Home is where the catnip is….

With the weather improving, people will be noticing more feline visitors passing through their garden. Something that’s regularly overlooked is that enhancing your own outdoor space in a way that’s appealing to your cats means that they’re more readily going to stay in the garden for larger periods of time. Obviously, there are exceptions to this but for the most part it’s accurate.

Basically, your home is your cats core territory, and the garden is the outdoor extension of it the same way it is for you. So making sure your cat enjoys time in the garden if you’re allowing them to have access to the great outdoors is really a part of responsible cat care.

There are a few ways that you can enhance your outdoor space for your feline family. The obvious thing is making sure plants are cat safe, or even cat preferable.

(You can refer to this blog: https://www.ailurophile.co.uk/?p=367 for a few ideas regarding plants.)

Another aspect to consider is comfortable areas in both shaded and unshaded garden areas.  There are a variety of cat shelters that are equipped with balconies if you want to give your cat designated vantage points that are comfortable and practical.

And if you get visiting cats that mark the area, be sure to try and address that with something that neutralises the odour to your cat, especially if you’re aware they struggle with visitors to the garden. If you don’t the smell is likely to impact on enjoyment of their outdoor space, and can possibly cause behavioural issues. (I use a mix of warm water, white vinegar and bicarbonate of soda – mixed over the sink, as it bubbles during the mixing process – and try to treat areas with a water mister that I know are frequently marked by visiting cats.)

Enjoy the British Summer!

The resident mini panther, Sprocket, doing her exercises alfresco….