I found a great idea for cat lovers, how to make a cat tent in 3 steps. It’s easy, and no cutting or sewing machine. All you need is an old T shirt and two hangers as in image.
The materials:
- 1) 1X old t shirt ;
- 2) 2 X Hangers;
- 3) 1 X Old Cushion ;
- 4) Some strong paper, Iron Wire;
Thank you so very much for this idea,,, washable, repairable, cheap and EASY!
I can’t see the picture of how the coat hangers are bent well enough to be able to make this
Me neither.. Not plain enough. My cat would love this!
the hangers have been unbent, leaving the hook and the end piece, which is twisted around the beginning of the hook end…..then they are crossed X style and twisted together…..they are then curved, so that the end pieces can be used as “feet” to hold it up….
I LOVE this idea! I’m hoping that since an old T-shirt will have the scent of a beloved family member, that my 13-year-old Tobey will stay inside and feel comfortable sleeping in this. For some reason, he moved out to the patio a couple of weeks ago. Still comes in to eat, but that’s about it.
Take him to the vet, something is probably wrong.
I read that male cats move out when their old enough…. perhaps that’s why?
I can’t figure out how it’s actually put together…
Same here.
How do you make the 2 coat hangers stick together like that ?
Just tie them with string, thin wire, or tape the hangers together.
You shouldn’t use anything that could hurt the cat. String is notorious for killing a lot of cats. My mother has worked at the vet’s for 20 years and has seem many cat come in because they ate string and it tied there intestines into knots and they couldn’t help some of them even with surgery. Use duct tape, it holds everything very well and there won’t (or shouldn’t) be any of it hanging down for the cat to play with and eat.
zxcvbnm,.
Zip ties work awesome to keep the 2 hanger together where they criss cross on the top. You can buy different sizes of zip ties but the smaller the zip tie thickness, the easier it is to break. This way you don’t have to worry about the cat eating any string you used or getting the duct tape undone and start chewing on that…
You’re welcome 🙂
duct tape…fixes everything
thanks poo
Cant see how to put hangers together?
Hi there, I would like to feature this in my magazine in South Africa – is there any way that I could get the high res images of this, and your name and where in the world you are from so I can credit you?
I’ve made this and it’s very nice; my cats are very happy and comfortable now. But I have to tell you that you have omited some materials, like the pieces that serve as square basis to maintain the aspect and avoid the hangers gets deformed. With that, all works ok and results very strong and portable.
Thank you for the idea, althought need some improvement!
I can’t see how to put them together either.. It’s not plain enough. My cat would love this! Wish this was more informative.
The wire coat hangers.
Step 1 – straighten, them into long rods, then pre-bend them with an even curve.
Step 2 – (optional) use a pair of pliers to curve a tight loop at one end. This will stop that end poking through the material.
Step 3 – trial fit by forcing the hanger/rods up and into the T-shirt.
Step 4 – bend the other end to suit the shape and size of T-shirt.
If the tent feels insecure, tie some sticky tape at the cross-over point.
(Optional) add favourite blanket, cushion.
Let cat explore!
if you look up diy cat tent on youtube there is a video showing how to do it. you have to untwist both the wire hangers, make them straight as possible. After they are bent straight you put them together and bend them both into an arch. You criss cross them and hold them together with some wire, tape or string. Put the hanger through the tshirt and tie the back. Hope it helps…it is a great idea…
Thank you Nick and Christine for the information on how to fit the hangers together. i get my 2 new kittens in 2 weeks and i think would be perfect for them.
That may be a great tip notably to these new to the blogosphere. Easy but very accurate information… Appreciate your sharing this one. A should learn publish!
I’m confused about #4 on the list of materials. What do you do with it?
Some instructions should be included with the list of materials and the photos.
Great idea, but the instructions could have been clearer. For example, what would we need strong paper for? And instead of just saying 3 easy steps, how about list what the steps are?
D.I.Y. cat tent how-to video
http://youtu.be/gyd5gyOpzp8
Although this is a cool and novel idea, you should have included written instructions and provided more info. You didn’t say what holds the coat hangers together for example.
Made this recently and the strays we have outside love it. They keep playing inside of it (bending the wire/tent out of shape)…but it is funny watching them move around the tents.
I used a piece of pegboard for the base for better stability. I pinned large open end up to make a wider opening instead of tying it together. We have 2 kittens and they are chasing each other thru the arm hole tunnels.