Are cat playpens, condos, towers, hammocks, dens, etc. (other cat furniture) worth the money?
I'm getting a new cat soon, and I want her/him to be happy while I'm away at work. I found this website http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Pe t_supplies.cfm?c=3261+10345+1887 which has a ton of adorable cat furniture. Preferably from those of you who have purchased one of these things, do you recommend it? Do the cats actually take a liking to these things, and if so, what particular type of cat furniture would you recommend?
We have a cat tree and our 4 cats love it. The first one fell to pieces (we bought a cheap one) through overuse. lol
Cat trees are a personal gift and not every cat likes the same thing. For that reason, no-one on here can tell you which one will be best for your cat, you really need to think about what your cat enjoys doing. What's good for my cats, for example, might not be any good at all for your's. Do its current owner have a cat tree? If so and they don't need it any more, will they let you have it? If it's a rescue cat, can the shelter staff advise on the sorts of things he/she likes to do?
For example, does it like scratching on a vertical or horizontal surface? If vertical, you need to make sure that it will still be high enough for him to use as a scratching post when he's fully grown. Does it like climbing high? Does it like sitting and laying up high? Does it like hiding, so would it like a box? Some cats prefer toys which require a human to get involved and don't like dangling toys they have to play with alone, so which does it prefer?
I'm sorry if this isn't giving you with a simple answer, but every cat is different and has its own likes and dislikes. If you're spending that sort of money you'd be best getting something the cat would love and use for many years to come.
Don't bother shelling out more money for one that's scented with catnip, as it's easy to buy catnip sprays from any pet shop.
If I were buying one for my cats, I'd go for one where they can climb, be high up and hide/play in boxes, because that's what they enjoy doing.
If you're any good at DIY, it's not that hard to make one. The benefits of doing this are the cost and also you can tailor-make it exactly to your cat's requirements. Here are some websites with step-by-step instructions:
http://pashmina1.interfree.it/tiragraffi ...
http://www.nd.edu/~akolaczy/catladder.ht ...
http://www.pandecats.com/x/building_a_ca ...
http://www.geocities.com/heartland/plain ...
http://www.mainecoons.org/h/cattree.shtm ...
The last one is huge, obviously, as it's designed for Main Coons. lol
