Have you ever wondered what a cat's dream house would look like?
This open-space home had a lot of space to give to its pets. The dogs have the floor, while the cats have an option that's best for them: being close but up high. The space is filled with cat wall furniture of all kinds, from play areas and superhighways to an abundance of cushioned spaces for rest. There are multiple access points on all walls of the home. From carpeted cat steps for better grip to ultra-high and wide scratching posts that act as tree trunks, these cats have it all.
The home is shared with dogs, which means that cats aren't always happy with their slobbering roommates and need space to get away. The space could easily fulfill the needs of a much larger number of cats, but for the five cats, there is a mansion-like abundance of vertical spaces.
Cat furniture wraps around every corner, creating a cohesive space. Some furniture pieces were custom-made to fit the needs of their occupants. Above the TV, there are custom-made Mezzanine tunnels with high fences on top and carpeted tops. This keeps the TV unit secure while giving cats the prime position in the home.
All the furniture was carefully planned to fully maximize the space, and everything was spaced out so that it would be safe for cats.
The colors chosen for everything are a mix of the modern white and black combo and a few shades of grey in between. One of the greys was a client's choice and matched their wall colors, making such an impactful difference and making the space more toned-down and cozy.
The initial input from the customer allowed us to create a 3D model of the house with special detail on the walls that will be catified. After the house was ready, we started filling the walls with different combinations of cat shelves and testing out the possible layouts and how they would fit into their surroundings.
We love customized cat projects, especially when a client knows their cats and their needs well and wants to put that knowledge into action. There's nothing better than creating a unique home setup with customized cat shelves, pathways, and scratching posts that go hand in hand with the client's interior style and personality and with their cat's needs. Not all cats are the same, and a lot can be done to optimize the layout to fit their needs perfectly. The cats that live here are of different ages and sizes, with a few chonky ones, so the distribution of the elements and gap distances were adjusted to a moderate distance to allow every cat the use of every element.
One of the most important things about this cat wall project was to have multiple points of entry to keep all the cats happy, as some are scared at times, some don't like the attention of dogs, and some would just like some peace. To make this possible and fun for the cats, we used a combination of cat steps, flat shelves, climbing posts, multi-level cat shelves, and natural transitions from existing objects and furniture to cat furniture, so every level was easily accessible. All along the walls, different kinds of cat shelves offer different kinds of activity and make the routes more fun. There are places where they need to crawl a bit, open highways where they could run through, and different areas for perching and lounging that enrich the cat's space.
We've had a long back-and-forth to find the best solution for the space and optimize the layouts, and we can say that the results speak for themselves.
As the customers familiarized themselves with our cat furniture, communicating changes was a pretty straightforward process, and it made adjusting the layouts much easier. There were many iterations made to the layouts until we got the perfect combination of cat furniture items and positions to make the transition from wall to wall flow smoothly. The color combinations were also adjusted to create the gradient over the shelves and multiple walls that they spanned.
Using Wall A as an example, we went from the initial version with a closed Wally CornerBox as the corner bed, but as the flat shelf walkway layout was adjusted, it was replaced with a Wally BigCat Corner Plus, which matched the aesthetic and was a better fit being an open-type bed shelf. The colors were also adjusted to make a gradient transitioning onto the next wall, and the step accent colors were flipped upside down to better match the rest of the layout. The clients opted for the sleek lines of the Sharp steps, and while those steps look beautiful and fit the snug area, they aren't ideal as the only access route in a home with multiple cats. Two cats can't pass each other easily on them, but they are great space-wise, as they don't stick out too much. They're wide and long enough for a cat to sit or lay on them, but due to the direction of the main plate, they're not wide enough. We solved this by adjusting the cat step spacing for easier turning and adding additional carpet runners to help with the grip.
Beside the carpeted cat steps, another access route was created on the end of Wall B via Corner shelves to make access to the top levels much easier. Wall B was pretty straightforward, with the Wraparound shelf creating a transition from Wall A, and continuing into long 75cm flat carpeted shelves, with the diamond-shaped Wally Gem as the centerpiece of the wall. We also added custom carpeting to the Gem shelf to give better traction for larger cats and better match it to the Flat shelves, creating a cohesive walkway with a lookout spot in the middle.
Wall C was the center of the whole build and already had some fixed elements to work around, such as the TV and the speaker shelves, which were used to guide the layout, avoiding the TV and incorporating the subwoofer as part of the layout. Initially, we went with a more open layout with a lot of steps to play around, but in the later versions, the unnecessary steps were removed to separate the TV area and direct the cats away from it.
