Giving your cat a breath of fresh air stimulates its curiosity like few other things can. Outdoor sights, sounds and smells are filled with excitement — and danger. To let their cats enjoy the outdoors safely, one husband-and-wife team made a trip to the hardware store.

Easy Project
Kevin Mack and Julie Stonefelt met at The Progressive Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) in Lynn-wood, Wash. Mack is a naturalist at PAWS’ wildlife hospital, and Stonefelt directs educational outreach. Each day, Mack sees his share of wild animals injured by housecats. Stonefelt sees just as many cats abandoned, neglected or wounded by wild animals. They decided to do their part for their cats — Henry, Oliver and Otis — and build a cat enclosure.

With virtually no construction experience and a limited budget, they converted their deck into a feline paradise. A do-it-yourself project like this one may be simpler and more affordable than you think.

Stonefelt was admittedly frightened at first by the seemingly huge task of building a structure from scratch.

“My desire to have a place for my cats to play outside safely was so strong that I was willing to face those fears,” she says. “It does not have to be complicated and the small amount of money, time and effort is so worth it.”

Mack and Stonefelt researched how other cat enclosures were built. They adapted the designs for their deck application and hunted for materials at their home improvement store.

**For the full article, pick up the May 2007 issue of CAT FANCY.**

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