Pet Lovers

[Tinkrbl44]

I'm planning to purchase one online and wanted some feedback.

The one I have now is 24 inches high and has the all-important scratching post that kitties need.   It was given to me, slightly used, and is now starting to fall apart,

I was thinking I'd like to get a taller one, 3 or 4 levels, and have been looking at them online.   They are heavy and need to be put together, but I want it delivered to my door, so weight isn't a problem.

So .....  some have flat platforms, and little boxes to hide in, ramps and other interesting things for play time.

Other than the space where it will stand .... what other considerations are there?   How do I know what I want?    Prices and heights vary quite a bit.

Anything you can offer as to what worked ... or didn't work?     TIA!!

[Mz iMac]

This won't help you but, last year I purchased a real nice cat condo from Petsmart.  For 6 months my 7yr old indoor cat never came near it.  Not even to check it out!

I should have known better because my cat was never a "window sill" type cat.  He perfers "low" ground. 

I ended up giving it away.

[tansy]

My cats had a tall one with a tube in the middle and a comfortable perch at the top.  It was 7 feet high and placed near a window and where they could keep also keep an eye on me as well.  It had sisal at the base to scratch.  They seemed to like that texture.  The problem with buying on line is knowing how sturdy it is when they leap on it to climb.  

I recently donated it to a cat shelter because my remaining cat is old and not that acrobatic now.  

[GCR18]

My sister has one for her cats.  I think it's six feet tall.  One of the cats goes to the top.  When she gets down, she jumps on other things she shouldn't be on.  There's no good place for her to put it.  Keep location in mind.  

[jaxs mom]

I've had a few over the years and have two right now. 

You definately want one that has a wide and very stable base, especially if your cat loves to run and jump. Mine love to run up the big tree. The hanging toys on some cat trees can be dangerous. But you can just leave those off.  I really like my Armarkat brand tree. 

As far as design, it kind of depends on your cat. Is he the type that loves to go into enclosed spaces? If so get one with a house he can go in. Does he prefer to perch up high? Then make sure you have multiple pedestals for him to lay on. 

The other thing, is how big is your cat? Some of the smaller trees don't have large enough platforms on the pedestals for bigger cats. He needs to be able to lay down with enough room that he isn't hanging off. 

Alternatively, you can set up spaces in your house as a cat space. We have a padded bath mat on the top of our fridge in the kitchen and it's a popular spot for sleeping or watching the action in the kitchen, without being the way. You can also set up your furniture so that your cats can get up to higher spaces. I have 7ft tall bookcases between two windows and the cats use the window as a springboard to get to the top of the bookcases to hang out. 

Mine don't use the ramps, unless they are little kittens and can't easily jump up, so I remove the ramps. Look at the design of the trees closely so areas where the cat could get trapped if it fell because they aren't all designed safely. 

One of mine is Armarkat model B7701 and even though it looks tall for the base, it's proved to be very stable for my very active cats. I've had it about 6 years and it's still in good shape. 

[sandraskates]

Note that sometimes Costco gets them in.

We have a few of various heights with the tallest condo being about 6'. All are made by someone in Sacremento, CA and are very sturdy. They came from a local pet supply store.

It should have good solid base so if your kitty goes up to the top it won't fall over.

None of our 3 cats like going inside little spaces so our 6' condo / tree does not have a place like that. It has 3 levels besides the base area for our cats to lounge on.

Two of our cats like to nap on it: one takes the middle platform where I've added a cushy pillow, the other one leaps to the top and lets his tail hang down through the hole in the platform while he's curled up. He's very cute!

Some sisal wrapped areas are important as cats like to scratch on that. When it frays too badly you can buy new sisal and re-wrap the area.

A good one of any height is pretty expensive but they last a lot longer than the cheap ones from China (had those in the past).

We've had all of our current trees for several years now.

[dfyre]

Are you anywhere near New England? There's a company that hand makes beautiful trees. I've been buying them for over 25 years and they last forever. I get them at cat shows and you can also get them at their factory in NH.

[birkin baby]

Costco often has  the dengue ones and the "tree" ones.  The prices are better than the stores.  It is not stocked always, but every so often. My cats are weird (like most cats)..some don't go Near it and some love the ones with the hidey boxes on top. They peep out of the triangle  cut-outs. 

[druid102]

I have one that is 4 levels high and about 6 ft tall. I made sure that the levels were staggered and not one directly above the other for better accesss. The top platform has a hole in the middle to allow for easier clinbing.  The only thing that I would be careful of as far as the little tubes and such is accessability for the vaccum cleaner and the occasional hairball cleanup.  My kitties love it and the scratiching post it provides.  I've had it for years and we've had to replace the most often scratched area with heavy rope a couple of times and it still works fine.

[Fona]

I have never had a tall cat tree for any of my cats - only the smaller type.  However, one thing I have noticed about tall cat trees (I volunteer at our cat shelter) is that, for some reason, sometimes the shelves are directly one above the other, making it impossible for the cat to jump up from one to another (I hope that makes sense).  druid102 makes a similar point...."should be staggered and not one above the other for better access".

Check it out for safety - as an example, some have hanging tassels or ropes the cat can chew on and they can be dangerous.  Make sure every part is easily accessible. 

One other point to keep in mind.  When I was buying a cat tree a few years ago, I ran my hand inside one of the little boxes and found some nails sticking through. Needless to say, I didn't buy it. You might want to check for this.

Some pet stores have some beauties you could check out before making a decision.  My pet store actually delivered, but that was a few years ago.  It might be worth asking about, though.

I hope it all works out well and that your cat has a lot of fun.