Catio?

[theSnuffster]

Just wondering if anyone has a 'catio'? We have two kittens and intended on keeping them indoors but I think it's going to be a struggle! I don't want to just let them out- I had 5 cats in total growing up and 2 of them were killed by cars. So I'm thinking a catio might be an option. Our garden is fairly small so it wouldn't be huge but could manage maybe 5ft squared? Then we could get a cat flap in the back door for them to access it as they please. We have carpenters in the family who would build it for us to keep costs down.

Sounds good! If you can make the footprint any bigger than 5'x5' so much the better. I've seen ones with patio furniture inside if that's an option, dressed up with plants etc they look okay?

Anything is better than nothing however. I'm sure you could get creative with some vertical levels to give them stimulation

Ignore me 5ft sq is fine - I've since looked at some pics

If your garden is totally fenced you can get the fence-top netting to cat proof the entire space. That's what I've done. My garden is small. I used a company called Sanctuary SOS but if you have carpenters in the family you can buy the materials and have someone put it up for you (especially if it's a fairly standard garden - you have to cat proof trees, sheds etc. or it won't work). I love it, the cats are safe and they get to enjoy the outdoors.

I had a look at those fences and they do look great but I'm not sure it'd work for us. The fence between us and next door is quite low, the garden gate is also low, so both of those would need replacing, then there's the garage, shed and summer house to secure, plus a large rabbit enclosure.