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Outdoor cat enclosures, or catios, provide a great solution to an ongoing dilemma. The statistics are in. We know that indoor cats live longer, healthier lives. But they desperately want to get outside!
How they love the feeling of the wind blowing through their fur.
And the feeling of the warm sunshine as they lounge on the ground. And did you know there are birds out there?!?
Just the simple act of pouncing on a cricket or trying to catch a fly actually brightens up a cats day. It adds to their overall health.
They get exercise, and they feel like those instincts are being satisfied.
The nice thing about outside cat enclosures, besides the fact that they keep a cat safe, is that they come in such a variety. Most have some type of built-in shade protection, too.
One very important note about them, though. There have been a few, very rare, reports of cats becoming entangled in them. Anyone who chooses pop-up outdoor cat enclosures should clip their cats claws and supervise them.
There are tunnel-style outdoor cat enclosures which a cat can walk through, penthouse designs that a cat can climb in, and many designs can even be connected to each other!
You can add on as you wish, and even change the design on occasion to mix things up a bit for your cat.
When browsing outdoor enclosures, you may come across quite a few window perches. Cats love these!
Many of them use a suction cup design, which we don't recommend for Maine Coons, since they are both large and like to cuddle together in small spaces.
It can be hard to find a window perch that can hold a big Maine Coon cat (or two!)
Some people like to attach outside cat enclosures to a cat door, and the cat goes in and out freely. They love it!
There is also the option of using a windowsill cat door, where a cat can go through the trap door in the window opening to go hang out in his or her outside cat enclosure if it's placed close enough.
So much better than leaning on the screen chirping at birds! These have gotten great reviews.
All things considered, outdoor cat enclosures definitely provide the best of both worlds. If they could speak, our feline friends completely agree.