Catio Spaces™ adds six DIY catio plans to its product offerings

SEATTLE - July 24, 2015 - PRLog -- Cat lovers who want to enhance the health and safety of their pet and who enjoy do-it-yourself (DIY) projects can now purchase plans for three styles of catios, each offered in two sizes. Created by the founder-designer of Catio Spaces™, the initial options for these attractive outdoor enclosures include styles for windows, patios or yards, with sizes ranging from 3’x6’ to 8’x10’. Cat owners can also hire a carpenter to build the catio plan for them.

Each DIY catio plan includes more than two dozen diagrams, a materials list, a tools list and easy step-by-step instructions. Purchasers of the plans also receive tips to help acclimate their pet to its new haven plus guidelines for decorating, enriching, and incorporating cat-safe plants or other accessories.

All three catio plans, the Haven, Sanctuary and Oasis, are designed using pressure-treated wood, galvanized wire and include multiple cedar shelves to maximize vertical space for exercise, lounging and cat naps in the sun. The Haven (3x6, 4x8) and Sanctuary (6x8, 8x10) are 3-sided catios that attached to the siding of a home. The Oasis catio plan (8x8, 8x10) includes detailed instructions for building a catwalk tunnel from the house to the freestanding catio. All three catio styles can be accessed from a cat door installed in a window, door, or wall, and each plan includes a door for human access. Both the Sanctuary and Oasis catios also provide space for seating for human and feline interaction.

Cynthia Chomos, the founder of Catio Spaces and a feng shui consultant and designer, formed her design-build company to combine her passion for creating harmonious spaces for positive living with a desire to provide safe, stimulating and aesthetically appealing sanctuaries for felines.

Chomos is a licensed and bonded contractor and an associate member of the Master Builders Association of Snohomish and King Counties. The Seattle- based businesswoman worked with a CAD drawing specialist to develop schematics and easy-to-follow instructions for her catio designs.

“We want our catios to be easy to assemble, and rewarding to build,” she explained, adding, “Whether using a DIY plan or a custom design, our goal is to keep cats safe and happy in an outdoor enclosure that visually complements each client’s home.”

Catio Spaces is offering its DIY plans online as a downloadable PDF with instant access. Plans are priced at $49.95. The company donates $5 from each sale to an animal welfare organization.

Before offering the DIY plans for sale, Chomos had a client in Portland test-build one. That client, who built the 6x8 Sanctuary catio, called it a “perfect solution,” with great directions. “People just can’t believe we built it ourselves,” she exclaimed. “Every little detail was considered. The plans were easy to follow and thorough. Now I feel safe giving my cats permanent access, even at night,” she added.

In the Seattle area, where Catio Spaces is based, the company has installed an array of catio styles with many of them customized to complement a particular home -- and the feline occupants. Chomos works with a licensed and bonded carpenter and installation specialist to construct the catios.

Recent installations include a Seahawks-themed backyard catio and "man cave" for Lord Purcival, the "ultimate game day lap cat," as well as a 26-foot catio that wraps around the home of a cat-loving client. It was designed for Junior and Petunia, a pair of Persians who were known to stalk birds. Now they're contained in a spacious catio where they have abundant shelving for exercise and bird watching.

For her own cat, a sun-loving adopted tabby named Serena, Chomos built both a window box catio and a ground-level Sanctuary style catio for the backyard.

Catio proponents say these increasingly popular enclosures are not about pampering a pet. “Whether you have an indoor cat or an outdoor cat, a catio can enhance the health and happiness of a cat, while protecting a beloved pet from predators, poisons and diseases from other animals,” explains Chomos. They also help protect local bird and wildlife from wandering cats that might prey on them.

Chomos cites other benefits of an investment in a catio:

·     • reduce vet bills from neighborhood cat fights and vehicles

·     • provide a healthy lifestyle with fresh air, exercise, sunbathing and bird watching

·     • create an outdoor space for human and feline interaction

·     • eliminate indoor litter odors (with optional outdoor litter box discreetly hidden from view)

·     • peace of mind knowing your cat is always in a safe and protected environment

“Providing cats with outdoor access in enclosures ensures we are good cat owners and good neighbors,” agrees Jennifer Hillman, Western Region Director for The Humane Society of the United States. “It means being responsible for wildlife, responsible for community space, and responsible for the safety of our cats,” she added.