What cat carriers and tree houses/scratch posts do you all have?

[lucysmam]

We're getting a pair of kittens when they're old enough to leave Mum so I'm slowly collecting toys/litter box/blankets/litter/food over the next few weeks while they grow 😊

I've just been browsing cat carriers - are the shoulder bag types ok? What size are they in reality? And what cat trees do you all have? Wilko/the Range have some that look quite large, around the £40 mark. My friend says shop on Marketplace for them but I don't drive so getting them home from "27 Laurel Place*" , or wherever, wouldn't be the easiest 🤷‍♀️

*randomly made up address, sorry if it's actually yours!

We don't have harnesses although my cats go outside. They will go a walk round our quietish housing estate with me without needing a harness and then come back to the drive for dreamies

@lucysmam my cats are all indoor cats, but having them used to harnesses (and leads) has been helpful. We used to live on a boat - wet cats are not a good look, (or drowned cats) plus it gives me the peace of mind when they have to travel in pet carriers. It also made it much easier should we have ever needed to vacate the boat in a hurry eg sinking or fire. But we did have an unusual set of circumstances, which I appreciate not many will have!
My older two quite like a walk on a harness and lead around our garden. The three younger ones have zero desire to leave the house or their catio.

Our cat baskets are two large wicker top loading 'hampers'. Had them over 30 years. Easy to load indestructible and each will fit two cats when necessary.
No cat trees or similar - the whole house (and he outside world) is their cat tree.
Current scratching posts are the legs of our kitchen chairs...

You don’t need harnesses I don’t think. My cat is mostly indoors although he does go out onto the patio in summer and we’ve never needed one. He lived indoors for many years when we were in the US as almost all cats live indoors there, and never adjusted back to having outside access! Oh and despite all the American indoor cats the only one I’ve ever seen/heard of being harnessed trained belonged to a homeless guy who used to beg near my office.

I have this carrier and cover too, and can recommend. It's very secure (and I have a cat who very actively tries to get out of there and hasn't succeeded).

I got this cat tree and my little kitten loves it and uses it all the time- it has scratching posts - she even sleeps in the hammock

As a vet I see lots of carriers and the cat cabrio in the photo I think are the best.
My cats like a scratching post with a hammock after trying many brands the paw hut ones seem the longest lasting and we particularly enjoy the cactus below.

We have 4 cat trees. A small one in a bay window, a floor to ceiling in our bedroom (he kept climbing the headboard), one a little smaller than me(im 5ft 5) in the living room and just bought a 2m one for conservatory. all we're from amazon. Our carrier is from pets at home, just a standard plastic on with top opening, seems easier to get him in that way. We have a tall scratching post and the a couple of small ones from like b&m and pets at home.

We also have iglo bed, he sits on top of it rather than inside 😂

People tell me my boy is spoilt and I'm excessive but he is also an indoor cat and I dont want him board.

That's interesting. I bought the Cabrio based on many positive reviews, and never used it as I felt the clamshell opening was a really bad design if you were trying to put a reluctant cat in, with a high risk of catching a limb/tail.

@Scampuss the claw shell is brilliant at the surgery for examining etc.

@Needanadultgapyear I appreciate that, and it's why I originally bought one, but when your cat turns into the bastard child of an octopus and a honey badger when you try to put them in, it's really quite hazardous.

Metalcote also do those metal carriers. They are the only 100% safe, escape-proof cat carriers. https://www.metalcote.co.uk/product-category/cat-baskets/

This is a great scratching post, really sturdy and tall so the cat can stretch full length as they scratch. (They come in grey, too, but more expensive). You can add a perch to the top. I got mine when I first got my cat, and it lasted 5 years till it was shredded, but then got a handyman to recover it in a bit of looped pile carpet. My cat loves it so much he doesn't even think about scratching the sofa etc.
https://www.petplanet.co.uk/p17848/smartcat_ultimate_scratching_post.aspx

Basic carrier still works fine for mine.

Our whole house is a scratching post. She has not taken to any bed, or tree but would happily sleep atop a pile of Lego and climb up the bookcases.

Ooh - please could you tell us a bit more about your catio? I have been toying with the idea.

@fridgegrazerour catio is three sided (we are a terraced house). With a door to the garden. It’s around 20 foot long and 9 foot high by nearly 7 foot wide. Covers our kitchen door, window and bathroom window as well as the sitting room window. It has ladders and bridges as well as human stuff such as my washing and a couple of deck chairs! It’s made of wood and fine grade mesh. A local firm came and made it bespoke to fit the house and its pipes/wires/gutters etc. we opted to have a polycarbonate roof and had it painted purple.
There are a lot of ideas out there for catios from diy, to ready made of the shelf, to bespoke made to measure styles. All are beautiful. Ours cost £1,200 and was installed in just over 3 hours. Have a google for catios on Facebook for some ideas. My cats seem to spend a lot of their day playing/sleeping/ bird watching in it.

My cat tree is from Amazon but I will not recommend it as it's on the wonk and I pick it up nearly every morning 🤣 the cats love it though & im saving up to get them a new one

I did say to Dh to drill it into the wall but the wall it's on he can't and there's no where else to put it

@lifeisawillow3 I saw a review on amazon saying that one similar to yours (maybe even that one) was wonky so will avoid.

Do any of you have one from The Range? I'm finding the P@H website quite hard to navigate on my phone.

@lucysmam opt for a cat tree that has four going to three support poles (and then two poles) on a wide base. That way they are stable. Some do come with straps which you attach to the wall - generally the very tall ones. A small foot print and lack of upright support means they will wobble and potentially topple.

Only one type of cat carrier you should be purchasing - this one (only one that is 100% cat escape proof and used by the RSPCA in rescues etc - always a danger point for escape taking a cat to the vet for eg)

A cheaper good cat tree is this one from Pets at Home...but ideally the best cat trees are RHR Cat Tree King ones - expensive but worth every single penny.

https://www.cattreeking.co.uk/

Four cats here. Cat tree king are the only ones that last. You really do get what you pay for. They're in a league of their own in terms of their quality.

Please get a peewee.. use with wood pellets.. the cats do their business in top tray.. they scratch and the wee sifts into the bottom tray.. no smell at all. You scoop out the poo.
You just top up the pellets so hardly use any.
Just clean bottom tray twice a week.
www.vetsend.co.uk/peewee-ecominor-litter-tray