Cat Furniture - A New Product

By Joseph Starr

I moved into the house where I currently live almost 50 years ago and planted a 7-foot Pin Oak. Over the years it has grown and is now very, very, very tall and since it's located on top of a hill it is a bird-magnet. Birds come in mega-droves to nestle into its branches. Being a city boy, I thought they did that so they could aim their poop better onto my neighbor's cars, but an outdoorsman told be that birds like heights so they can see all around them. Whether they are being territorial or simply keeping track of possible predators in the area, he wasn't sure.

Cats are the same way. They like to get on top of things. Lacking furniture to climb onto and survey their domain, many cats snuggle onto a window sill and spend hours there. So there is justification for seriously considering buying cat furniture so they can be happy and contented. And look at the human furniture you probably own. What did you spend on that sofa you love to couch-potato on? How about the recliner? Does it have a built in massager, too? You don't have a strong argument for not spending about $300 for furniture on that love of your life, your cat. And, would you rather the cat climb on your furniture or on his/her furniture?

I searched the net for appropriate furniture to buy and came across a few items that looked promising and one that looked outstanding. Since cats like altitude, let's consider a cat climber or cat tree. My number one choice would be the Catvantage product. See it at catvantage.net. The product has won two editor choice awards in 2007, from Pet Product News International, and Cat Fancy. In 2008 it won 2nd place for best-in-show at the Global Pet Expo. It's a pole from floor to ceiling - kinda like a pole lamp - with steps for the cat to climb up to a big-enough-for-a-cat perch at the top. (For you Greenies out there, the pole is made out of recycled polyvinychloride, and most of the other parts are from recycled materials also.) I really like the clean, sharp, modern, design. It's not intrusive and will fit seamlessly into your existing habitat.

In fairness take a look at some of the competition. On the internet look up the Jungle Club House and draw your own conclusion. Notice especially the design, the height, and the price. At the Sitting Pretty website check out the CozyCat Furniture. They offer a pretty elaborate Tree Mansion for $1895. The same website has lower cost cat furniture, but for my money they look pretty ugly from a design standpoint. At Kittykornercatfurniture you can see a cat climber which is similar to the Catvantage product. I've found that the products that are lower in price than Catvantage typically don't give you the up-to-the ceiling perch for your cat and the designs are blah.

There are many climbers and trees to look at. So take your time. But please buy your pet some furniture of his/her very own that s/he will enjoy for many hours.

Joseph Starr writes on a variety of articles to keep his brain from fogging over. For more stuff about cats see his blog at http://joescattalk.blogspot.com/