The  Catio  Man

My mission--and my passion--is to design and create outdoor living spaces especially for cats, that make them and their owners happy!
 
My own cat, my dearest best friend ever, was an indoor/outdoor cat. He was waiting for me at the door of my classroom on the Navajo Reservation one morning, after just having been pulled over for speeding, and let off with a warning. Black cat unlucky? No way! He adopted me right there and then. I don't know what his life was like before me, but once we were together, he only experienced love. And that was all I ever got back from him. He was living confirmation for me of the Power of Love.
 
He used to go off on walkabout for sometimes days. At first, it freaked me out, and I worried about him. There were MANY dangers in the area for a free-roaming cat: coyotes, owls, other cats, cars, dogs, cactus, etc. Yet over time, I learned Flint was a badass, and could handle it, so I didn't worry about him as much. In time, I trusted him, and got used to him always coming home, eventually.
 
Then, I went through a move, and had to find a new home for him. I advised the family, "keep him inside for a couple of weeks. He'll need time to bond with you in a new place." They let him out after 4 days, and he was never seen again. It breaks my heart when I think of him.
 
Now I build catios to allow cats enjoyment of the outdoors--their preferred natural state--protected from disappearing and danger.