How to build a house for your cat yourself

Recommendation points

• House for a cat: what is it?
• Construction basis
• Choosing a house configuration
• Ways to DIY home parts

Instead of spending serious money on arranging a play area for a furry pet, you can pay a little attention and assemble a cat’s corner yourself. offers instructions from which you will learn what attributes should be in the house for a cat and how to assemble it from available materials.

House for a cat: what is it?

It is very difficult for a cat to accustom to any particular sleeping place, if it is not the owner’s bed. Therefore, the cat’s house should not be perceived as a place of residence for a pet, but as a playground, where there is also plenty of space for rest. The cat perceives the playing area as its own territory, where it feels safe, which means that it will take a nap mainly to its bed..

The basis of the cat’s play area is a cascade of shelves, placed relative to each other so that the cat can freely jump or climb from one shelf to any other. To do this, you can position the shelves in different directions, cut holes, connect horizontal platforms to each other using posts and poles. It’s good when the playing area is a kind of maze, and the more possible routes there are, the better..

In the minds of the layman, a cat’s house is a kind of soft construction, from which it breathes with warmth and comfort. In fact, the decoration of a cat’s house is made of tough and durable materials, which allow the cat to use its claws to its fullest, without which there is a risk that the decoration and furniture will be damaged..

The main thing is for the pet to like the house, which is unlikely, because cats are very capricious and wayward animals. That is why it is better to equip the playing area yourself, taking into account the habits of the animal and its preferences.

Construction basis

Requirements for the structural strength of the cat’s house are low. To withstand the playful pressure of an animal weighing 2–3 kg, a frame made of 8–10 mm plywood and dry wood will be enough. Furniture screws can be used to connect the parts, but for this you need to be able to carefully drill holes in the end of the material. To be sure, you can strengthen the structure with metal corners and plates for upholstering carpentry products.

Another option is laminated chipboard, from which cabinet furniture is made. This material is especially relevant when keeping cats of large breeds, such as Maine Coon. Since the color of the coating does not matter, ordering a set of parts from the remnants of the material will not be a big problem, you can even purchase chipboard remotely.

Most playgrounds have vertical struts to support the shelves and act as scratching posts. They can be made both from a wooden bar or round timber, and from pipe scraps. The thickness is not decisive: the strength qualities of most of the available materials will be sufficient, and winding with twine will visually help to increase the massiveness of the columns.

It is better to use only mechanical fasteners for fastening parts. You should not use glue: the residual pungent smell can scare the cat away. The same applies to the use of paints and varnishes: it is better if the base of the house remains untreated, because it will be operated at normal humidity and without temperature changes.

Choosing a house configuration

Before proceeding with the assembly, you need to sketch out the elements of the cat’s house and their location at least in general terms. To do this, you first need to carefully observe your pet in order to find out what places he prefers for play, rest and sleep. Cats tend to hide, they can do this either in secluded places at floor level, or on top of furniture. This must be taken into account when placing the kennel..

Favorite types of games also need to be taken into account. Some people prefer moving movements, others like to play with objects without moving. The personality of a cat can vary greatly, depending on the breed and lifestyle. Calm cats are more suitable for spacious sun beds and soft pillows, for active cats – rustling tunnels, slides, burrow ladders and everything that provides an opportunity to move around.

It is not necessary to make all the elements of the cat’s house yourself. If the cat already has favorite accessories, for example, a kennel or a scratching post, they can be included in the design along with homemade elements. The same applies to the place of installation of the house, it is better to place it in the place where the pet spends the most time. If there are several cats, each should be equipped with its own sleeping place, while the playground can be shared.

Ways to DIY home parts

In conclusion, we will tell you about ideas that will help you make the elements of a cat’s house yourself from the available materials..

Shelves. Large enough cuts of any building and finishing materials are suitable as a basis for creating horizontal planes. Plywood, chipboard, drywall, siding can be easily processed without special tools. Having cut out the plate of the desired size and shape, sand the edges with sandpaper.

Game tunnel. It can be assembled with your own hands from sewer pipes and fittings. The standard diameter of 110 mm may not be enough for large breed cats, in such cases materials used in soil drainage systems or for main drainage should be purchased.

Flexible rustling tunnel. Materials of household engineering systems will also come in handy here. Flexible ventilation ducts will arouse the interest of almost any pet due to the characteristic sound when moving and the shiny foil surface. Importantly, the lining material of such channels is quite wear-resistant and will not crumble into rags from contact with claws.

Ladders and overpasses are easy to assemble from wooden slats, which are abundant in most hardware stores. It is better to choose a section of about 40×20 mm and fasten the parts with self-tapping screws with a press washer, it is only important that the tip of the fastener does not protrude from the back side, otherwise additional processing will be required.

The soft covering of the elements of the house can be easily done using carpet scraps. Each piece needs to be wrapped or sheathed separately, having previously made patterns. This upholstery will give the home and playground a cozier plush look and full claw grip..

The scratching post is the easiest to make. It is enough to take a piece of 50 mm sewer pipe and wrap it in a spiral with a jute rope, generously fastening the joint with a heat gun or universal glue “Dragon”.

The hanging toys for the house can be made from tennis balls. The reliability of the suspension is important, for which a strong cord with a large knot must be pulled through the ball. On such a toy, a cat can hang with all its weight, clinging to both paws. The best way to hang is by cascading under one of the playground shelves.

If the cat prefers an open bed in the form of a nest to a kennel, you can create a cozy bed from a wicker basket, partially disassembling it. Inside, you should put scraps of foam rubber or padding polyester, then cover the bed with a soft cloth, the edges of which must be tucked and fixed to the bottom of the basket.

A flexible hanging lasanka can be made from a PVC bath mat. To make such a ladder more durable, and crumbs of vinyl foam not scattering throughout the house, it is better to fix rough burlap on both sides with universal glue. Also, a piece of carpet is suitable as a lazanka, but the edges will have to be overlaid.