Your feline friend doesn’t need a complete home renovation to feel like they’re living in paradise. Sometimes it’s the smallest adjustments that make the biggest difference in your cat’s daily happiness and wellbeing. You might be surprised to discover how these minor tweaks can transform your ordinary living space into a cat haven that will have your furry companion purring with contentment.
Add Elevated Window Perches for Prime Real Estate Views
Cats absolutely crave those coveted high spots where they can survey their kingdom while soaking up the sun’s warmth. Creating window perches with good height and easy assembly gives your cats somewhere they’ll love using, and you’ll notice the difference in their mood almost immediately.
Think of window perches as your cat’s personal penthouse suite. These portable perches can be stuck on panes using suction cups or anchored to the wall with hardware, often featuring fuzzy fabric that provides the perfect spot for indoor kitties to soak in the sun and observe the world outside their four walls. The magic happens when your previously restless cat suddenly has their own front-row seat to the neighborhood’s daily drama.
Install Tall Scratching Posts for Full-Body Stretches
When using a vertical scratching post, cats naturally stretch and engage all the muscles in their backs and shoulders, and tall posts are necessary for even the largest cats to fully stretch out. Most commercial scratching posts are disappointingly short, leaving your cat frustrated and your furniture at risk.
Your cat wants to stretch and pull all of the muscles in their back and shoulders when using a vertical scratching post, since in the wild a primary scratching post is a tree, and proper posts are tall enough for the biggest cat to fully stretch out against. The transformation is remarkable when cats finally get the proper stretching surface they’ve been craving – they’ll abandon your couch in favor of their new favorite spot.
Create Cozy Hiding Spots and Private Dens
For cats who appreciate some time to themselves, a private den can be a dream come true, and having easy access to their own private den can quickly become your cat’s favorite go-to spot. These quiet retreats become especially important when your cat’s routine gets disrupted or when they simply need to decompress.
This could be a small room or cut-out cave in the wall with a bed, allowing them to be safely out of the way but still able to watch over everything happening around them. Cats, especially those in multi-cat households, who have access to hiding spots, climbing areas, and toys are typically less anxious. You’ll be amazed at how much calmer your cat becomes when they have their own designated safe space.
Upgrade Their Litter Box Setup with Strategic Placement
Litter trays are essential if your cat is kept indoors or has limited access outdoors and are highly recommended even if your cat is free to roam, because cats that have outdoor access may still need to use their litter tray on occasion if their outdoor litter facilities are not accessible. Location matters more than you might think when it comes to litter box satisfaction.
The key is thinking like a cat when choosing the perfect spot. Your feline wants privacy but not isolation – they prefer locations where they won’t be surprised by sudden noises or foot traffic. Consider adding a second box in a different location if your home has multiple levels, and always ensure the boxes are far from their food and water stations.
Introduce Puzzle Feeders to Stimulate Natural Hunting Instincts
Introducing puzzle feeders is a simple way to replicate your kitty’s natural instincts at home, as these interactive toys engage your cat through mentally and physically stimulating challenges and reward them using food and treats as positive reinforcement, providing enrichment for a cat who is bored, lonely, or simply needs more fun in life.
The active pursuit of food is instinctive for cats, and a great way to appeal to your cat’s desire for physical and mental stimulation during feeding is through the use of a puzzle feeder. Foraging toys help satisfy a cat’s natural instinct to search for food. Even something as simple as hiding small piles of kibble around the house can transform mealtime into an exciting treasure hunt.
Add a Cat Water Fountain for Fresh, Moving Water
Consider buying your cat a drinking fountain, as some cats don’t like to drink water from a faucet, but they love their drinking fountain. The gentle sound and movement of flowing water often entices cats to drink more frequently, which is crucial for their kidney and urinary tract health.
Many cats have an instinctual preference for moving water because it signals freshness and safety in the wild. A fountain eliminates the stagnant taste that can develop in regular water bowls and provides that appealing gurgling sound that captures feline attention. You’ll likely notice your cat spending more time near their water source and staying better hydrated overall.
Optimize Their Sleeping Areas with Warmth and Comfort
Cats spend most of their time asleep, so it’s important to provide a suitable bed, as cats prefer warm places to sleep and many like to have a strong, familiar scent of themselves and their home to give a sense of safety and security, so provide a selection of beds in different locations including warm, sunny, quiet and communal areas.
If you make your cat’s private place a warm one, you’re providing five-star accommodation, and microwaveable or plug in heat pads are particularly appreciated by cats in cooler climates. Besides the added warmth and comfort around the house, heated flooring is excellent for cats that are recovering from illnesses and especially senior cats whose overall health isn’t what it used to be. The investment in comfort pays off with a more relaxed and contented cat.
Establish Multiple Vertical Territory Levels Throughout Your Home
Cats need a variety of vertical places to rest and places to scratch, and your cat has a real need for access to perching space up high. Though your cat is domestic, the feline need to perch can be traced back to their wildcat ancestry, as in the wild cats climb trees to escape predators and to gain a good vantage point to look for prey, and the need to climb is so deep-rooted in your cat’s genetic makeup that they will seek out high places even in a home where they know they are safe and well cared for.
When cats live together, they develop their own systems for timesharing resources such as water, food, toys, and perching areas, so providing a variety of vertical resting areas throughout your home will decrease territorial and competitive thinking and will help your multi-cat home be more harmonious. Simple wall-mounted shelves, cat trees, or even cleared-off furniture near windows can create the vertical highway system your cat craves.
Conclusion
These eight simple changes prove that creating a cat-friendly home doesn’t require a massive budget or complete renovation. As a territorial species, your cat’s home plays an important role in their happiness, and a cat friendly home considers their unique needs, should be both safe and stimulating for the cat. Making just small changes can improve your cat’s quality of life. Each modification addresses fundamental feline needs – from their instinct to climb and survey their territory to their desire for mental stimulation and physical comfort.
The beauty of these adjustments lies in their cumulative effect. Your cat won’t just appreciate one or two changes; they’ll thrive when multiple improvements work together to create an environment that truly understands their nature. Have you been underestimating how much these small touches could mean to your feline companion?
Born and bred in South Africa, a Capetonian at heart. Amy-Leigh’s love for nature and animals was inherited from her Dad. He loves taking the family on road trips to experience nature at its finest; Amy-Leigh’s favourite being whale watching in Hermanus and spotting Kudu along the West Coast. Amy-Leigh holds a BA in English Literature and Communication Studies.
