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Thursday, October 3, 2013

Window seats for cats

Keeping our cats happy and content in our homes can sometimes be a challenge. If you live with a cat or two then you know that they can get into mischief if not kept entertained. It would be so easy to keep them amused if you just opened the front door and sent them out to play but that is not the life for every cat. With the busy streets, the loose dogs and other predators, cats are much better off to be spending their time indoors where they are safe and sound. You also might like to keep your local birds and squirrels safe from their claws.

I live with five cats. Two are geriatric, one a senior and two young ones. The two oldest cats, Ed and Lily, spend much of their time on our back deck in a yard that is fenced. They are far too old to jump it. Our senior cat, Sierra, sits on our front porch most mornings waiting for the mailman to arrive. He is covered in kisses when he finally departs. She has been content to stay on our porch or in our yard for ten years now. I trust her but keep a watch out for any changes in her habits. She does not bother the wildlife.
Our youngest two, Annie and Audrey are strictly indoor cats. It is because of these two scalliwags that I have to find ways to keep them happy and content inside.
The first thing I did when they arrived was to place window seats in certain windows.

 The windows were closest to our maple trees where the birds spent time and where the sun hit most afternoons. They love these windows and can be found lounging on their seats every day.
 You can place bird-feeders in the trees but to be honest, I never felt the need to. There was always plenty of action.

This window seat is on the second floor just over the shed roof. Audrey loves to sit there and watch the squirrels jump from the trees to the roof and back again. She also does a lot of snoozing here.

Another place that is perfect for a window seat or shelf with a cat bed would be at a ground-level window such as this one.

This is in a basement laundry-room and the cats can watch the squirrels running around the ground. It , too, provides great sun-puddles throughout the day.
Cat window seats can be purchased at most pet stores.

So this is my first suggestion for you if you are looking to make your home more entertaining for your kitties.
Forget placing plants on all window-sills. Pick the ones that suit the seats or shelves and make your cats' day much more fun and interesting so that kitty isn't bored out of her ever-lovin' mind.

More ideas coming.

hugs, Deb

14 comments:

  1. The windows are the best place for cats!!!!

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  2. It is fun to watch the twitching tails as kitties sit at the window fantasizing about catching those birds. Great photos and advice!

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  3. We have built in window seats downstairs and upstairs.We never get to use them!
    Janex

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  4. Our Harley loves to sit on the living room and one of the kitchen window sills and swap her tail and sounding like banshee at the birds and critters . Thankfully this old farm house has wide sills lol ! Love the photo of the two kitties looking out the window . Thanks for sharing . Have a good day !

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  5. They look very comfortable too!

    My parents' cats loved the second floor, either the sliding door in the master bed room or the window in the den, where they'd sit on a chair placed close to the window.

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  6. Great photos Deb! Our three felines love their window "TVs" as I call them. Lots of shelves or seats for them to watch the world go by.

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  7. So very lovely. Cloose together........

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  8. Good ideas. I have cat-trees by all the windows except that in the kitchen. Once I finish re-arranging the basement, even a basement window will have a window-level bookcase for the beasts.

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  9. I bought the one you've shown above, but was sad to see that it had a strip of adhesive to hold it to the sill. We're in a rental for 8 more months and can't affix anything permanent. Rosie is just going to have to watch from her tower:-)

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  10. Great suggestion! I will need to figure out which window to put one in! Of course now they love the sunroom! Lots of Sun-Puddles in there!

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  11. Am visiting here from Rhonda's blog. Love your cats and their window seats! I'm sure my three would love them too. I'd better not show them your photographs!

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  12. génial le post d'observation.
    Les photos sont très belles, c'est un plaisir de vous connaitre.
    Opale et SOnye

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  13. I'm lucky enough to have deep windowsills and, in warm weather, the patio door to keep the cats amused. Only the old guy goes out and he mostly sleeps on the porch. Those are a great idea for newer homes.

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  14. What a wonderful idea, i made sure that my coffee table was near the window so Ruby could use it to look out of the window - excellent!!

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