Here is Chris in one of his favorite spots. When I approached him to take his picture he looked out the window as if to say hello.
Photo Friday: Hello
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Tag Archives: cat tree
Photo Friday: Tight Fit
One of our cat trees has a cubby that is too small for Chris but he doesn’t let size stop him from doing what he wants to do.
Topeakmart Cat Tree Review
I was contacted by a company called Topeakmart to do a review of one of their cat trees. I missed it at the time but noticed it as I was cleaning my inbox. Normally I ignore unsolicited review requests but after checking out their website I thought their products looked appealing. In addition, we brought a couple of cat perches to our West Virginia home so I thought the cats would appreciate another one.
I was allowed to choose which product I wanted to review so I decided on the 51″ Cat Tree Condo. I could have gone with the 79″ Cat Tree Condo but I didn’t want to be greedy. Plus, I liked the 51″ tree because it had a ladder that I thought would be perfect for Chris. He is getting up there in age (and weight) and that ladder will probably be a big help in allowing him to get on it, especially in the future when he is even older and hopefully not heavier.
I should mention that I did get this cat tree for free in exchange for an honest review. They did not try to influence my review in any way but they did offer my readers a 15% discount (use code: chris15). If you choose to take advantage of the discount, I will not be compensated.
The cat tree arrived on Monday and I was surprised by how efficiently the box was packed. It was like stuffing 25 people in a phone booth.
I pulled out the instructions first to see what kind of project lay ahead of me. You may remember me writing a couple of months ago about putting a bed frame together as well as a desk for my wife. Both items were unbelievably complicated and I didn’t want another one of those. This one didn’t look too bad. I was disappointed at first that it was only illustrations and no written description but it seemed pretty straightforward.
I set up my GoPro camera and I put a clock in view to record how long the assembly process was, although it was difficult to see the clock in the final video. I set the video for two frames per second and got to work. As you can see, it went pretty well but I was delayed a bit by Frankie who had to get inside one of the pieces I was assembling. I also separated the screws at the beginning but still managed to get them mixed up and used the wrong screw on two separate occasions. I also screwed one of the posts into the wrong hole but that was because I jumped ahead without reading the directions.
It took me about 40 minutes to assemble the cat tree. I probably wasted about ten minutes with my careless mistakes and with stopping to deal with Frankie or take pictures. I estimate that a normal person without distractions could put it together in 30 minutes or less. If you have already seen it done, like in the video, perhaps twenty minutes is reasonable.
Frankie was the first to investigate the cat tree. As soon as I started putting it together he had to check it out.
Floki was next.
Frankie was also first to get on it when it was finished.
He seemed to like the cubby and ended up taking a nap there.
Later, Frankie checked out the upper part of the cat tree.
I’m not sure why but the cats seemed to think that this is a one at a time cat tree. As soon as Frankie got down Floki got up on it.
He had to check out every nook and cranny to make sure it met with his approval.
Chris was sleeping in his cat bed when I finished but as soon as he woke up he had to check it out too. I was in the kitchen making dinner so I did not see Chris take over the tree from Floki but I hope it was a peaceful transfer.
I left and came back a little later and Chris had moved to the bottom.
It seems a waste of a good cat tree to hang out at the very bottom but perhaps he was just enjoying the velvety softness of the carpet. It is amazingly soft compared to the carpet on our other cat tree.
So far they have not yet discovered the hammock that hangs near the bottom or the toy that hangs from the top perch but that just means more surprises for them in the future.
Overall I think this is a great cat tree that is well made and a practical design. It has one downside that I can see. The upper two posts are adequate for an average-sized cat but maybe not for a heavy cat like Chris. Of course, Chris would probably not attempt to jump up there, so I don’t see it as an issue. They have a blog post on their website called “4 Best Cat Trees for Large Cats in 2021 from Topeakmart” which I probably should have read before choosing a cat tree, but I think the one I picked is still a good choice for our cats.
Tell me you think? Would your cat’s enjoy a cat tree like this?
The Instigator
Floki is our resident fight instigator. Sure, all the cats will start fights occasionally but Floki excels at it. Often, Floki’s “victims”  turn the table on him and he will cry for help. I’ll usually just look at him and say, “You started it so you get what you get.”
The video below shows Floki picking a fight with Chris who just wants to relax on the cat tree.
Do you have any instigators in your house?
Photo Friday: Old Cat Tree
After we got our new cat tree, Rose insisted I throw out the old one. I thought it still had some life left in it but it was easier to throw it away than to argue about it. This is one of the last pictures of it before it went away.
Chris and Frankie.
Our New Cat Tree
When we moved, the plan was to get rid of the cat’s old, beat-up cat tree and replace it with a new one for the new place, but the high cost of moving delayed that plan until now. Saturday we found a very large, slightly used, Armarkat Cat Tree Condo for the ridiculously low price of twenty dollars. On Amazon it sells for $124, and even more elsewhere, so I think we got pretty lucky. It was in excellent condition except the second shelf from the top was broken, as if a very heavy cat jumped on it. A more likely scenario is someone attempted to move the cat tree and it tipped over.
We were in Rose’s Mustang and did not expect that we would be bringing home something so big. We didn’t feel like driving home to get the truck so we had to figure out how to make it work. We put the top down and tried standing it on the back seat but it was very tippy and I was worried it would fall out. It also didn’t work leaning to one side. I finally leaned the front seat back on put it there while I got in the back to hold it.
Once we got it home, we cleaned it good and I screwed a piece of wood under the broken piece to hold it together. We then scared Puck under the bed when we brought it inside.
Frankie and Chris weren’t scared. They jumped at the chance to investigate the new tree. They checked out every inch of it, including the top shelf which was very close to the ceiling. They also seemed to like the little built-in house. Frankie even squeezed through the little window, I feat that Chris can only dream about these days.
The ceiling in our Florida room slopes down to its low point near where I put the cat tree so the top shelf is almost useless, but as I said, they are able to get on it but since the first day, I have not seen it get used. The rest of it does get used though so I am very happy with our purchase.
Wow! This thing is awesome.
I call first dibs on the house.
Hey Frankie, lets rub our scent on this thing before Puck sees it.
Chris, do you get the feeling we are being watched?
Hello Dad! Don’t you have somewhere better you can be with that camera?
As king I claim this as my castle.
Hey Frankie. I can see you through this hole.
Do you think this is what they call an outhouse?
If this is an outhouse, I need to figure out how it works.
Hey Chris! I’ll bet you can’t fit up here like I can.
Oh yea? I’ll bet I can.
There, see?
I wouldn’t call that fitting.
Who cares? I like this shelf better.
Too bad Puck isn’t here to see this.
Did somebody say my name? Hey, why didn’t you tell me we had a new cat tree.
Not my job, Puck.
Where are you going? Don’t you want to check out the condo?
Photo Friday: Hang Tight
This is Puck hanging from the cat tree under Chris. Sorry about the less-than-perfect quality of the photo. I think the lens fogged up when I brought the camera from the cool house to the hot and humid patio.
Bad Cat Chris 