The living room area is just engulfed with different areas for fun and leisure. Cats are the focus of everything, as every corner is enriched for their pleasure and entertainment. The space around the TV is particularly designed to give cats a place to be near their owners while keeping the media center out of harm's way. The clients can watch TV or play video games, while the cats keep a close eye on them and think that everything is for them.
To the left of the wall, we placed a multi-level Stacker cat shelf in the BigCat version. It is a great transitional space, being wide and tall enough for all cats to feel secure and having two large cushions for a nap between those long walks up high. It also acts as a hub for connecting elements at different heights, eliminating the need for any extra steps in that area.
The two custom-made mirrored Mezzanine tunnels with high fences on top, carpeted tops for extra grip, and fully closed bottoms, keep the TV safe and create a 2-level path above it. Cats have two extra-large and long cushions tucked inside with window cutouts to keep their owners in check. There's a Mezzanine Mini beside it and Wally Corner beds for even more lounging areas.
The transition around the corner to the hallway area was done with our new Wally Wraparound Shelf, giving the cats a great vantage point over the whole space and allowing for a bridge mount into the new area.
Around the corner, in the small hallway, there are more large beds in the form of our Wally Big Cat Flat Plus, which are connected with fully carpeted wide bridges.
Another two access routes were added here to accommodate the different needs of the cats. One is another set of Sharp Steps in interchanging layout and extra carpet to allow access to the less mobile cats. The other access route is a big and wide scratching post, one of our Mounty Chonk posts. They're massive and popular with cats, as they allow for a natural, uninterrupted climb of over 2 meters and a lot of scratching space. They also provide great exercise and fun, and once the cats get the hang of them, they become the ultimate way of getting not just up, but down. They monkey around with them and act like they would in nature while climbing on trees.
Initial Layout for Cat Walls E and F
Final layout for Cat Walls E and F
Over the stairway, there is a very playful area looking onto the open-space kitchen and living room setup. This space allowed for a deep, playful setup, starting at the foot of the stairs with the 190-cm-tall climbing post, which is also accessible from the kitchen's adjacent railing. The other side of the stairs has a ledge wide enough for cats to move around on, and the clients brilliantly decided to maximize its use and create another access route via Sharp steps. Above all of it are different kinds of cat shelves, from a large multilevel Wally BigCat Loft to the corner that's wrapped around with our hexagonal shelves. The Corner Hex has an extra custom pillow on top for some extra comfort. The theme of the Sharp Steps is transferred to the Sharp Tunnel Mini unit. Everything is connected with shelves of different depths and lengths to give it a more joyful and spacious feel.
Due to the additional height created by the stairs below, we also opted for more conservative spacing between items and added additional safety on some of the trickier gaps, like the Widebridge under the Hex shelves and the multi-level Loft.
Another Chonk Post allows easy access to the basement area and a climb, creating a connection to the Bridge area and the railing around the stairs area. This created even more access routes, so all cats could access the wall easily. More Flat Plus beds were added to create additional vantage points, and the final wall was complete.
Putting it all together—from a standard home to a fully catified dream home
Breaking the project into smaller areas was the right choice, and the first cat walls were put up as soon as their items arrived. The catification setup started in the left wing, with Walls A & B, and continued along the walls.
The Combo Corner creates an easier transition from wall B to wall C for the less adventurous cats. As the setup continues to Walls C and D, the multi-level Stacker shelf ties up the wall together by providing cats access to all the elements.
As the catified hallway, Wall D is completed by the Flat Plus beds; further transition to Walls E and F was done with a ceiling walkway with cat shelves from another company.
All in all, it was a great catification project, and we are all very happy with how everything turned out. This pet-friendly home was carefully curated to fit the needs of all of its occupants. The felines must be enamoured with the space, as they can now use it three-dimensionally instead of being forced to stick to the floor area. All the walkable perches and areas give the cats an awesome birds-eye view of all of the surroundings. They also have enriching aspects fulfilled, as many of the shelves offer views on the outside and not just on the inside, so there's always something to do and places to catch some sunshine.
All the cats' basic needs and instincts were fulfilled by providing places to play, exercise, and hide. The abundance of different sizes and placements of the shelves gives them something to do, and there will always be more ways of approaching different shelves as they learn to maneuver and improve their physical condition.
The catification of this home was such an aesthetically pleasing project and also so satisfying, as it ticked all the boxes for the clients and their cats. Knowing that the space works and provides everyone with comfort is a great feeling, and we wish for more homes to be this fulfilling. The furniture pieces will enrich the cats' space and last a lifetime, with the possibility of an upgrade later on. New cushions can be added to go with different occasions or seasons, but for now, it's perfect as it is.