotten! http://twitgoo.com/17p89h
July 14th, 2010 at 22:16
lacarmina says:Eeeeee!
July 14th, 2010 at 22:16
lacarmina says:Kitty kisses!
July 14th, 2010 at 22:17
lacarmina says:Maooooo! They're SO adorable! Do you let them outside? A catio is a great compromise! Awwwww kitties
July 14th, 2010 at 22:33
AngryBroomstick says:cute!! I don't like to let my cat go outside in the backyard, but he goes hysterical if I don't let him go out for 2 hours to play in the sun. Thankfully, he stays in the backyard and doesn't go to the driveway because the sounds of cars scare him.
July 14th, 2010 at 23:46
Jennifer says:Adorable u look basil! All cute and cuddley meow!
July 15th, 2010 at 00:28
Sakara says:luckily my 3 cats dont go very far from my home, they mainly stay in our large back garden or the one old male visits next doors.
But a friend i had, when she lived in London had a specially built 'catio' for her two tabbies as she lived near a very busy road. They seemed quite happy, and occasionally they be let out into the back garden with supervision. luckily the garden walls were very high and her cats lazy lol
July 15th, 2010 at 00:54
lacarmina says:Aww! My cat is wahhh-ing me right now… he wants to go out… >_<
July 15th, 2010 at 00:55
lacarmina says:I think cats are getting more pampered and lazy every day! heheh
July 15th, 2010 at 01:03
Marueien says:Awww *-*
so many cute things!
July 15th, 2010 at 03:09
Gabriel says:NICE!!
July 15th, 2010 at 05:20
MoonMaiden90 says:that catio is SO cool! I wish I had one for my Taz! =^-^=
July 15th, 2010 at 05:20
MoonMaiden90 says:Taz would find a way around everything though! lol
July 15th, 2010 at 05:21
lacarmina says:Basil tried so hard to sneak under the gate before we secured it better. He knows his physical limits, though… he won't try to jump!
July 15th, 2010 at 05:21
lacarmina says:Basil tried so hard to sneak under the gate before we secured it better. He knows his physical limits, though… he won't try to jump!
July 15th, 2010 at 19:05
stillprince says:Uraahh~ Carmina, I never even heard of a Catio until I saw this LOL
I wish I had a cat. I can't have any since my mum is highly allergic. I'm definitely getting one once I get my own place, because BASIL IS TOO CUTE! <3
Your cat is a spoiled little brat XD
July 15th, 2010 at 19:05
stillprince says:Uraahh~ Carmina, I never even heard of a Catio until I saw this LOL
I wish I had a cat. I can't have any since my mum is highly allergic. I'm definitely getting one once I get my own place, because BASIL IS TOO CUTE! <3
Your cat is a spoiled little brat XD
July 17th, 2010 at 22:22
Memo Juez says:We have a screened in lanai for our cats to sun themselves and safely enjoy the outdoors. I've always kept my cats inside, they live longer, healthier and happier lives.
Eventually we'll add special cat door into the sliders so they can let themselves in and out as the they want.
July 18th, 2010 at 20:18
Alex says:It's so lovely!
July 18th, 2010 at 20:18
lacarmina says:Mao mao loves it!
July 18th, 2010 at 20:19
lacarmina says:cats are so spoiled these days :D
July 18th, 2010 at 22:36
Memo Juez says:Yes they are and it's our fault :-)
July 20th, 2010 at 02:54
Kritter Kondo says:Wow! Your CATIO is fabulous! I wanted to screen out my courtyard but city code restrictions prevented me, so I designed a portable Catio line, Kritter Kondos.
http://kritterkommunity.com
Love outdoor solutions for indoor fur-babies! We need to keep them safe and healthy.
July 23rd, 2010 at 02:39
Wishing4One says:OMG Basil is the man! He is gorgeous and love that he diggs his new catio. Fabulous job! I swear I wish I could I could just squeeze him and give him a kiss, handsome boy.
July 23rd, 2010 at 08:38
lacarmina says:He loves to be squished and kissed! <3 Basil Farrow can never have enough attention. He's on Facebook too — http://www.facebook.com/basilfarrow