The Castle is bordered by two sides of the house and is 10x14x8 feet.  The enclosure contains raspberry bushes for the cats to lie under so they have shade in the summer. In addition we added catnip, cat mint, stumps to sit on, river rocks to walk on, grass to sleep on, and raspberries to sleep under.

Our Cat Castle is built from wood, painted with a nontoxic paint, and enclosed with heavy gage sheep wire. The wire is stapled to the wood with galvanized staples.

We enter the Cat Castle through a 4x4 double-wide door that is large enough for a lawn mower. It is important for the pet owner to be able to enter the cat's enclosure because cats will run into it when they "know" it is time for a vet visit.  (Or in our case, a media crew arriving to film the cats swimming in the pool!)
 
During hot weather, a sun-screen shade is placed on the enclosure's roof.

The enclosure should be a safe, healthy, and fun habitat.  It could include platforms, ramps, cat-walks, cedar tree limbs, tree trunks for scratching, 4" thick rope to scratch, shelves for napping, scratching posts, catnip. and grass.

The Cat Castle has three overhead 2x2 inch planks to traverse.  Walking the planks builds cats' muscles as they balance on the beams.  The beams lead onto high platforms under the eves so the cats can remain dry while they catnap.  The beams then cross over to 10 inch wide wood shelves to sleep on, watch the world, and stare at the dogs next door.

A crystal or a CD disk can be added to the enclosure to reflect light and provide prisms for cats to chase.  Diatomaceous earth, a natural powdered-rock product available at feed and grain stores,  sprinkled around the enclosure will keep fleas at bay.  The product is non-toxic and dries out the fleas and their eggs. Beneficial nematodes are another effective alternative.

People with chickens also sprinkle diatomaceous earth in the pens as a lice preventative.  Some homeowners put diatomaceous earth around their homes, and in the crawl space to help ward off ants.

Pesticides and herbicides should be avoided.  No irritating weed is worth a pet's life! As an alternative to poisons, hot water poured on weeds when the enclosure is empty of pets will kill all the weeds and their seeds.  Vinegar added to the water also helps kill the stubborn weeds.
 
Spring cleaning and maintenance of the enclosure is easily done with a leaf blower and a pressure washer.

Originally, we trimmed the enclosure's grass--only to discover that the cats preferred making little nests in the tall grass.
 
Now the cats enjoy evenings outside watching bugs flitter in the porch light.  The Cat Castle gives their life an entirely new dimension, and they have become happier, healthier, and more muscular.

A cat enclosure doesn't have to be elaborate. Duane, a Tips 'n' Tales reader, turned his dog's old, 6x12 foot, chain link enclosure onto its side.  He pushed the open floor up against his home, and secured it with C clamps.

A cat door leads into the enclosure from a lower kitchen cupboard.  Now, if Duane does not want his cat outside, he closes the cupboard door.  It worked purrfectly, until his cat learned how to open the cupboard door! 

Duane added a latch and discovered that the latch works both ways.  While painting his kitchen, his cat walked by him....with green fur!  So, he locked his kitty outside, to enjoy the pretty day.  Duane's wife does the same when she washes the floors.  A simple win-win situation for everyone!

Enclosures are not just for homes.  Starfire Lumber discovered a kitten in a log pile. To protect their fur-baby from the 100,000-pound lumber trucks rolling through their yard, they built an outside cat area adjacent to their office.  They made it out of chain link fencing, large enough and tall enough so the employees can also bring their pets to work.

"My enclosure started as a $35 after work project and turned in to a 20+ hour, 4 day, $200 adventure.  It began as a small cat run, maybe 2 feet square and 24 feet long." says Bob.

"After several days of building, complicated by inaccurate measurements and poor math skills the enclosure morphed into a  400 cubic foot Cat-Palace.  AND "IT'S NOT DONE YET" according to my wife.  Apparently it needs a roof and some walkways, maybe a climbing rope and possible a hammock!  It'll be a full-blown cat spa by the time I'm done, and we'll be doing kitty pedicures and facials," laughs Bob.