DIY cat house

A cat is a wild animal, but many thousands of years ago, a domesticated animal. Being a companion of a person, a cat is still looking for a secluded place in his home, where you can sleep peacefully, feeling protected, and feline sleep up to 15-18 hours a day. To facilitate her task, do not constantly remove the wool from the bed, wardrobe, pram, "build" a house for the cat with their own hands, from any available material.

Dimensions, shape of the home

Seals are very different in height and weight, because the size of the building depends primarily on this. The presence of free space for installation of the structure is also important - in the cramped apartment they put the simplest house, in a more spacious, separate room - a whole game complex with ladders, hanging toys, claws, tunnels. The last option is necessary if two or more fluffy pets live in the house. The configuration of the structure, with the modern variety of finishing materials, is easy to choose for any of the existing interior styles. The most popular products in the form of a hut, cube, ball, mouse, fish, hut.

Types of houses

The stores sell a lot of different houses for representatives of the cat family - soft, hard, solid, collapsible, floor, pendant. Not all products look like a cat's dwelling, some have such an intricate original design that they seem an integral part of the home interior.

You can make simpler constructions yourself - from cardboard shoe boxes, leftover cloth, carpet, old furniture, vines, specially processed newspaper tubes.

If it is possible to accommodate several houses, the main one is placed in a room, the structure with the game complex is on the glazed balcony, loggia.

Loungers, hammocks

A hammock for a cat is a soft product that is stretched anywhere, fixed on hinges, buttons, Velcro, straps, carbines on four sides. There are options that have a solid base - they are suspended under the table, chair, chair, in the corner of the room, saving space. But sick, weak, simply fat animals often have difficulty jumping into a hammock.
A lounger is an economical, easy way to highlight a convenient place for your pet. In shape, it can be square or rectangular, like a box, round or oval, like a basket, in the shape of a heart, a flower.The standard version consists of a stand with a mattress, has low sides.

Booths

Koshkina booth - an interesting, convenient option, suitable for the simultaneous placement of two animals. Her roof is made flat, upholstered with plush, another soft cloth. One of the sides of the building is equipped with a claw point, less often - a ladder to the second floor. Inside is a mattress, a favorite toy. There are corner options studded with faux fur.

Built in furniture

To create such a structure, it is not necessary to change something in the interior. An old bedside table with a round hole in one of the walls will be an excellent housing for a cat, an entire cat family. Above the structure is upholstered with furniture fabric, which is convenient to sharpen claws, a couch is also placed on top. Something similar is obtained from an old chair, a stool, covered with dense textile, with a cut window. A wooden frame from a Soviet TV is also suitable.

Mini furniture for cats

It consists of sofas, cribs, ottomans, armchairs, similar to real ones, but slightly larger in size than puppet ones. It can be a plain couch, a luxurious bed with a gap, a canopy. Textiles for decoration are selected durable, non-marking, removable covers are also acceptable.

Cardboard construction house

A beautiful, interesting option, but short-lived - at a moving beast it will quickly become completely worthless. In appearance, it can be a tent, a wigwam, a palace, a mansion, a carriage, a skyscraper, a miniature copy of the owner’s home, etc. Cardboard is warm material, its price is low, the product is cut out, folded along the lines specified in the instructions.

Wall options

Wall-mounted design significantly saves space in a cramped room. All cats like to climb higher, because this is the best option. It has the appearance of a soft couch fixed between two crossbeams, a shelf upholstered in textile material, faux fur, and a pipe fixed to the battery.High on the wall, you can make several shelves to which a narrow ladder leads, as well as a multi-tiered corner house.

House with a game complex

A real cat entertainment complex is purchased, made independently, if more than two cats live in an apartment or a private house. Here they will relax, play, chat. The house is equipped with several platforms on the racks, performing the role of claw points, ladders, hammocks, climbing frames, toys hanging on the ropes, can take the form of a rack covered with fabric.

In a private house, a game complex, including a winter one, is arranged on the street, preferably under a canopy, in a place protected from the wind.

Veterinarian tips for choosing a home

When choosing a suitable home, you should consider the psychology of cats - each individual pet. It is important to evaluate the nature, age, weight of the animal, its habits. If a cat or a cat likes to sleep in a closet, between sofa cushions, a soft, as much as possible closed house with a roof will suit him. Fur seals practicing sleeping on a battery, a laptop keyboard, and other “warm” household equipment are suitable for a house-pipe suspended in the most comfortable place, a bed, upholstered in woolen cloth. When the animal prefers to sleep on the master sofa, bed, armchair, a small bench on a hill, a cat's mini-sofa, will suit him.

Fans of climbing to the very top are invited to a series of hanging shelves, a booth with a high upper platform. Castrated, simply clumsy, overweight pets will never climb into a shaky, unstable home, so they choose the option that is firmly fixed in the corner, with a strong wide ladder.

When choosing materials of manufacture, finishing, preference is given to natural, not harmful to health, even when small particles get inside - cats like to try everything on the tooth, tear the surface with their claws, and then wash with the tongue of their paws. A foam mattress can have a removable cover, which is periodically washed in a typewriter.The main thing is that the home should not have a foreign smell, this indicates the presence of harmful dyes in the composition that can cause allergies.

