Speaking of Cat Trees

[Grace]

Many of you show pictures of your cats in a cat tree. Do you recommend a particular brand - have a favorite supplier?

We're thinking of getting one for our five, but am not sure where to start looking. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

[RedHedd]

Cat shows seem to have the best prices, although the selection can be slim. The major pet stores like Petco have a better selection however their prices are a LOT higher. I bought a nice tall scratching post/tree for my two at a local pet store that was having a grand opening 20% off sale., so I guess looking around is the answer.

[mruffruff]

I bought two at different times at different places. One was on sale for 139. The other was closer to 170. I added a runway between them by covering a board with a piece of carpet. There really isn't a "brand" that I've found that I like.

Be sure you have help when you buy one. You could get a hernia trying to lift one by yourself.

Mary

[sirrahbed]

Do you know anyone at all handy at building? You can have one built for practically nothing using landscape timbers, shelving scraps, hemp rope and carpet remnants.

[CalliesMom]

I have several for my kitties. I ordered a brand new AeroCat tree off of E-bay for about $50 less than the asking price. I'm not very handy (and neither is the hubby) so wouldn't be able to make one myself.

[catlover4ever]

I bought 2 of my 3 cat trees on Ebay. If you go under the pet section and look for cat condo's or cat furniture you will see quite a few different ones. They come in all shapes, sizes, and colors.
Some of the listings on Ebay are auctions and others are on a buy it now basis.

Here are a few pictures of what I have. The first one I bought outright for $100.00 and the second one I won the bid on for $129.00.

[kuhio98]

Well, I live in the boonies and we don't have a Petco or any such thing. I've found great ones on the internet but they refuse to ship to Alaska, so what I did was ask my vet if he knew where to get one. Turns out one of his many other patients had a very handy daddy who make them as a side business. I like the home made ones the best.

[CatMama78]

Got mine at Petsmart for around 200 . They are all expensive. You can find lots online, but they are pretty expensive too. If you can make one, that would be cool.

[sirrahbed]

Here are a few pictures of the tree my hubby built. The middle piece is a landscape timber I am pretty sure. The shelves are just scrap wood. Some pieces are wrapped with twine and some are covered with nailed on leftover carpet. The base is a very heavy piece - like a half of a coffee table size and then the braces you can see on the last picture - not the prettiest but the tree is so high it needed lots of support. It was all scraps except the middle he bought at the lumberyard but still only about $10 for that. Of course he always has lots of scrapwood around and we had carpet because we had the house done this spring. He looked online at cat trees and just sorta designed it from some that he saw and liked.
He is also a furniture builder and carpenter but said this project was easy enough for a beginner.

[jazzcat]

This is the cat tree my Dad made for me for Christmas the year before last. I covered it with the carpet. It was a fairly easy one to make. I found the instructions on the internet and just printed them off for him to follow. The cats love it.

[QueenScoopalot]

Originally posted by jazzcat
This is the cat tree my Dad made for me for Christmas the year before last. I covered it with the carpet. It was a fairly easy one to make. I found the instructions on the internet and just printed them off for him to follow. The cats love it.

That's a terrific looking cat tree jazzcat! What is in the center of the semi-circles, and the tunnels? I've made a few myself, but finding sisal rope that is an inch thick is not easy. I find the inch thick lasts a lot longer than the half inch. Plus w/inch thick it can be re-fastened when it gets torn to shreds, and I can get more use out of it. I have a beam in the basement that I wrapped with sisal rope (need to redo it soon) and the cats go beserk playing squirrel on it!

[Grace]

WOW – you all are wonderful. Thanks you ever so much.

RedHedd – I think it will be close to a year before the next cat show around here. I did check out one local pet store, but the selection was rather meager.

mruffruff – I will definitely have help with whatever I buy. Thanks! And how many cats do you have using that duplex tree?

sirrahbed, Kuhio, CatMama, jazzcat – constructing our own or finding a local craftsman sounds like the most economical solution. Neither of us is very talented that way, although we could probably put something together that the cats would love.

catlover4ever – would you believe I have never been to the eBay site? I love the tree you have in the corner.

CalliesMom – thanks for the brand name – I’m going to check that out.

sirrahbed – thanks for your pictures. That will really help if we go that route.

jazzcat – wonderful picture – of the tree and the cats. Thanks!

QSL – thanks for the tips regarding the rope.

[jazzcat]

Originally posted by QueenScoopalot
That's a terrific looking cat tree jazzcat! What is in the center of the semi-circles, and the tunnels?

Thanks, I think my Dad did a wonderful job! The perches and the tunnel are Sono Tube which is concrete pouring forms - like for pouring columns. You can buy it a places like Home Depot. The tunnel is a piece we left whole but the the two perches are a piece cut in half long ways. It's just a heavy cardboard usually coated with a waxy substance. IT was easy to staple carpeting to it.

[mruffruff]

Seven cats.

[catmandu]

I would try,at a Cat show,too as yiou tend to get them,from the People,whomake them,and you dont have nearly the mark up!