Cat Tree

Qetesh, you have come to the right place I have 4 cats and 2 cat trees in my house, and several piles of cat toys that I should probably throw away because the kittens have long lost interest.

The second option you listed, by Leopet, is the exact cat tree I have in the corner of my living room and my cats love it. Especially when they were younger, we would frequently have one cat sleeping on each of the 'nesting boxes' at the top. They have a strong preference for the scratching posts at the bottom of the tree and these are so ruined from excessive scratching I'm going to have to replace it soon, but even with all the options on the market I plan to buy exactly the same one (though possibly in a finish that more closely fits with the decor of my house - another advantage is you can get it in loads of different finishes). The highest perch is definitely the favourite of all my cats. I guess they love height.

We have had no problems with the stability of this cat tree. It comes on quite a wide wooden base. We have a smaller cat tree (classic bed-on-a-post model) which we have had to place right in a corner to stop it tipping over when they launch themselves at it.

We have considered cat shelves as well, for some of the other rooms in our house, but my husband is beginning to insist we've got enough cat stuff.

I foresee a cat tree in my near future.

To be honest they both look like good options, my cats would enjoy both of them - their key criteria seems to be the height. However, they have consistently ignored any hammock-type bed we've provided them. So the hammock tree looks ok too but don't expect them to use the hammock!

The interior of the perches are a tight 25cm x 26cm, minus a cut-off corner. So it is definitely a snug fit! Like I said, our biggest cat (who is probably about the same size as your boy) is not bothered by this, but if you think it wouldn't work out you may want to go for the other model. When ours sleep on the perches they tend to have a couple of legs sticking out at the front.

Another option is to build your own, which is something we have also considered. They are basically chipboard sheets upholstered in cheap faux fur. The posts are just heavy-duty card/wood wrapped in rope. Our Leopet cat tree serves its purpose perfectly well and we're very happy with it, but it's not a high-quality piece of craftsmanship (hence the low price) which is what got us to thinking in future maybe we could try our hand at building one ourselves.

Hmmm....I can come upon 2 more, much more expensive, and maybe we could swing if we create an internal 3 month layover account for it. Sounds like a ton, but it would really make both happy.

www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/cats/scratching_posts/multi_cat_cat_trees/367105


www.amazon.co.uk/Kilimandjaro-scratcher-scratching-production-RHRQuality/dp/B016KSL5VS/ref=sr_1_19?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1451408078&sr=1-19&keywords=rhrquality

Of course I am also hoping for a major sale on one too.

Tell your husband I've looked into it at some point. You can get cilinder shaped wooden poles quite easily and cheaply. Those would make for a solid and sturdy construction that hopefully shouldn't tip over easily. The rope that is used to wrap around the poles however is a whole different matter. It is not cheap.

The amount of twine you need to wrap around the poles is A LOT. Let's say you want to have a 50cm long pole with a diameter of let's 10cm. Now let's say you use 5mm diameter twine rope. You would need about 1000 * Pi centimeters in rope length to cover the pole. That's about 31.42 meters of rope to cover just one pole. Even figuring the cheapest price for twine rope when buying in bulk you'd be spending a whole lot more money than buying the poles ready made.

It's this sort of thing isn't it?

www.screwfix.com/p/sisal-natural-rope-light-brown-6mm-x-30-5m/62423?kpid=62423&cm_mmc=Google-_-Product%20Listing%20Ads-_-Sales%20Tracking-_-sales%20tracking%20url&cm_mmc=Google-_-Shopping%20-%20Ironmongery-_-Shopping%20-%20Ironmongery&gclid=CNLn1JTrg8oCFQuavAodZoMG5Q

I'm not sure how much you'd need to do an entire cat tree, though. Regardless, my husband has said that building one will most likely work out more expensive than buying one, especially if you go for a budget option (like the Leopet). Once you've got the wood, the fabric, the rope, the metal fittings (nuts, screws etc.) it all adds up. I think he mainly wants to have a go at it as a personal project.

Okay, so I have a new idea.
www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00LJWD9KQ?refRID=JHX3ZN0CYT2S7K5TY11R&ref_=pd_ybh_a_3

These moveable side hammocks could be moved to be directly under the two upper platforms to make for a larger lounging space for cats. 200cm is tall enough and has a good size upper cubby, and many color options.