I’m undertaking a 1000-day reinvention project, blogging here daily to track my progress. In Sunday Planning, I plan for the week ahead.
This week I’m going to be building a prefab cat enclosure for my backyard. After reading a bunch of posts on r/Catio about starting with a kit vs building one yourself, I decided for me, going with a kit is the way to go. While people say that the Aivituvin cat enclosures can be finicky to build, it seems most people are happy with them.
I chose the AIR37 71.1″ Catio with Window Access. I’m particularly planning this for Carlos, who loves the outdoors. He has no claws — a previous owner declawed him completely — and only one top tooth. Even if he were completely clawed and toothed up, I would not let him roam free outside. Right now I take him outside on a harness every couple of days but I think he’ll enjoy being able to sit in the fresh air and see the birds and other wildlife for long periods of time.
Looks to me like it’s going to take more than 60 minutes to put together, despite Aivituvin saying that an hour should be enough time. Here’s a video showing how it goes together:
I’m going to use my drill for the screws since there are so many. I’m no expert on that, but ChatGPT gave me some tips: “set the drill to drive, not hammer, low speed, and a low clutch number. Increase the clutch setting only if it stops before the screw is seated.” I know nothing about these things, so there will be some learning for me. Drive vs hammer? Clutch number? Hmmmm.
I’ll need to buy a window insert with a cat door to allow my cats to go in and out of the catio without my leaving the window open. The window I’m going to use is 34″ across. Some redditors recommend inserts from Cat Flap Fever. That would run about $199, more expensive than similar options from Amazon. And, because they are custom made, they are non-returnable. This Petoasis window insert has good reviews and is $85.99 for the 32″ to 36″ size. I just ordered it, for arrival Thursday. We’ll see if any of the four cats living in my house can figure out the magnetic door (I have two cats and my daughter who lives with me right now has two also).
I know that being able to go out into an enclosure is not the same adventure as wandering around the neighborhood on his own, but I hope Carlos is well-satisfied with his new outdoor opportunity.