Turn an Old Bookcase into a DIY Cat Tower

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Just as I never thought I’d like guacamole, I never thought I’d like cats; thankfully my opinions on both have changed drastically over the last couple years. 

Now that our two cats, Kiera and Love, are  regular parts of my life (much like guacamole) I’ve gone all Mom on them and made sure that their needs are taken care of just like everyone else under my care. That means: If my human kids get delicious, wholesome ingredients in their food, so do the cats in the way of the Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® cat food line; and I’m making DIY projects with them in mind like my latest creation, the bookshelf turn cat tower, featured at the bottom of this post.

Rachael Ray has been offering premium foods and treats for dogs since 2007, and in 2014 she expanded the brand to include cat food. The line boasts, “Real Recipes. Real Ingredients. Real Good.” What that means is there are ZERO grains, gluten, fillers, artificial flavors and preservatives, or by-products. Instead you’ll find essential nutrients, vitamins, and minerals in a food your cat is sure to love. 

Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® wet and dry cat foods can be found at a number of retailers, I found a few of  the wet varieties at our local Walmart on my last trip, there are eight wet recipes in all. Because I do so much online shopping I was also happy to find the Zero Grain Chicken & Potato recipe on amazon.com. This recipe features U.S. farm-raised chicken as it’s #1 ingredient.

It’s nice to know when I have a busy week I can easily stop by the store, or even order cat food online. To learn where you can find Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® visit the Where to Buy section of their website.  

Guys, this is actually a really easy project we got it done in about an hour and that was even after hunting for a utility knife, hooking up the air compressor, and all that jazz. Here's a list of the supplies you'll need. 

Supplies

-- old bookshelf (or a new one you can find them at Walmart too)

-- large piece of carpeting

-- 4 plastic cat toy balls with bells

-- fishing line

-- Tools: staple gun, drill, scissors/utility knife, glue gun

1. Cut pieces of your carpet to fit along the sides and shelves of your bookshelf. It'll act as both a place for your cat to rest and a scratching post. 

TIP: I used a trimmed rug I'd found in the home section of Walmart. To discourage fraying I lined up the trimmed edges of the rug with the edges of the shelf whenever possible. I also used the hot glue gun to clean up the back of the shelf and take care of any cuts I knew would fray. 

2. Staple down your carpet pieces, excluding the top shelf - you'll see why on the next step. 

We, okay-my husband, used an air compressor staple gun because, ahem, I have weak hands and couldn't get the regular staple gun to go into the wood of the shelf. For the record, I'd planned on doing the work, but once I said the hand stapler wasn't working, he brought out the air compressor, and took over.

3. Drill four holes into the top inside shelf of your new tower. 

4. Tie one of the cat toys to a long piece of fishing line and weave it up through one of the holes and down through another before tying on a second cat toy. 

5. Repeat step #4 with the remaining cat toys.

6. Lay the final carpet piece into the top shelf, and over the fishing line. 

I catch the girls sleeping in the shelves and rubbing against the sides, but they usually wait until everyone is in bed before they start playing. Case in point, the pictures above were taken at about midnight.

One last thing I want to tell you about Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® wet and dry cat foods, Rachael’s personal proceeds go to Rachael’s Rescue. This organization was created to help shelter pets in need with food, medical supplies and treatments. To date, she has donated over $14 Million. 

Like what you see? Stop by the Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® Pinterest Page for more fun projects like this one, and to learn more about the benefits of Zero Grain cat foods.