The Mad Max Catio ~ Phase 2
The Mad Max Catio
Picking up where Phase 1 left off — so while we were in Arkansas, we had a good amount of down time! And access to a truck 🙂 The Mad Max Catio Build needed to continue, full speed! We needed a cabinet for the back deck to act as a storage space for my gardening stuff, and a litter box!
But it’s clean, and sealed so the odor doesn’t get through too much! And the litter box is on the bottom! So they aren’t sending it sailing down levels of the cabinet 😹
So here is the clean slate we started with! We had intended to paint that board to make it look nice, but now that is completely unnecessary! Woohoo for taking a project OFF the list!
We had some help from Family on the building of the cabinet, which was nice! Made that project go super fast, and they helped lift it into place!
I know how cold it was out there, so I truly appreciate them heading out to help Zach! He spent a LOT less time outside than if he had tried it solo!
And this pic is just for proof that there are actually men who read the instructions😄
The Litter Box
Now I jokingly call the cabinet The Litter Box, but it does in fact house that situation! The bottom drawer is the litter box! Which they will be able to access from the inside at all times!
This is without the doors and shelves in! But the drawer is in place and will serve as the litter box! With an actual litter box in it, of course 🙂
All pretty with the doors ON! And that is how it will remain unless we need something out of it! The cats will have access to go in it from the interior of the bus, and also be able to get out of it to get on the catio!
In order for us to have storage on the back deck for our bigger items (a table, a pop up awning, etc), Zach had to pull the cabinet forward a few feet and then raise it to the roof to secure it. This gives us space underneath for the tables, and space also behind the cabinet for the awning and a ladder. Storing things in front of the cabinet is not an option!
I am also benefiting from this cabinet! I’m officially out of random totes and buckets and in milk crates neatly(ish) stacked inside the cabinet!
The bottom drawer they can have 100% ! I absolutely do not need to share their bathroom 😀
Chop Chop
Next came cutting the holes in the shelves so that the cats can jump down thru the top to get to the litter box in the drawer!
The shelves were done in an alternating pattern to allow a place for the cats to drop before the next level 😳 I don’t think them dropping 3 levels at once would go over very well with any of them!
Additionally, Zach put in a step in one section because it’s a little taller than the others! When we were in test mode, there was a lot of noise when they were transitioning there! As a result, the step was born!
Zach making it flush to the roof makes it easier to get to from inside! No PVC tubing necessary to connect the cabinet to the roof! Obviously a win with our big kitties!
Scabbers take on the Mad Max Catio
And our cat, Scabbers, hilariously coming through the cabinet into the bus for the first time! Took him a little over 3 minutes to pop his head up! The second time we put him in the litter box drawer, it took him about 3.6 seconds to get inside the bus 😂
The Litter Box Drawer!
Super simple, all I need to do is pull open the drawer to clean the litter box! If it had been a shelf, the entire litter box would need to come out daily to scoop! No thanks! This way is much easier!
The cats have plenty of room to drop in and not land in the litter box! I can also store extra right next to the litter box! We may put some carpeting down in the drawer to help with tracking, but haven’t decided that yet! Maybe a temporary one to test!
At this time, we have more plans for the catio, like places for them to play and hang out! Specifically things to occupy their curiosity 😼
But for now, we wanted to get some big things done! Most of the rest of the build can be done while traveling!
A little sneak peak ….
This is our kitties way of getting from the living area to the shop area when we have the pocket door closed! See how they get there, and where it leads in the next update!
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