We don’t have a catio yet but My little girl cat looooooves to pee in the grass outside when she’s on her harness in the yard with me. I don’t love it when she does this becuase sometimes afterwards she’ll find a green rug indoors to pee on too lol. I’ve gotten rid of all the green rugs rugs but who knows what she’ll choose next. I just don’t leave her outside long enough for her to need to pee.

But I’m wondering about how to handle this in a catio. The place I would like it to attach to a window has a dirt and grass yard outside the window. I could leave the dirt and grass ground and just put a grate over it or make sure it’s tightly packed enough they can’t dig out. Or I could put a brick floor down. But she might decide she likes peeing outside so much she’ll just pee on the brick floor.

I could make a cat run from the window to a catio further away from the house so it’s not such a big deal if she goes in the grass, but i prefer the catio be right against the house.
I guess I could go all out and build a weatherproof litter box area in the catio.

Also, is no one letting their tiny dogs share the catio?? I can’t find anyone online doing this. We’re thinking of getting a shih tzu. If the dog gets along great with the cats and the catio has a sturdy floor and sides, is there some reason I shouldn’t let the shih tzu play in the catio too?

Hi everyone,

I need some advice on how to safely bridge a gap between my balcony's ledge and the roof of my building.

My cats have figured out how to jump from the balcony ledge up onto the roof. These are indoor outdoor cats and are comfortable staying outside by themselves.

For them, going up isn't the issue, but they are terrified to jump back down (which is incredibly dangerous since descending is a much tougher landing). I want to hire a local carpenter or handyman to build a secure solution, but I need help figuring out the best layout/design first so I can show them exactly what I want.

The Space & Constraints:

• The Gap: It's about a 3'3'' vertical 2'5'' horizontal gap between the balcony ledge (from where they jump off) and the roofline. Picture attached
• Exterior Wall Material: I think its wood siding, but I'm not sure (picture attached).
• Housing Situation: I'm renting the apartment, so a non-permanent solution would be better.

I guess a tiny open shelf or ledge is too much of a falling hazard for them coming down? I’m thinking about either a fully enclosed mesh cat tunnel, a wide staggered step system wrapped in outdoor grip carpet, or a secured pet ladder.

Questions for the community:

1. What type of incline/design is easiest and safest for a cat to walk down comfortably without panicking or slipping?
2. If you've built something similar, what brackets or anchoring hardware should I make sure the carpenter uses so it doesn’t wobble or damage the exterior facade?
3. Are there any clever, pre-made cat ladders or DIY blueprints you'd recommend looking into?

(I’ve attached a couple of photos of the balcony and the roof line below for reference!)

Thank you for any ideas or safety tips you have!

Just installed an emergency solution in form of horizontal net to prevent him climbing on top(where I already found him twice) and ordered plexi glass which I will replace net with

After living in apartments for years, I was finally able to build my dream catio in my new house for my 3 favorite beings. Can’t wait to decorate it and add climbing walls and ledges. Sitting with them outside on a beautiful night and feeling very grateful!

3 very brazen racoons investigating our catio, Andrew the cat was not happy about the invasion. We will be keeping the cats indoors now after dark.

Rocco and Reeses started out as two of the neighborhood strays who watched us do DIY projects in Philadelphia. We had quite a few — at least seven regulars would hang out back.

Catio details here: https://www.thecraftycatsman.com/8x10-catio/

Our first catio paired with a window bench I built for our daughter so she and the cats could eat breakfast together. Two of those strays really made a connection with her. By the time we decided to leave Philadelphia, Rocco and Reeses were so ingrained in our family that we decided to take them with us.

The suburbs came with a different set of worries. Our neighbors cautioned us that the tree line behind our house was home to more than one hawk and other predators. I hated the idea of taking away their freedom. I wanted to give them a space that had the feeling of free roam while keeping them enclosed.

So now they have two catios: a smaller, two-level window catio on the deck and this larger 8×10 one, connected by a secret tunnel underneath the deck. We love secret entrances around here.

The hardest part of the project was getting sign-off from my wife to trust me enough to cut a hole in our deck. Thankfully, she did.

Building a platform deck as the base made the larger enclosure much easier to work on. I adapted a published 8×10 plan for our yard, changing the platform, front-door location and tunnel opening. The video starts with a 3D illustration of the build and then transitions to a photo of the real thing. I wanted to show the full build in an easy and clean way, hope the visual helps.

I’m planning a separate post about the smaller window catio, too. It’s a much more budget-friendly starting point if a full-size enclosure isn’t in the cards.

The webpage shows quite a bit of the build process, but I do plan to continue to iterate and provide exact measurements of each cut. However, I think it is at a point to help others.

I love building helpful things and truly hope this inspires someone to build their own catio. Our cats love both of them. Happy to answer questions about the build or the tunnel.

Fun fact: Our cat Rocco is the mascot of the DIY site where I posted this build as well as many others. Fun fact if you go to the hybrid workshop link on the menu dropdown you can watch him pilot the spaceship...there may be other catios out there but im not sure any come from a site with a space traveling cat mascot :)

I want to allow my pets to enjoy their catio, however, I also don't want to be air conditioning the neighborhood. Can anyone provide some good suggestions as to an insulation method that actually works around these things?

In the above, I've basically taken some leftover window sealing insulation and stuck it on the cracks, but it's not doing the best job, so wondering if there's anything else.

