Industrial Design student Chris Peterson from Houston, Texas found a way to incorporate cats into his thesis project and I think he could really be on to something. He created a line of DIY shelters for feral cats called Coro Kitty. His goal was to develop plans for attractive, functional outdoor cat shelters that anyone could make with simple, inexpensive materials. What a brilliant idea!
These designs are all made with plywood and Coroplast, a corrugated plastic material commonly used for signs. You can purchase sheets of Coroplast in all kinds of colors, or you can usually find old signs (like political campaign signs) that can be recycled. Chris used the CNC machine as school to cutout the plywood pieces, but all the designs could be cutout with a jigsaw.
Chris has been refining the design and experimenting with a few different shapes, while keeping his very worthy goal in mind:
“This looks like a craft project, but the idea was to try and make something that can be easily replicated rather than design something that needed expensive tooling and may not actually be realized. I’m hoping others will take this design and continue to make it better and share what they’ve done.”
Chris really did his research and carefully thought about the needs of both the caregivers and the cats. Some of the structures can be attached together to create a multi-unit shelter and all of the designs can be insulated for winter use.
Visit Chris’s blog at corokitty.wordpress.com for more details and to stay up-to-date on his latest ideas.
Very cool!!!!! I wish everywhere would allow feral cat homes to be placed!
Even in their most basic form, the ideas and hope these homes provide is priceless.
Love it! As well as helping ferals, these ideas could be adpated for indoor perches as well. Good job, Chris!
NICE– but are they WINDPROOF? LEAKPROOF? WARM IN WINTER?
The design and functionality of these homes is, as CLynn expressed, priceless. I would certainly place these out where I feed feral cats … also in Houston!!
I was wondering the same thing,,,,,
The only time the feral cats I feed use shelter is in the winter
Minimal cost, easy-to-follow diagrams, and an attractive finished product? AMAZING! Thanks to you for sharing these, and to Chris Peterson for designing and sharing them!
Thank you for caring and for sharing your awesome ideas to provide shelter for such unfortunate animals. I wish you great success. Thank you.
wow … what a great idea … too bad I am prevented from do-it-yourself and sin …. you are in America
I think I’ll try this! We have a feline that sleeps on a chair on our porch when it rains. She’s actually the momma cat to our baby girl, Punky who also came to our porch at 6 weeks old and never left. We immediately took her to the vet and got her cleaned up and ready for us to have at home. She was spayed at 6 months old. ?
How do I find the instructions for the box kitty condo? The CoroKitty designers email is no longer active.
Click on each of the small photos on this page and it will take you to the instructions for that model: https://corokitty.wordpress.com
Instructions for hexagon shape here:
https://corokitty.wordpress.com/2014/03/30/hexagon-caverns/
Instructions for round shape with plywood face here:
https://corokitty.wordpress.com/2014/10/20/corokitty-2/
Round shape with coroplast face here:
https://corokitty.wordpress.com/2014/12/08/all-coroplast-corokitty-9-00/