Building for our Bengals.

We or rather Ivan invests a lot of time building for our Bengals. The most important reason is of course that toys and cat trees shows signs of wear and tear. Especially toys are a subjects of wear and tear, because they substitute prey, and therefore liable to the hunter instincts of our enthusiastic hunters. Therefore, maintenance is a recurring activity and we share out the tasks: I take care of toys and Ivan takes care of everything our Bengals need to live happily. I now realise that we have very traditional roles and hat is a surprise for me.

You need to be very creative and you have to be able to think out of the box. When I see a pile of trunks, Ivan already sees a beautiful cat tree. The pile of trunks is waiting to be reborn in our garden. I just see a pile of trunks. There are questions about Ivan building adventures, and I will try to provide some answers. Unfortunately, I cannot provide you with any plan, because Ivan does not have a plan.

First, I should like to draw attention to two matters: firstly, you can buy Bengal proof cat trees; secondly, you can use wooden poles. Of course, sturdy cat trees are expensive, but the building materials Ivan needs are not cheap either. The huge advantage of using poles is the possibility of working with your own design. The creations of Ivan take a lot of room because the “flow of the Bengal run” is his objective. You must take account of investing a lot of time in preliminaries.

Preparation is very important and when Ivan has a plan, building begins. Shopping for the right parts is time consuming. You have to take the weight of the trunks in consideration and the power of a jumping of an adult Bengal. Please do keep the safety of the Bengals and their people in mind.

This cat tree is almost free standing, because we sometimes have to move the tree for cleaning purposes. You need an assistant helping you holding some trunks. When satisfied the building starts.

Ivan fixed two trunks on opposite walls the other trunks maintain balance. Use sturdy materials to attach the trunks to each other and to the wall. To assure nothing will harm the Bengals Ivan first drills a hole in the trunk, to hide the screws. The trunks intertwine and on critical places attached to each other or the wall. This is the most difficult part of building this cat tree, without using any screws this pole can stand vertical, building for Bengals necessitate adjustment the tree to the wall. I hope these pictures will help you making your own cat tree.

In the next blog, I like to show you the making of another cat tree.

         Have a nice walk in the great outdoors.

                        Love Conny