When Charlene and her husband moved into a 5th floor apartment in Singapore, they were worried that their three cats Tyger, Neem Neem, and Xiaomao would have trouble adjusting to a smaller space, so they incorporated all sorts of cat-friendly features into the renovation. Inspired by The Cats’ House, and also by the cat-friendly Japanese house design, they added climbing shelves, walkways, and openings in the walls leading from one room to the next. As you can see, their cats made themselves right at home.
The walkways allow the cats to easily access the tops of several cabinets where Charlene has placed rungs and mats for them to nap on.
The color scheme in the apartment — green, blue, and cream — was inspired by the cats’ eye color.
Instead of using carpeting on the shelves and walkways, Charlene and her husband chose an anti-slip tape by 3M, which looks like an excellent option for keeping kitties safe and for easy cleaning. Charlene says it’s a cinch to clean the tape with a vacuum or a damp cloth. Great idea!
July 26th, 2010 at 7:06 am
What a neat way to make the move enjoyable for the cats. Great ideas.
Mason
Thoughts in Progress
July 26th, 2010 at 7:18 am
Brilliant and well thought through!
July 26th, 2010 at 9:23 am
Did Charlene take the pictures herself? They are well done. Lucky and beautiful kitties to have such a loving family and clever human!
July 26th, 2010 at 9:39 am
Hey! I reconize the “LACK bookshelf” of Ikea. We used that one as well (so you don’t need to make a stairs yourself
)
Another tip (instead of using carpeting): Use velcro with sticky tape to put on you shelves en put felt on top easy to clean and cats love it. When they are worn out or if you want another color you can replace them. I use 100% wool felt thats used for living accessories.
And could anybody tell me what kind of breed these cats are they are beautiful!!!
July 26th, 2010 at 9:47 am
Thats awesome all around !
The set up is amazing .The cats are beautiful,and the space is lovely .
Xxoo
Missy
July 26th, 2010 at 10:42 am
LOVE the great cat-friendly multi-level spaces, the color scheme, and the CATS! Beautiful and serene. The cats look like domestic shorthairs, one black/brown tabby and two Siamese mixes. Lovely! They may meet some Singapura cats while there, too.
July 26th, 2010 at 11:58 am
I love this!
July 26th, 2010 at 1:59 pm
What an awesome apartment! I love how they did so much for their cats; I wish I could do this at my place
July 26th, 2010 at 9:14 pm
I love this design and the colors (and the kitties)!!
July 26th, 2010 at 10:21 pm
Wow this is incredible!!!! I love it so much!!! The kitties are so lucky to have a owner like you!
July 27th, 2010 at 1:06 am
awesome concept and all for their love for their kitties
July 27th, 2010 at 4:04 am
This is great! It looks beautiful and fun!
July 27th, 2010 at 4:30 am
Charlene and her husband are really thoughtful! The cats are lovely. I really love it!!
July 27th, 2010 at 9:36 am
I LOVE their home! Those kitties are very lucky to have such caring and considerate humans:) Very awesome! Thanks for posting this! It gives me some great ideas! Oh, and the kitties are beautiful and adorable;)
July 28th, 2010 at 2:58 am
Don’t let the cat out of the bag! If this is in a HDB flat don’t let HDB find out your cats living in style! It’s illegal keeping cats in HDB.
July 28th, 2010 at 8:22 am
It is so heart warming! Charlene and her husband care for animals so much. Well done! The cats are gorgeous!
July 28th, 2010 at 8:53 am
Hi everyone,
thanks very much for the positive comments!
Shirley >> yup, we did use 2 Lack shelves from Ikea. Those were actually our tester shelves in my previous place, and it seemed a shame not to re-use them when we moved here. Great idea with the felt; thanks! We actually have a giant roll of velcro tape and we’re hoping to expand and do more with the walkways. Enrichment for the cats!
Yup my cats are domestic shorthairs. Not quite Singapura cats but they are local cats – they were orphaned/abandoned and we adopted them when they were about 2 weeks old.
Thanks again for all the great comments, and to Kate for the wonderful blog!
July 29th, 2010 at 8:29 am
So cool
Glad that some humans are nice to cats 
I see alot of unwanted cats in sg … the last time i was there ..
but most cats are well fed despite of not having a home
August 3rd, 2010 at 6:23 am
What a great space – three-dimensional and just perfect for the cats. They clearly enjoy their high-rise living. And what beautiful cats (and names) too. Thank you for sharing the pictures and story.
I love the colour scheme based on the cats’ eyes. I’d like to do something like this … guess it’s off to my local Ikea, then!
September 2nd, 2010 at 11:21 pm
Hello All,
This is just amazing! You can do lots with imagination!!!
We are going to move to Singapore too and I am wondering if we might not leave our kitty at my parents place (with big yard to play) than making her going through the stress?!!!
Is Singapore pet friendly? I read lots of apartments do not allow pets? We move there for minimum 6 months.
What would be your feedback?
Thanks a lot, Céline
September 11th, 2010 at 6:27 pm
Charlene – I love the clean look of your cat walkways! I too was inspired by the cat-friendly Japanese house design, although I cannot figure out how to mount the shelving to the wall so that they look like they are floating and are strong enough to hold my 25 lb cat. Could you explain how you did that and also share what kind of wood you used? Any tips would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks, from fellow-feline-fan!
June 1st, 2011 at 4:59 pm
how did you install these free formed shelves?
Thank you!!!!
September 11th, 2011 at 9:01 pm
how do you mount those shelves?
October 13th, 2011 at 12:07 pm
Yes, we are soon to move to Singapore and we have two elderly cats and I am worried they will be permanently emotionally damaged by the travel and the quarantine. Plus, is it hard to find apartments that will allow two cats? My babies have their claws. I am frantic for information to help us figure out what to do. Thanks!