The size of the bed is also important: an adult pet should not be too spacious there - most cats prefer a “crib” a little more than themselves. The house is made a little more spacious - its height should allow the animal to calmly stand on four legs, move, and turn. If there are several cats, they like to sleep nearby; for mothers with kittens, housing is made even more spacious.
For patients, very old, injured pets, a spacious couch or lodge with a removable top is required. Here, if necessary, a heating pad should be placed, there should be the possibility of eating food right on the spot. Mattress for non-walking cats is covered with disposable diapers or placed under ordinary flannel oilcloth. In case of skin, infectious diseases, the house is necessarily disinfected, all textiles are washed at maximum temperature. Visually impaired animals or with one blind eye are often afraid of closed houses, preferring open beds on the windowsill, where it is quite light.

What you need to know when you make houses yourself

Cat houses are made of a variety of materials, preferably natural, consist of a rigid frame, if the design provides for its presence, soft upholstery. When creating pendants, you should carefully fix them - the fall of an adult cat with a house often leads to serious injuries, and for a kitten it can become fatal, even if the height is only a meter.

The choice of material for the base

Most often for the manufacture of the frame of a cat house are used:

• natural wood;
• MDF;
• Fiberboard;
• Chipboard;
• plywood;
• thick cardboard;
• plastic;
• paper tubes;
• rattan.

A homemade booth, shelf, game complex is built from any boards, the remains of a wooden lining or laminate, large plastic containers, corrugated boxes, papier-mâché.It is important that the materials are not stained with toxic compounds and have no unpleasant pungent odor. Wicker basket houses are made of newspaper, magazine tubes, strips cut from plastic bottles, vines, pine roots, rattan.

Scaffold claw frames, racks, are made of plastic, metal pipes.

Sheathing material

Most cats prefer to sleep on a soft surface, the upholstery for a house or bed is:

• faux fur;
• carpet;
• furniture upholstery;
• foam rubber;
• synthetic winterizer.

In the game complex, all surfaces are covered with fabrics, except for claws, the racks are wrapped with hemp rope and twine. Mattresses, pads are filled with synthetic winterizer, foam rubber, special granular material that retains heat.

Long-haired and very shedding pets are made by lodging houses, from which it is easy to remove wool. The upholstery is selected as close as possible to the color of the cat's coat - such individual hairs are hardly noticeable. As an option - choose a color matching the walls, curtains, upholstery, carpet in the room.

It is not advisable to use highly electrifying fabrics.

Methods of fastening parts

When creating cat houses plastic, metal corners are used, attached in such a way that the animal could not be injured about them. Fabrics, soft parts are fastened with a construction stapler, nailing is not recommended - over time, the structure becomes loose, nails come out, which can become dangerous. When using glue, PVA or any other, but without a pungent odor, is suitable. Carpet houses with a tubular, teardrop shape are mounted on a stable metal frame with wire, carbines. Cardboard products are fastened with tape.

When using metal parts, all of them must be covered with a cloth, a sealant, since when rubbing against cat's hair create static electricity that can harm the animal.

Master class: do-it-yourself pet house

Cat houses are different - it is possible to manufacture as the simplest, almost free, or luxurious, requiring huge labor and financial costs. The animal can be settled anywhere - in a bedside table with windows or a bookcase, covered with dense fabric, a frame from a large musical speaker or a makeshift pyramid. It all depends on the imagination of the owner of the seals.

Corrugated Cardboard House

The cardboard structure is short-lived, but it is easy to manufacture, and its material costs are practically absent. For work you will need:

• a suitable size cardboard box;
• piece of carpet, carpet, upholstery;
• Scotch;
• PVA glue;
• ruler, compass;
• pencil;
• sharp scissors or clerical knife;
• foam rubber;
• stapler.

Work progress step by step:

• a box is taken from the old "thick" computer or TV, stereo, or a large set of dishes, is strengthened with adhesive tape or glue;
• the entrance is cut from one side - round, square, triangular, in the form of an arch;
• small windows can be cut out on the sides of the entrance;
• open sashes are glued along the edges of the windows - like windows with shutters;
• a mattress is placed inside, completely covering the bottom, which is sewn from fabric, stuffed with foam;
• the perimeter of the entrance is upholstered with a strip of cloth or additionally reinforced with cardboard;
• a carpet is glued on the back and side walls from the outside - this will be a scratching post and decor;
• for a two-story structure, you will need two boxes or one large one (for example, from the refrigerator), on which a drawing of the necessary details is made.

To create a high, pointed roof, two additional pieces of cardboard will be required.

Cottages, complexes of wood

A properly made wood structure is strong, durable. Necessary materials, tools:

• sheets of plywood, chipboard or thin wide boards;
• iron corners with holes;
• self-tapping screws;
• carpet, upholstery;
• foam rubber;
• PVA glue;
• sandpaper;
• jigsaw;
• screwdriver.

