Fancy cat condos and puppy palaces shelter Milwaukee's pampered pets

While being in the doghouse is not good news for humans, for some lucky pets in theMilwaukee area, it's a treat.

Their owners have built them bespoke dwellings — from puppy palaces to cat condos and catios — that are fit for furry royalty.

Meg Peters of Bay View credits the family's cat castle to her son, Andrew, who built it for Firework, who joined the family in 2021.

"Andrew spent about four weeks making the cat castle. He decorated the inside with some scratching areas covered in fabric, a soft fleece blanket for napping, and a viewing window for Firework's adoring family. He also added some extra elements to the outside," Peters said. "Firework spends a lot of time in his castle, and he loves to use his scratching blocks."

Andrew said he found the initial ideas on Pinterest and other ideas came as he built the castle. He wanted his cat to have a comfy place to hang out.

The toughest part of the project, which included added fabric, yarn, colored paper and an old shirt from Bratfest, was getting all the elements — a series of boxes — to stay together.

The solution? Two words every DIY-er knows.

"Duct tape," Andrew said.

Firework's castle isn't the 10-year-old's only home project. He's also created Halloween decorations, including a wooden fence, coffin and graveyard sign.

Andrew is also working on a catio, so that Firework, an indoor cat, can enjoy the outdoors with his family.

For Elizabeth Platz, a "catio" and Kittywalk are an answer to the constant struggle to keep cats from sneaking out the door. Two of her three cats were strays and are used to being outside, she said.

"I want my cats to be engaged, happy and safe. They are my fur babies," she said by email.

Her neighbor, Paul Pagel, a talented woodworker, built the catio in a window, giving it a slotted, cedar floor that matches the rest of the exterior. It's usable until the temperature reaches well below zero. Years ago, she bought the Kittywalk, which has a string mesh cage and metal frame for outdoor use.

"It is not safe for cats to be outdoors," she said. "They get hit by cars, coyotes get them, and sadly some people are abusive to cats that wander.

"I also didn't like the idea that they might become menaces eating all the birds in Elm Grove, as well as other wildlife."

Her cats love sitting in the Kittywalk and eating grass, she said, but she puts it away for bad weather in winter. That's where the catio comes in.

"The catio is special because it's all year long and they can enjoy it when they want. It is their year-round, 24-hour, screened-in porch.," she said. Plus, she said, birds and squirrels around the catio entertain the cats.

For Pagel, it was a first.

"That was definitely a one-hit wonder," Pagel said. "I'd never built anything like it before. It took me about two months to put together, but I only work on projects a few hours per week. … It's a hobby, not a job."

Keeping cats safe while giving them fresh air is a common theme for cat condo builders. Hal Elliott of Waukesha built one for his son and daughter-in-law, with a number of screened-in outdoor perches. The condo sits next to a bedroom window, which lets the cat step outside during good weather.

At Mary Uttech's home in Saukville is a doghouse that dates to the 1920s, shaped like a Tudor with a steep, shingled roof and two stories. It's one of several eccentric features on her Ozaukee County property, she said.

"The doghouse was a happy home for many a furry friend over the years," she said by email.

Recently, cats have been going in the upstairs window, especially on winter nights.

It's not only dogs and cats that deserve first-class housing. Lou Davit of Shorewood built a rabbit hutch for the family's tame rabbits (it's now mostly used by neighborhood bunnies as a hideout). Despite the intended occupants, Davit calls it "Possum Lodge."

"It sits next to a fence in our backyard amidst basil and tomato and horseradish plants and rain barrels. It took probably seven or eight hours over a period of a couple of days to build the lodge. I built it out of boards from an old fence. I like repurposing salvaged wood," he said.

The hutch got its name for two reasons, First, because of surprise possum squatters. They not only scared Davit's wife, but invaded a nearby birdfeeder.

"We had a hard time getting them away. One day in the middle of winter, we were in the backyard and I noticed there were tracks into our Possum Lodge. A couple of days later they were still there, and a couple of days later than that they were still there."

Eventually, he and his son lifted the lid of the lodge. "I looked inside and he was a big possum — dead."

Davit also has a sentimental attachment to the name. He and a lifelong friend, Dan, were big fans of Canadian public television personality Red Green, whose show (and now podcast) centers around – you guessed it — Possum Lodge.