A Cat-friendly Home: What Is "Catification"?

A cat has a reputation for being a completely undemanding animal, which is why it is increasingly chosen by people who, for various reasons, cannot afford to have a dog. A dog, after all, has to be taken for walks, trained, housebroken, and properly raised. A cat seems to be free from such “drawbacks” — it sleeps a lot, doesn’t need to be taken outside, and according to commonly repeated opinions, it only needs humans to provide food, as it supposedly bonds only with a place.

This attitude often results in a cat entering a home that is completely unprepared to receive it. It is true that the environment is of enormous importance to a cat, although it is not true that humans are indifferent to it. A cat forms attachments to its people no less than a dog does, and this attachment varies — it is not the same toward every member of the household. It recognizes the footsteps of a beloved person, waits by the door, gives up its favorite nap, and very often this is not the person who fills its bowls.

At the same time, a cat’s surroundings and the organization of its space are crucial — they determine whether it feels comfortable and secure, or whether it sneaks along the walls and hides under furniture. Therefore, when thinking about adopting a cat, we should take a good look around our apartment, try to see it from a different perspective, and ask ourselves whether we are ready to make compromises so that our cat can feel truly at home with us.

I’ll start with the scratching post. I should really write “scratching posts,” but I’d like you to keep reading to the end :) Scratching posts are very important elements in a cat’s life — they allow it to leave scent signals, mark the territory as its own, and also provide a comfortable vantage point from which to observe that very “territory.”

It is best if the scratching post is part of a larger pathway — for example, if it is placed next to a wardrobe or a bookshelf, it’s good to make those areas accessible to the cat as well, so it can climb onto them from the post. On the other side, there should be some element that allows the cat to climb down, and then our pet is happy.

In general, any place a cat can climb onto should have an “escape route.” It’s worth looking at your home interiors from this perspective. And if we manage to arrange the space so that scratching posts and shelves are woven into it in such a way that the cat can walk around — if not the entire room, then at least half of it — without touching the floor, it will be a very cat-friendly environment.

It’s not always necessary to increase the number of scratching posts; it can be a system of shelves that allows the cat to move between wardrobes, bookcases, or dressers. Planning the placement of shelves is also a challenge — they cannot be mounted randomly, because if, in the cat’s eyes, they are “lonely islands” without an escape route, they will not be considered safe places and the cat simply won’t use them.

A cat does not know that our home is an oasis of eternal peace. For the cat, it is territory into which a stranger may enter at any moment, and our cat must have a strategy prepared for such a situation. It needs to have a “road map” of our interiors — a map designed according to feline needs, not our human ones or our own ideas and expectations.

With each additional cat in our home, there should be an extra scratching post. It doesn’t have to be a huge structure — what matters is a well-placed, elevated resting spot. In every scratching post, no matter how elaborate it is, there is usually only one truly attractive spot. That’s why I generally don’t recommend buying very large, complex cat trees. It’s better to get two simpler ones that can be arranged separately or together, depending on your needs. But here’s a warning — if a scratching post is part of a pathway, you need to take a close look at whether it might become a “blockade.” Cats love lounging on the highest platforms. In that case, you need to provide some sort of passage alongside it. Very often the scratching post itself makes this possible — if a second cat can bypass the occupied bed by walking along a higher or lower shelf, there’s no problem. If the scratching post is a simple one — just a pole with a platform or a round perch — and it is meant to serve as a connector between shelves or cabinets, then you need to create an additional passage. It shouldn’t be too comfortable, so that it doesn’t start functioning as another sleeping spot.

Planning the space becomes especially important once we have more than one cat at home. In some cases, it is essential even for a single cat, particularly if we have a very timid one. Without elevated elements — and well-designed ones at that — such cats may withdraw even further. At the sound of the doorbell they hide under the sofa or wardrobe; any new person becomes a source of panic, and the cat retreats to wherever it feels safest.

Very often, after the environment is changed to a more cat-friendly one, that same cat will simply jump onto the highest shelf when the doorbell rings and, from a safe distance, observe the “intruders.”

