For Dogs and Cats

How do you design spaces that will make your moggy and pooch happy?

• environments (except for the much-needed retreats mentioned earlier), maybe more so than some of their human companions. Try to build in animal height sightlines through a space whenever is reasonable and comfortable for pet-affiliated humans. Views inside seem to give pets a feeling of control, they have ideas of actions they can take, as needed, to evade undesirable situations (such as requests to go outside on rainy, cold days)—pets, like their humans, like to have a comfortable feeling of control over their environment.  Options when outside, in a yard, for instance, mean dogs and cats can make choices about sun or shade, etc., also as they see fit.  Views outside from inside give dogs and cats a feeling of control over their territories outside their homes (even if they’re not outside they can see what is happening outside, and that’s a plus).  Looking at what is happening outdoors also makes it less boring to be in the house, waiting for humans to get off work and take the pet for a walk or give them a cuddle.  If you have a pet that can hop, they might be able to see outside by hopping onto a tabletop or window sill and looking out a window, for larger pets and non-hoppers, views outside at on-floor eye height are in order.

• If views will sometimes make dogs or cats upset (for example, a delivery person who keeps approaching the house even though there have been many (loud) go-away barks), sturdy blinds (think: wooden slats) are in order.  Again, as with human toddlers, there is only so much self-control that either a dog or a cat can be expected to exercise.  In some circumstances soundproofing walls can be in order—blocking sounds travelling in can prevent dogs and cats from being annoyed by the world outside their homes and keeping sounds from travelling out can make for happier neighbours.
• Some of the same things that humans find challenging can also make dogs and cats unhappy, these include open tread staircases and slippery floors. Since hard floors are easier to clean than more absorbent ones they’re apt to be popular in pet zones, getting the right mix of harder and potentially slippery surfaces and softer, say carpeted ones, can be a challenge.
• Sometimes dogs and cats really can’t enter a certain part of a home or workplace, someone allergic is visiting, for example, and therefore it can be handy if “go” and “no-go” areas are separated by doors that close firmly. Other sorts of space dividers simply challenge pets to be more creative in their efforts to escape their incarceration.
• Outdoor spaces that are interior courtyards can work well for all—dogs and cats can get outside but can’t “escape” into potentially dangerous conditions, such as car-friendly streets. Permeable spaces in those courtyards can not only be good for the environment but also absorb smells, making those courtyards more interesting places for dogs to spend time and create areas that are cooler on paws during warmer months. Pavement-type surfaces can capture and hold heat during cooler periods.

Dogs and cats are both happier and healthier when there is something for them to do in the spaces where they find themselves.  With dogs that can mean making sure that there are multiple places, ones that change from time-to-time, for them to explore and a continuing rotation of toys (this doesn’t mean that you need to provide your dog with a new toy every day, it means that you should always be holding some of your dog’s toys in reserve, cycling them in periodically to boost environmental stimulation.

Cats like to climb so providing options for them to get off the ground (besides scaling the drapes), brightens their day.  Seat backs and shelves that it’s OK for them to access arranged like stairsteps can do the trick here, and so can variations on the classic “cat tree,” found at various scales in many a cat-lover’s home. Another option:  half-height and three-quarter-height walls. Give a cat an opportunity to scale something and perch at the highest elevation and you make a feline friend; cats with a view are cats that feel secure.  Carefully consider how cats might perch on balconies, inside or out.  Even a cat can slip from time to time or jump and miss its target, and when this happens high above the ground, there can be serious consequences.  Plexiglass barriers at the top of balcony rails, and similar safeguards can be well worth the effort required to install them.  At lower elevations, wide planter boxes can make hitting the “view target” easier.

Cats are also happier when their litter boxes are not near where they eat.

Designing for human wellbeing has been getting a lot more attention since the pandemic began; it’s time to make sure we also carefully develop the places where our animal companions spend their lives.

If you’re wondering what your pet may see in the worlds you create for them, visit this website: https://today.duke.edu/2018/05/details-look-sharp-people-may-be-blurry-their-pets  (“Details That Look Sharp to People May Be Blurry to Their Pets.” 2018.  Press release, Duke University).