DIY Goes to the Dogs (and Cats)!

Welcome back to Tales & Tails with Dr. Ferrell. Do-it-yourself projects are all the rage these days. I know I have all kinds of projects pinned to my Pinterest boards (no I haven’t attempted any of them yet but I really do plan to someday). And what could be more fun than DIY projects for your pets? This week I’m going to share with you a few of my favorites.

 

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Jiggy’s favorite blanket

One of the quickest and easiest projects is the no-sew blanket. They’re super easy to make and hardly take any time at all. Our friend, Cristin, made Jiggy a ladybug blanket a couple of years ago, and it’s still her favorite. We take it everywhere with us and she always has a place to snuggle up that smells like home. Here are the instructions for this fun and simple project: no-sew blankets.

 
If you want to add a little stuffing and make a cute pillow or bed for your fuzzy friend, you can do that too with the rest of the technique being the same: no-sew pillows/beds.

 
Does your kitty love boxes as most cats do? Corey Cat loves to get in anything hollow. And if he finds toys inside that’s even better. Make a great play center for your cat with just a cardboard box and a couple of toys: easy cat play center.

 
Corey Cat’s absolute favorite “toy” is his cardboard scratching pad. Weirdly enough, cardboard can get pretty expensive in the store. So if you have some left over boxes, this is a great DIY cat project: scratch pad.scratch pad, cat scratch pad, cat toy, cat declaw, kitten toy, kitten scratching

 
Love your cat but hate the litter box? Here’s a great idea for hiding the box in a piece of furniture. You can use anything large enough to hold the litter box and allow your cat to stand and turn around comfortably. Make sure you have easy access for regular scooping and cleaning. Also, one warning–some cats don’t like covered boxes, so don’t remove your current litter box until you know your kitty is comfortable using the new one. Here’s some great examples with all types of furniture pieces: hidden litter box.

 
Now this one is for the really industrious but it’s too cute not to mention. A doggy-sized pool to keep your pooch cool in the summer. Obviously, you can simply place a kiddy pool in the yard but if you’re aiming for real doggy luxury, they just have to have a deck don’t you think? I couldn’t find specific instructions on this one, but like I said, it’s just too cute not to include. You’ll place the pool in the ground similar to a shallow garden pond. Then add decorative stone or decking around it and your dog has their very own pool for sun bathing and keeping cool.

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So get crafting and let us know what projects you do. If you have other ideas, feel free to share them in the comment section. And send us pictures of your pets enjoying all your hard work and we’ll post them on our facebook page!

 

Reprinted from 08/20/13.

 

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