When we have more than one furry resident, the lack of such attractive spots will lead to tensions. The skirmishes and battles cats engage in are often mistakenly described as play. Even if owners begin to notice that this is probably no longer play, they come up with another explanation — one I personally dislike very much — the idea of “establishing hierarchy.” Many guides recommend leaving the cats alone, which to me is unacceptable — it would be like letting children in a sandbox fight over a favorite toy. The children would also quickly “establish a hierarchy,” and then reinforce it with every new toy.

Cats do not form strictly hierarchical communities. They do not have assigned roles or ranks within a group. Instead, they will compete with all their energy for resources they perceive as insufficient. And I emphasize: in their perception. Unfortunately, it is not up to us to decide when there is “enough.”

The result is that being so territorial, cats will compete for anything they perceive as valuable — and of which, in their opinion, there is too little. In other words, if a scratching post has only one attractive bed right at the top, with one cat we have no problem; with two, one may begin. Of course, we might happen to have a perfect pair who lie cuddled together on that single shelf — but that is rare.

Sometimes the “valuable resource” one cat claims as its own is the litter box — it may lie in wait by the entrance, preventing the other cat from using it peacefully. This kind of rivalry can concern many different things, even our laps. What’s more, relationships between cats may vary depending on the specific resource. A cat that successfully secures priority access to a particular bed may give way to others at the food bowl or in a different situation — it all depends on the “subject of the dispute” and how important it is to that particular cat.

The more cats we have at home, the more attractive resources we need to provide from their point of view, so that while living together, they also have the opportunity to pass by one another without constantly running into each other.

The fact that cats are missing something they need to feel happy does not always manifest itself in scuffles or outright aggression. Often what happens is simply that the cats abandon a place they constantly desire but which, for some reason, has become a source of frustration. This is then mistakenly interpreted with a short: “My cats don’t need it; they don’t like it.”

The truth is that what cats dislike is open confrontation. Quite often, rather than risk possible clashes, they will begin to avoid the scratching post — but that does not make it any less necessary or desirable.

A cat that gives up competing for the most attractive spot on the only scratching post may become overly calm, often withdrawn, and less active (which can lead to obesity). The scenario is actually very similar to what happens when there are too few litter boxes — no aggression, no scuffles. So seemingly, everything appears to be fine…

Modern homes are most often very elegant, spacious interiors. Smooth floors (slippery surfaces contribute to joint problems in cats — especially in the knees and hips — because their paws constantly slide apart during kittenhood), smooth walls, an elegant coffee table and lounge set in the living room, sometimes a scratching post nearby — everything aesthetic and genuinely beautiful.

From a cat’s point of view, however, such interiors are very impoverished. They make many cats feel uncomfortable — constantly tense and unable to truly relax. They become “bathroom cats.” When I receive letters from owners describing that their cat does not want to spend time with them and that its favorite resting place is the sink, I can usually imagine what the rest of the house or apartment looks like.

Of course, a cat has the right to want a break from us, even in the bathroom. But if it becomes the cat’s main refuge, it is a signal that something important is missing in its environment.

This lack becomes doubly painful when we decide to adopt another cat, because then the existing frustration often manifests itself very intensely — both for the newcomer and for the distressed caregiver.

I know that it’s a bit easier for me because I have a high-ceilinged apartment. But in every home there is space above doors and windows. In truth, the real breakthrough has to happen in our own minds if we want our cats to feel truly good with us. I mean a situation in which they are genuinely happy — not just sleeping their days away in some corner.

Cats are curious creatures, and if they are truly content, they will not choose the inside of a wardrobe as their main sleeping place — at least most won’t. Of course, a cat goes its own way, and some genuinely like to hide away. Most often, however, they prefer to lie somewhere that allows them to quickly survey the situation as soon as they open their eyes.

Simply placing a bed somewhere is not enough for a cat to consider it its own. Cats choose strategic locations according to their own sense of safety and their own “map” of the space. That is why it is so important for our home to offer them many options — and the number of those options must increase along with the number of cats.

And most importantly, all of these remarks apply to every cat, regardless of breed. Even our mixed-breed, adopted house cats deserve the same love and care for their well-being as their titled, pedigreed counterparts.

Dorota Szadurska, COAPE Behaviourist and Supervisor
Graduate of Animal Psychology at Polish Academy of Scienceses
Member of The International Society of Animal Professionals.