this post was submitted on 17 Jul 2024
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Woodworking

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Catwalk for neighbor's cat (lemm.ee)
submitted 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
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So our neighbor's cat has been visiting us for a while, so I decided to build this ramp so that she could more easily get into and out of our yard. I'm not much of a woodworker, but was happy with how this turned out.

It's made almost entirely from cedar fence posts. Nearly 18 feet long (3 fence posts end to end with the dog ear tip cut off). Ripped cedar planks into 3 for a frame/support to prevent flexing. Posts are pine 2x4, and go 18 inches into the ground, which was the majority of the effort, since our ground is like cement...

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[–] [email protected] 35 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (7 children)

Leash your cats folks..this is unacceptable behaviours from 'pet owners'.

Edit: I will NEVER understand the downvotes or negative comments from people defending this disgusting behaviour with cats. It's irresponsible to wildlife and the cat itself. Imagine people letting any pet roam free because they are 'cute'..disgusting and extremely irresponsible behaviour

[–] [email protected] 25 points 8 months ago (2 children)

Maybe the downvotes are because 1. You kind of come off rude just telling people how to live. 2. This is the woodworking community, not the cats community

[–] [email protected] 7 points 8 months ago (1 children)

It never seems to be rude when the same words are said towards dog owners.

Community think I can kinda understand, but I never care about which community I'm in personally. Lemmy is about discussion. I use all

[–] [email protected] 5 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

Dogs aren't killing off native bird and rodent populations.

Cats are the #1 invasive animal species in terms of killing off local wildlife, well, #2 if you want to include humans.

There are certainly areas to criticize dog owners, but the two animals are not remotely close in terms of damage to local ecosystems.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 8 months ago

What?

I'm the one that started the call for asking cats to be leashed in a woodworking forum. I think you're misunderstanding what/why I wrote what I did.

I used the dogs as an example because it seems like everyone demands dogs be leashed in all circumstances outside, but those same people would be fine with cats being unleashed and allowed to roam free for days. I disagree with that mentality entirely. All pets should be leashed/under direct control of the owner.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 8 months ago

This a ~~Wendy's~~ woodworking community

[–] [email protected] 19 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (2 children)

Is this a joke that missed, or..?

Just seen your edit

I get the indoor cat point of view, but leashing a cat is so unheard of where I am that I assumed this was a joke.

I will NEVER understand the downvotes or negative comments

If you aren't willing or able to understand an alternative view, maybe online discussions aren't for you? It's also a lot to do with your language choice and phrasing, you come across as very abrasive.

[–] [email protected] 24 points 8 months ago

It's not a joke. Most pet shelters make you promise that a cat will be indoors-only unless leashed when you adopt them.

Cats kill a lot of smaller wildlife, and with the help of humans, have made some birds extinct.

The lifespan of an indoor cat is on average 3 times longer than an outdoor cat.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 8 months ago (2 children)

If you aren't willing or able to understand an alternative view, maybe online discussions aren't for you?

You're not entitled to your opinion when it's objectively harmful, and letting cats roam outside is objectively harmful.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Please reflect on what you've written. What are you expecting to achieve by telling someone they aren't entitled to their opinions?

No one is advocating for genocide here, so maybe redirect some of that outrage to a more appropriate place or try to be constructive in your contributions here.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 8 months ago

LOL, you make a tone argument and yet I'm the one not being constructive?

And to be clear, what I'm expecting to achieve is to point out that the notion that it's okay for pet cats to be outdoors isn't actually an opinion, but rather an incorrect statement of fact. Cats are an invasive species in North America and decimate bird populations; it is objectively wrong for a cat owner to allow it to roam.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago

letting cats roam outside is objectively harmful.

That's very situational. If you're in a rural or semi-rural area that has small wildcats (or foxes or similar) already, adding a handful of domestic cats isn't going to disrupt anything much. The only reason to keep cats inside in such a place is for their own safety (from larger predators like coyotes, and from highway traffic).

If you're in Australia, Antarctica, or a protected island biome with no native small wildcats or canids, or you have a known endangered species in the area that cats are likely to prey upon, that changes the equation. If you're in a highly urban area, that changes things in a different way, because the danger to outdoor cats from traffic and other human activity rises exponentially.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 8 months ago (1 children)

No. I refuse to leash my cats. I prefer a pet stroller.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Assuming you are in control of the stroller, I see no harm with it.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago

Well one of my cats has like half a brain cell and the other one is scared of everything so…. Not a great idea to leave them unattended

[–] [email protected] 8 points 8 months ago

What?

You don't appreciate the dedication to the destruction of every native bird species that was stupid enough to adapt and survive in an urban/suburban environment?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Leash... a cat? Que?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 8 months ago (1 children)

It's not their cat

[–] [email protected] 13 points 8 months ago

That's why I said folks, and didnt direct it specifically to op.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Take your pills grandpa.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 8 months ago

Very unlikely this person is a grandparent—up until about 40 years ago, most cats outside highly built-up downtown areas were allowed to free-roam, so an older person would see it as normal.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 8 months ago (1 children)

It's very sweet of you to do something for the cat, a nice boost to my day seeing it. Sorry about the train wreck comments that your wholesome post seem to have attracted.

Do you have any close ups of the way you joined the posts?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

No. But I can try to describe it.

I cut small lengths of 2x4 (about 6 inches) and screwed these from the top of the catwalk, so that this board is parallel to the walking surface. The posts have a 18 degree cut at the top end, and then I used pocket holes to connect the post to the 2x4 on the underside of the catwalk with 2.5 inch pocket hole screws. If I were do again, I might try dowels. It was basically impossible to clamp properly to screw in the pocket hole screws, and it kept separating a bit. But in the end, everything ended up being very secure.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 8 months ago

looks great, and it looks like the cat appreciates it!

[–] [email protected] 5 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Really kind of you to spend $600 just for this cat, what a neighbor!

[–] [email protected] 6 points 8 months ago

It wasn't that expensive. Cedar fence posts and 2x4 are pretty cheap.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Thanks for sharing. No obligation to reply and just curious, what's the story with the wall in the bottom right?

I could picture my wife being annoyed by the visual presence of the ramp, but if it was behind plantings or something she might sign off

[–] [email protected] 5 points 8 months ago

Well my fiance likes the cat even more than me, so she loves the ramp. The stone wall just outlines a yard. I didn't do the original landscape, but the backyard was sloped, so the previous owner flattened out a lot of it and then surrounded that part with the brick wall stone/things. You can see the max height of the wall, and that goes along the back fence (the side fence is pictured). I actually turned the back raised area into a garden several years ago, which was also a ton of work, because as I mentioned, the ground is like concrete, and I had to dig it all out and replace with nice soil.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 8 months ago

Wow, what a lucky cat to have you as their neighbour 🙌