Design: The Climbing Pole
Price: $40
Name: Patricia
Location: Park Slope, Brooklyn
Pet's Name: Cassidy and Jr. Cat
Size & Type: Cassidy (tabby, 10 lbs) and Jr. Cat (white, 17 lbs)
Pitch: "This is a 10' tall climbing post fashioned from a 2x3 wrapped in cotton clothesline rope. It stands away from the wall with 2x3 spacers so the cats can get their paws around the post for better climbing. It's too hot for anything other than lounging around the pole, so a little slim on the action shots...."
They both love to clamber up and jump down or defend their pole from
pesky invaders. Cassidy particularly likes to climb up to greet you after work and get her belly scratched while she is hanging on the post. The extra rope made nice dangly bits to swat for less ambitious Jr. Cat.
What would I get if I could get anything for my cat: Oh... a wall mounted wicker and felt cat cubbie, or an automatic litter box.
>> This is from our 2006 Pet Design Contest - All Other Entries are Here
(ReEdited from 2006-07-18 - mgr)
WOW! I'm so impressed! Perfect solution for everyone involved.
Kudos!
I'm dying to see some cat climbing action video, preferably posted on youtube.
I want to make this, and I don't even HAVE a cat right now. Yes, please post a video!
And I dig your table. Is that metal or glass?
Aside from the bottom portion, which looks to have gotten a bit of use, the piece looks rather unused... Is it new? Do your cats really climb all the way up when it's not hot? Isn't common rope such as this a little too soft for good nail scratching? I would also think that it shreds pretty easily... I like the wall-mounted pole idea, but I'd switch out the rope for jute or sisal.
Anybody who gave this a bronze is obviously a dog person (like an Eastern block judge at a Cold War era olympic games).
Excellent... though I think rascal is right, this would be greatly improved if made with jute, sisal or hemp.
This pole is fairly new. It replaces a carpet covered pole wedged in a doorway. The former pole didn't take flying leaps very well...
I covered it in cotton clothesline rope, instead of sisal or jute, so it would be somewhat incognito as a cat pole. They can scritch and climb and it seems to do the job. Besides, the rope matches the paint job.
I'll see if I can provide some good hard evidence of it's use. Until then, thanks for the comments.
Oh, the table is made from the glass from a set of shower doors (etched with a mermaid). Thanks for noticing.
Gold star! Do you think it would work covering a hot-water pole or do the cats need a bit of an angle?
Ingenious!
I want one! it IS dreamy!!!
not only is this brilliant, but it adds a little bit of west cos\ast flavor to one's apartment. it is however, the one direction that new yorkers are really good at buidling in: up. well-played patricia, not only is it cat-friendly but new-yorker-appropriate.
I think this climbing pole is the perfect solution for any NYC apartment. Shannon's idea of using a hot water pipe sounds like a good one, too, although i would be worried about the heat. I know when I touch the pipe, I singe my skin its so hot, so not sure if fluffy would enjoy that, too. But, then again, maybe a double layer of rope would insulate enough to do the trick.
Anyhoo, nice work Patricia!
I think this climbing pole is the perfect solution for any NYC apartment knowing the space retrictions of almost every apartment in the city.
Shannon's idea of using a hot water pipe sounds like a good one, too, although i would be worried about the heat. I know when I touch the pipe, I singe my skin its so hot, so not sure if fluffy would enjoy that, too. But, then again, maybe a double layer of rope would insulate enough to do the trick.
Anyhoo, nice work Patricia!
I had a cat for 23 years and she would have loved this. Its simple and billiant.
This is a really fun idea. I can see Kitty Carlisle all over this thing.
Wow! I know Cass likes it. She might like a shelf for a nap after she gets to the top. . . maybe even several shelves along the wall that leads to another pole for a fast get away.
A cat climbing wall! Great way for a city cat to get a daily workout.
I made the same thing with a tension rod that stretched from floor to ceiling. (I used a photographer's Autopole, but Ikea makes shelves with these rods now).
We had a landing space (the top of a closet) at the top. It gave my cats a hideaway and a challenging climb.
I just became the proud parent of two feisty kittens. Now I know what kind of scratching thing I need to make for them.
view redbeard's profile
like but but i would suggest paiting the wood (non toxic of course) to blend in with the wall and rope and make it feel more finished
view Enamorada's profile
end italics.
how come when i hit the back button i went to a site called cat-interiors.de? kinda sneaky, don'cha think? and creepy.
view loislane's profile
Awesome idea. I've actually attempted to make something like this in the past but gave up after about 4 feet or so. You really need a lot of rope for this.
Also, make sure your cats are in another room when you're
making this because they'll go crazy chasing the end of
the rope round and round the pole :P
view exquisitecorpse's profile
This is so sweet! We live in a crazily laid out house with so much wasted vertical space in the stairways, so a 9 foot climbing pole has now gone up to give access to previously inaccessible areas! We used a piece of timber wrapped in 12mm sisal (very expensive in the UK unless purchased in 40m rolls! Oh well, have used about half now).
Anyway, thanks a million for this great idea! The boys now have something new to fight about...
view duncanol's profile