Illustration by @kampeck_ink
If there has been any silver lining to Pandemic Plus 2020 it has been the rise of pet adoptions with cities like Seattle reporting a six fold increase in pet adoption requests. Even before the Pandemic, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association, in 2018 almost 40 percent of US households owned a dog and just over 25% of households owned a cat.
Even Cities go to the dogs. Take San Francisco, where kids may be called a “luxury item” due to the high costs of living. A 2016 KQED news report reported that 115,000 “kids” lived in the City while 120K to 150K dogs lived in the City. City ordinances seem to support the Dr, Doolittle vibe. In San Francisco one household can legally own three pets and in Portland can own four.
This Household designed for Cat Harmony, emphasizing vertical life and a view where they can keep their attention focused.
But we want more than the number of pets, we want them to be happy so we can be happy. In the world of design and remodeling, what if your dog or cat sat at the drafting table? What would they create in Revit?
“Cat drafting” is different than “cat proofing” where you put masking tape all over your upholstered chairs and put grandma’s ashes up in a high closet alcove so it won’t get knocked over. Essentially if you were cat drafting you wouldn’t need to cat proof because the home would support the cat vs. fighting against it.
Cat “Cafes” like Purringtons in PDX set the architectural standard for cat dwelling success. You don’t need a commercial license to succeed! Just steal some of the design hacks you see here by emphasizing the vertical space.
Especially if your household has multiple cats, the drafting table would include elevations devoted to high altitude real estate, especially by windows where they can watch birds with the laser focus of their ingrained 90 degree binocular field of vision. Ideally, the perimeter of the room you spend the most time in would have these long runways anywhere from one to two feet below the ceiling height. Cats could pass each other on these sofa overpasses and still feel safe.
Litterboxes
Cats don’t like to eat near their litterboxes but so many people seem to gang a “cat area” all together this way in the ultimate Grosstown. If you do separate food from litter box but relegate the litter box to some Siberia like the garage you will have to keep the garage door open for in and out access sacrificing energy savings or create an unsightly cat flap in a nice door. A better move is to design a “mud room” for the cat. If you have a stairwell you can design a pocket area underneath it for this purpose. Think of it as a butler’s pantry for the cat. (Did you get the joke? “Butlering” is what cats do when they excessively groom. Oh cat humor…) Another mud room location would be the mud room your family uses. This tends to be a way station area anyway so instead of designing a full run banquette to stow boots and dirty shoes, leave a small space at the end for the litter box.
Electrical Outlets in Living Spaces Away from Windows
Some homes function better with therapy, hormone therapy. Products like Feiway function by plugging into an outlet to allow the “mama cat scent” to diffuse over the space which is supposed to be calming to unrelated cats fighting for territory. The problem is that outside air trumps this mama scent so you have to plug it in away from windows and unblocked by furniture. The cat drafter would actually mount an outlet high on a wall for this purpose, much like you would for a future flat screen TV. Think about that spec---outlet mounted at 60 inches above finished floor for hormone therapy diffusion and calm home.
For the cat interior designer, cats also need plenty of soft things to rub into in order to leave their scent. If you don’t have carpet or many rugs, even blankets dropped in strategic places will do. And of course it’s nice to have plenty of square footage just for them to roll around to display their vulnerability and love for you.
Dogs
If you have a blended household, cats and dogs, then having those elevated platforms for cats to exist up above while the dog paws around below will prove especially useful for home harmony. In addition to this, what would a dog change about your home environment at the drafting table
Outside Mud Room Area
You have a place for your coats and boots, but you get mad at the dog for bringing in his dirty paws? Why not allocate a small area with a dedicated spigot and possibly a drain before you enter the house proper? Consider a tiled entry to make this a no muss no fuss situation once the entire family enters the house.
Sightlines
Dogs undergoing training will not obey if they can’t see your eyes. Most of the commands that make co-existence doable including come, sit, down, stay, and focus come from intense eye contact followed your voice. Dogs love open floorplans. We said we were just designing for the dog, right?
Good stuff.