How to do this, the main steps:

• seven squares of the same size are cut out from the prepared material - about 45 by 45 centimeters;
• in two of them saw holes of a sufficient size so that the cat easily prolazitsya in them;
• five squares are connected with furniture corners - a box without a roof is obtained;
• foam rubber is glued to the bottom, a carpet is laid on it;
• the inputs and outputs are carefully sanded to avoid personal injury;
• they make a triangular roof of two square parts - the holes on the gables, like the whole structure, will be covered with upholstery fabric. The finished construction is sheathed or the details are pre-sewn, pulled onto the house.

Such a house can be mounted on a stand, also upholstered in material. On the side or back of the structure, a pipe or board is beaten, which acts as a claw point. An additional plane is attached to it from above, for animals who like to look at the world from above.

When constructing complex, multi-tiered houses, a sketch, a diagram, with an indication of the dimensions, is preliminarily drawn - this will reduce the cost overrun of materials. Designs designed for outdoor conditions are additionally insulated from the inside.

Textile houses

In the manufacture of textile dwellings, materials are selected that do not accumulate static electricity, are well cleaned from pollution. Sewing such a product is not difficult at all.
To create a classic house you will need:

• dense foam rubber, 1.5-2.5 centimeters thick, which holds its shape well;
• foam rubber for the bottom, 3-4 centimeters thick;
• material for interior and exterior decoration - in one or different colors;
• pencil or crayon;
• scissors;
• paper;
• threads.

What do we have to do:

• a pentagon-shaped template is cut out of paper, in the middle of which a circle-hole is drawn;
• a paper template is circled on the fabric, eight identical parts are cut out - if the house is of a different color inside and out, then four blanks of each color are made;
• cut out two square bottom details, measuring 40 by 40 or 50 by 50 centimeters;
• all parts are cut with an allowance of about two centimeters on the seams;
• one square blank and four pentagonal ones are cut from foam rubber - they do not make allowances here;
• in the presence of an overlock, the edges of the fabric parts are swept over them;
• each wall of the house is made separately - the outer textile layer, plus foam, plus the inner fabric, are swept together;
• on the wall where the entrance will be, a round hole is cut;
• two pieces of fabric with holes are folded with the front sides inward, the windows are attached to each other, turned out, put on a foam blank;
• then the walls of the structure are stitched together;
• last sewn on the bottom;
• the structure is turned out through the entrance, neatly straightened out - the house is ready to move in.

To make a bed with sides, two textile blanks are cut in the shape of a circle, square, heart, etc., another one is the same, but slightly less - from thick foam. With a centimeter tape, the perimeter of the foam part is measured, two gradually tapering to the ends of the strip are cut out, 20-30 cm less than this perimeter, 15-25 cm wide plus a suitable foam blank. Then it is sewn, turned out, filled with foam with the bottom of the lounger, after - a side in the form of a strip. Details are fastened together.

The hammock for cats is made of a rectangular piece of fabric, which is suspended:

• between two coat hanger hangers, which become a direct part of the structure;
• four carbines with straps to the iron mesh hanger in the hallway;
• Velcro or hooks under a chair, armchair, table;
• eyelets on a frame made of wood or metal specially made for this purpose.

Planter tents are hung on a ring, sewn from four triangles and a square. The bottom is made of plywood or two layers of corrugated cardboard.

All seams, fastenings must be reliable so that the cat does not fall.

Wicker house

The house for a cat is easy to weave from a rod, but since it is problematic to get it in the city, they use simple paper tubes made from old newspapers and magazines.
For weaving you will need:

• newsprint or writing paper;
• PVA glue;
• scissors;
• spoke;
• pencil;
• ruler;
• cardboard.

How it's done:

• sheets of paper are cut 8-10 centimeters wide;
• the strips are wound as tightly as possible diagonally on the spoke, the tips are glued;
• a round blank is cut from cardboard, which will subsequently be braided;
• the required number of tubes (usually 24-28 pieces are enough) is laid crosswise;
• further around one of the tubes an additional long tube is wrapped, which folds in half;
• weaving imitating weaving is made by a double tube in a circle;
• when the size of the cardboard blank is reached, the circle builds up - the walls weave;
• at the height of 17-25 centimeters an entrance is formed - 5-7 tubes are cut off, the ends are hidden on the inside, glued;
• back-and-forth weaving continues on the remaining tubes, the design gradually narrows;
• at an altitude of 40-50 centimeters, the work is completed, the entrance is braided by braids;
• for strength, the product is impregnated with PVA glue, left alone until it is completely dry, dyed with food colors, dried again, decorated with lace, ribbons, a round mattress and pillow are placed inside.

Conclusion

For many people, a cat is a full-fledged member of the family, which is allocated an individual place to relax, play. Detailed step-by-step instructions, master classes with patterns for making houses for cats, cats, kittens are easy to find on the Internet, on the pages of specialized publications. If you have several pets, you can make an entire cat "tower" with your own hands, a sports entertainment complex,which will be appreciated primarily by young playful animals.