Cat Furniture – Scratching Posts, Cat Trees and Cat Perches

Most cats love to play around on cat furniture. Between cat trees, scratching posts, perches, and any other furniture-bed-toy-hybrids you can think of, it is easy to let your home become slightly overwhelmed with cat furniture. If you’re not careful, your cat will have more places to sit than you will!

You can get the most out of the space you have to work with by thinking more like a cat. While we typically have to have everything on one level, cats enjoy vertical movement. They can leap and climb in ways that we can’t. When thinking of cat furniture, you need to do it like building in a dense city. Sometimes the best use of space is to move their furniture upwards rather than spreading it out low and wide. Cat furniture can reach taller spots in your home, letting you give your cat more space without it invading yours too much.

With so much on the market though, it can be difficult to decide which bit of cat furniture is best for your pet. Cat specific furniture can give them something to play on that is safe for pets and designed for their fun.

While there are a lot of different types available, you need to cater it to your cat. Try to learn what particular ways to play or interact your cat will enjoy. You can then suit your choice of cat furniture to them. Some cats may want a cat tree with high up perches to sit on and overview the home. Others might like a view of the outside with a cat window perch. For any type of cat, there is some cat furniture that they will love that won’t take over your entire home.

Cat Trees – A Consolidated Approach to Cat Furniture

Cat Trees are a classic of cat furniture. They come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, ranging between small units and things that appear more like a cat castle or playground. Cat trees are made up from a few parts, when you consider what each segment does then it may be worthwhile having one in your home. Otherwise, you will likely end up with each part of the cat tree as a separate piece of cat furniture.

The first is scratching posts. Cat trees have an abundance of scratching posts at lots of different levels. These scratching posts are important for your cat’s health, letting them keep their claws in good condition and preventing them from sharpening their claws on your furniture instead.  There are also cat trees with beds and concealed places to sleep. This gives a cat both a comfy place to sleep and a place of concealment if they become stressed.

The benefit or arranging all of this cat furniture in one piece is both convenience and fun. A cat tree will give your cat plenty of space to climb and play. This type of play is important to your cat and it helps them stay in shape. A cat tree might be on the bigger side of cat furniture, but it is worth considering if you can find room for it. It is an entirely consolidated piece of cat furniture, with everything in one piece.

Cat Towers

If you’re looking for cat furniture but want something a bit more specific than a cat tree, then a cat tower might be the way to go. Cat towers give your cat even more vertical room to play in. As well as typically containing scratching posts and beds, they will reward cats who enjoy ascending space in their home. Their view from the top of the tower should keep your cat comfy and entertained for quite a while.

While there are some cat towers that are smaller, they do usually take up a lot of space. Cat towers take up more space vertically. A cat tower can take up a lot of space. While it is better to have it somewhere where you will spend a lot of time to ensure your cat is playing out in the open, its size might prevent this from being possible.

If you’re willing to give up enough space for a cat tower, then there are some fantastic ones on the market. They can be big, expansive, and quite cool looking! If this bit of cat furniture sounds like a good fit, then you can really find one that is a lot of fun for cats.

Perches

Cat perches are a great choice for most cats as they give them a view from up high. They can also be put into rooms where large pieces of furniture are inappropriate. There are two main types of perches:

Window Perches

Cat window perches are quite different from large cat furniture like cat trees. These are small pieces of furniture that can be attached to windows to give your cat a level to climb up to without intrusive furniture. This bit of cat furniture is a lot smaller than a tree, so it is a good thing to get if you don’t have much space or if you’re trying to test out furniture with your cat.

These window perches are great for cats who like to watch the world go by. They are also a cheap alternative to a catio if you’d like to see if your cat enjoys the perch before committing to something bigger.

The key thing with these bits of cat furniture is that they are secure. Cats don’t weigh much, but they will need to be properly supported on a window if they’re sat up there for a while.  A window perch that uses sticky pads to secure itself to a window should work fine. However, you should be sure to test it out first. Put some books or something of similar weight to your cat on the perch after setting it up.

Wall Perches

Wall perches are similar to window perches in that they give your cat somewhere to sit higher above the ground. These are self-explanatory. Like window perches, the main thing is to ensure that they are secure. A wall perch might not give a cat as much to do as a cat tree or as interesting of a view as a window perch. However, they can be discretely slotted into rooms where you wouldn’t otherwise be able to provide cat furniture.

Wall perches make a great choice as an additional piece of cat furniture but are unlikely to provide enough stimulation for a cay on their own.

Cat Furniture for Sleepy Cats – Cat Condos

Cat Condos are beds for cats that simulate the experience of crawling into a nice comfy cardboard box for a nap. These box-like beds provide security to cats and can be particularly useful for timid pets. These usually aren’t sold freestanding. Instead, they will be incorporated into a cat tree or tower. This means your cat will have this nice warm cat condo alongside a scratching post.

You can get them individually in small units. However, as a bed it is more useful to get one incorporated into a larger cat tree. The bed on its own isn’t too much for a cat. However, when combined with other furniture it can be a great distraction.

Scratching Posts

A scratching post is really the bare minimum of cat furniture. It is the type of thing that most cat owners will pick up when they first bring a kitten home. Most larger pieces of cat furniture incorporate scratching posts into themselves. This usually means you won’t need an independent scratching post if you’ve got a cat condo tree or tower.

However, if you’ve gone for perches and levels for your cat to play in rather than a big unit, you will still need to have a scratching post around for them. It needs to be big enough to allow your cat to stretch out, and stable enough to hold up when a cat is pulling at it.

A scratching post helps keep your cat’s nails in good health, and prevents them from scratching up your own furniture! These posts are relatively small so it shouldn’t be too hard to find a place to slot them into your home.

How Not to Let Your Cats Take Over Your House

With all of this cat furniture on offer, it can feel like your cat is taking over your house entirely! The key thing is to limit the amount of cat furniture you have around. If you have a large cat tree or tower, you’re unlikely to need much else. Equally, a cat window perch can be combined with a scratching post spread around the house to give your cat plenty to do. While it might not look the tidiest, most people won’t begrudge a few bits of cat furniture in your living room.

You should only get your cat enough cat furniture for them you actually use rather than getting them something in every room. Then, you can perfectly balance people and cat furniture across your home.