Cat tree and climbing frame

In my last blog I did promise to build a cat tree, well we've half done one, not quite finished, but also we have added several ledges, a high level perch, a high level walkway with a bit of a spiral staircase.

The cat tree is made from decking planks and round fence posts.

The round fence posts are also covered in rope... an ideal scratching post !

To save some time we used a woodturning lathe to wrap the rope around the posts, this made it easy for tension for the rope and every few turns we popped a staple in to secure the rope.

Next few photos shows Alex cutting and screwing together the decking planks...

 Too connect the fence posts to the decking we used bolts and a nut insert to the same thread size to the bolts...

1st level complete... just a quick sweep !

We only had a couple of hours today, so time to think about a second level ?

Ora and Bay seem to like it already.


Well Autumn and  Winter arrived soon after and finding a dry day has been impossible to fit in with a spare day to crack on with a climbing frame within the enclosure. Finally the last week in May we got a chance with the weather to do a bit more for the kittens. So we made several levels of decking across the enclosure, a high level corner perch, a high level walkway, with a sort of spiral staircase around a 4" square post. The following photos just show what we did and then the kittens enjoying our hard work !

The high perch is Ora's favourite place ...

And finally... Bay will not sit for a photo, but did manage to catch a big yawn...

Got a few more plans to complete their enclosure, so will update when we have done them.

Maine Coon Enclosure - The Last 2 days

Day 2 

Back on the build this morning and time to get at least 2 roof and 2 side sections up today. Also we need to build in a gate/door in one of the side sections.

Attaching the enclosure to the house wall will be a simple baton screwed to the wall at the same height as the side panels.

Now to see if all the measurements are correct, we'll get a roof and side section up ...

Held together with clamps at the moment, need to get it square/level, then attach another baton to the wall for the side section to attach too. We also have the fascia board and an electrical junction box to get around.

Finally got it sorted, sorry no photo of this part, we needed both hands, feet, and the old leg to get it in, but it took all morning and then some...

Next job... build a gate for the side.

Alex building the gate within a frame.

Unfortunately we made a slight miscalculation in the amount of timber we needed. forgot to add on extra for the gate, and also the extra corner and centre braces we have cut. So back down to the timber yard for a few more lengths of timber.

Nearly at the end of day 2. making the final push of the day and get the gate section in with another roof section.

More clamps ! but its coming together. last photo of day 2. finished the day screwing these sections together and putting all the tools away for the night. Plan for tomorrow, day 3 is to finish and make sure all small gaps are kitten proof ?



Day 3

We have to complete today, the weather forecast has predicted heavy rain and thunder storms for the next 36 hours and we have other plans past that, so all hands on the job.

As we now know what we're doing  ( ? ) the next 3 roof and side sections went up fairly quickly, even making an odd roof section to get around the guttering down pipe.

Just one more roof and 2 sides to make, and its getting warm ! hottest day of the year so far, going to have to get my shorts on !

Not a pretty sight but need cooling down.

All section now up, just a case of checking all gaps to make sure they are kitten proof, a tidy up, tools away, sweep the floor, double and triple check the floor for screws and staples. then ready for Ora and Bay.

 Well Ora and Bay seem to like it... busy exploring.

Finished ... just a few bits to tidy up on the patio, but at the moment I think its time for the kittens.


Summary.


Materials...

47mm x 47mm x 3.6m tantalised timber ... 14 lengths

47mm x 47mm x 2.4m tantalised timber ... 32 lengths (inc extra)

6 x 100mm screws ... 1 box of 200

6 x 60mm screws ... 1 box of 200

5 x 40mm screws ... 1 box of 200

6,7mm x 87mm decking screws with hex head ... 1 box of 100

6.7mm x 110mm decking screws with hex head ... 1 box of 100

6mm x 40mm washers for decking screws ... bag of 200

1" x 1" square mesh 18 gauge 900mm wide ... 1 roll

2" x 2" square mesh 16 gauge 900mm wide ... 1 roll

20 x flat angle brackets

Wall plugs

3 x hinges

1 x bolt lock



Budget for the build £200, but had to buy some more timber so total cost £230

Build time ... 3 days

Extra to build next week is a small cage to go over the drain where the down pipe and kitchen pipes go, but that's a small job and we have left overs from the build so no extra cost.


Hopefully this will help or inspire you to build your own.

P.S. I am not available to build others, this is a one off, I am happy to answer questions/advise please feel free to comment below. Cheers.

Next blog .... Outdoor cat tree and cat adventure playground ? watch this space...

Maine Coon Enclosure - The build

Just before the enclosure build an update on the kittens. We picked them up at 13 weeks old and introduced them the their new home, didn't take long to settle in after lots of sniffing around and exploring. So a selection of photos at 13 weeks....

Found a comfy place on the piano stool, then a warm sunny area to stretch out, and then on top of the sofa for a commanding view of the room.






Our design of the enclosure has taken several different shapes, but we have had a few alterations done to the house, which has put the enclosure on hold for a few weeks. But a final design is now ready for construction.

All materials have been delivered and we plan to build it in 3 days in the summer holidays... weather permitting ! (good old UK weather).



Preparation... (week before)

Cleared the patio area of all rubbish, mainly leafs, 2 bags of timber off cuts for the fire, and a few bits of garden furniture.

Jet washed the whole of the patio ! that took a whole day, and found a hole in my shoe which was letting in water. (do you know the song ? )
 

Day 1

Got my son, Alex, to help me on the build. We started by making the roof in sections. We are limited to the length and the width of these section due to the availability of timber and also the width of the wire mesh. I could get wider mesh but the price rises past our budget so I purchased in 900mm width. The timber comes in 2.4m and 3.6m lengths, and again I could buy 4.2m but the price per metre goes up past the budget.

Timber is all 47mm x 47mm tantalised treated timber (2" x 2" for old school builders but the new metric stuff is the nearest to the size we need)

Mesh for the roof sections is 1" x 1" square 18 gauge wire, 900mm wide.

Mesh for the side sections is 2" x 2" square 16 gauge wire, 900mm wide.


First roof section being made...

Alex loves using the air stapler !, this makes light work of attaching the mesh to the frame.

The main wooden frame is screwed together with extra corner braces, and a centre brace which also has 2 corner braces to keep everything square and rigid.

For the roof sections we repeat this twice, making 3 identical sections, then we have to make a further 2 slightly different ones to fit round guttering down pipe, and the conservatory guttering. 5 sections in total.

So that the mesh fits nicely on the frame we have made each main section 940mm wide.

So after cutting, sawing, drilling, screwing, nailing, stapling, we have 3 x roof sections and 3 x side sections complete.

End of day 1.


The next 2 days build and completion on the next blog page ....

New arrivals

Since our last cats, Imja and Petzel, we have been looking for another 2 cats. I have always wanted a Maine coon breed, but have been unable to find any locally for several years, then finally a breeder contacted me after a year from my first enquiry with news of 2 new litters and there are some available.

We made an appointment to view and after a few minutes 2 of the kittens from the litter where attracted to us, and soon on our laps without much effort... these are the 2 for us, sisters from the same litter.

Ailsa Bay, and Brora are their pedigree names, but after days of debating our pet names we could not pick a suitable name for either, so we shortened the names to Bay and Ora.

Ailsa Bay (Bay)

Brora (Ora)

We pick them up at 13 weeks old so 6 weeks to wait, plenty of time to get supplies !

These will be house cats, and living in a large town the traffic is fairly busy and not kind to cats, therefore a cat enclosure is required. Will be converting some of our patio into the enclosure, time to scribble down a design and work out all the dimensions.

Next blog page will shall begin the build....