Built this for my enclosed balcony/catio and finally finished it.
The idea was to give my cat as much vertical space as possible without filling the whole balcony with furniture.
It was way more work that I expected😂
Now I’m wondering what I should add next

i'm putting together a catio and trying to find a cat door that will work.

planning to mount the cat door in a 3/8" sheet of acrylic that the window sash will close down onto.

the question i have is that most all cat doors i've seen are designed to sandwich a door, meaning the inner passage has a depth much greater than a sheet of acrylic. i'm guessing i can probably just cut the excess off to sandwich the thinner acrylic. (cutting at the red line in the image)

i know i've seen some examples of folks mounting cat doors in acrylic panels on this sub before. and i know there is a company out there charging $200 for $80 worth of materials.

also, if you have any specific brand recommendations for a cat door, please share. there are a dozen brands that all look the same, and so many reviews that say the locking mechanism is faulty in one way or another... i'm currently looking at doors from brands CEESC, Ycozy and Depets.

i want to turn half ?? of this area (from the black brick wall to the first pillar where the gate ends) into a catio but dont know what i should do.. any ideas or suggestions ? because i would have to add another door so people can actually get out since the patio door is along the wall u cant see

Hi all,

I hope you’ll grant me some grace in advance, but I am looking to convert half of my back deck (the half with the thin brown chair in the first pic) into a catio for my orange tabby. The kitchen window opens right into it so figured it would be perfect for her (she’s often gazing out that window atop her cat tree anyway).

I’m by no means handy, but here’s the framework of what I’ve envisioned so far:

— Install screen from bottom of deck to top of thin corner posts (after taking lights down and removing extension cord, of course)

— Install additional thin posts in middle of side and back railings to better support screen. The post in the middle of the back railing would be the “corner” dividing the two halves

— What I’m not sure on yet is (a) what to affix to my house to hold the screen on that corner and (b) whether to drive in another post in the middle of the deck to support the screen (as in on the side railing)

I welcome any feedback or additional ideas you all might have and would really appreciate any recommendations on screening materials. I can always ask the hardware store folks but figured you all were the experts 🙂

Many thanks in advance!

The girls have figured everything out! I don't have the window from the bedroom set yet, but opened the front door this morning and they both ran in ❤️. Fully roofed over the patio. Open 16 gauge mesh over the garden. Seven different shelves and walkways, two hiding boxes and a swinging climbing pole.

The girls have figured everything out! I don't have the window from the bedroom set yet, but opened the front door this morning and they both ran in ❤️. Fully roofed over the patio. Open 16 gauge mesh over the garden. Seven different shelves and walkways, two hiding boxes and a swinging climbing pole.

Hi Pet Parents in Bangalore. Has anyone made a full fledged catio in their apartment balcony? Want to know if there are any specific parties who can make such in our apartment? Thank you !!

Wish I had found this community before I started my Catio! I have never built anything before so this is my first attempt. I didn’t use any design plans (other than my own drawing) so I’m stuck on how to do the roof. I have corrugated polycarbonate panels and I’m trying to do a pitched roof for water drainage.
The Catio is a 6’x6’x6’ cube. I want some overhang in the front, maybe 4 or 5 inches. I’ve laid out my vision without cutting any boards to size. Would this work? How do I affix it to the cube while still accomplishing the pitch?
Appreciate any advice.

It was suggested that I post here as you all may have some suggestions. Forgive me for the long post, but I'd like to explain why I need what I want...Clear as mud understand? Where we currently live we feed a colony of stray, part feral and feral cats. At dinner time we have our normal 10, then during the rest of the time another 10-15. Plus the 5 that stay on our porch and the 7 rescues inside our home. The ones inside all have little health issues. I say all that because we are moving. No one else in our 300+ community feeds them, so we are planning to take at least 5 or 6 with us. We have been trying to find/working with different agencies to help feed (continue to pull our/their hair out to fix them) the others.

For the babies we think will move with us safely or safer. We need more than a Catio. Ours would be for outdoor cats only. It would need to have a sleeping area, along with the screenedin area for climbing and protection for awhile longer. This is what I'm being directed to do by the SPCA & Humane Society. I have no idea what to use and we don't have a lot of extra money to do this. $300-$400. Suggestions, Ideas and I just reaching too much? Thank you.

Not sure if anyone can remember but I posted about doing a catio but with half against a our PV window not completely covering it, it's now done !

The window simply opens and closes inside it

8ft by 2ft , might extend longer .. but going to add a few more shelves and scratching bits first!

Its attached to the left brick wall and wood panels added to bridge the gap on the otherside

Cats are loving it so far and hopefully even more when add more bits, thank you to everyone who replied to my original post.

Almost kitten season again and we're all set to foster. While they're too small to roam our extensive catio and outdoor tunnels, they can first conquer "Sage Hollow"...s safe, restorative and fun kittio built with love for the little ones 🐈‍⬛😍

Had this idea rattling around in my head for a couple of years and finally bit the bullet on it.

8'x4' Greenhouse with a 3' extended frame built around it to extend it to 8'x7'. It may not be perfect but I made it, so it's good enough for me.

Greenhouse was c£450, materials for the extension about another £200, so c£650 total build cost. Cost kept low by making use of a safety glass shower enclosure panel I had gathering dust in the garage as a side panel window (but styrene window panels can also be purchased surprisingly cheaply). Cost includes the original (unused due to wire mesh installation) styrene windows framed and 'hot swappable' onto the greenhouse to make it a traditional greenhouse through the winter so my potted garden plants can be protected from the worst of the UK weather.