Home Remodeling For Pet Owners – 5 Ideas To Change Their (And Your) Life

Whether you own a cat, dog or a tank of fish, being the caretaker of a pet generally affects your home remodeling decisions as a homeowner. If you overlay your house with pet-essentials after the renovation, you’ll more than likely end up ruining some of the independent design decisions in favor of bleated efficiency and care. This is why it’s always good to consult about how you can go for an all-inclusive, thoughtful renovation where you can go for pet-friendly ideas to make your renovation a total success. Don’t know where to start? We’ve got an ultimate do and don’t list right here! Let’s take a look:

1. Built-in Feeding Stations

All long-term pet owners know how messy it can be when you have just a simple bowl of kibble or food for your animal friend. It usually ends up in an untidy mess and if the location of this bowl is in a large public area or alcove, your pet might end up suffering from a lot of disturbance while eating their food.

So instead of just picking out a bowl as an afterthought, it’s always recommended that you go for a built-in feeding area – preferably in the kitchen where your pet can share the meal-time with you. These built-in units are either designed at the base of a kitchen island or comprise of an entire low-height cabinet drawer. Just make sure that it’s at a height that your pet can easily reach, and is spacious enough that you can clean it with ease. You can also ensure that you have a refill cabinet or drawer right beside this station.

Food Bowl

Food-Bowl

2. Kitty Jungle Gym

Cats are simultaneously the most restless and calm pets, and you never know when the playful mood strikes for them. This is why it’s essential to have an indoor jungle gym for your kitty. There are quite a few ways you can articulate this idea in your home renovation. You can either go for individual Cat Tree’s that are tall in height and emulate actual trees. You can go for tiered jungle gyms that are designed along the staircase walls. Or you can simply go for a beamed roof where the cats can climb around at their fancy. All of these ideas are dependent upon what kind of a home aesthetic you’re going for, so you can pick one according to the interior design theme you’re emulating.

3. Low Windows

Have you ever had that mood where you just want to recline by the window with a cup of tea in hand? Well, animals sometimes have a similar instinct, so you can design low windows in your home where they can simply lie down and enjoy the view of the great outdoors be it rain or shine. This window can become a trendy design element of your own home. It doesn’t have to seem forced or contrived. You can make it a part of your house’s elevation, and create a stunning gallery wall above it in the interiors.

4. Reclining Areas

Experienced pet owners are used to waking up to a ball of fur snuggling up beside them, but most of the times it’s quite handy and important to have specific reclining areas for your pet companions. The location of these areas is totally dependent on your pet’s habits and your own inclination. If your cat like sleeping by the window, you can have one designed there during the renovation. If your dog likes to have a larger space to lie down, then you can have an area designed somewhere where you can spare some extra square footage – like at the base of the media wall or the fireplace mantel.

5. The Sandbox Area

And lastly, there’s the sandbox area. Pets relieve themselves where they’ve been trained and conditioned to do so. Therefore, it’s important that you create a nice sandbox area that’s a little farther from the main, public parts of the house where you can train your pet to relieve themselves. While the location of this area matters a lot, you don’t need to compromise on the aesthetics. You can place the sandbox and essential cleaning tools in a customized open cabinet and even decorate it accordingly!

So, these are some home remodeling ideas for pet owners. We hope we can help you emulate all these pet-essentials in your home in the most visually pleasing way possible.

About the author:

Luke Oleenik serves as the Managing Director of XL Built, a trusted building company specializing in second story additions and custom home construction across Melbourne.

Image Sources:

Feature Image: http://www.traditionalhome.com/design0/decorating-ideas-making-pet-friendly-home?page=22&sssdmh=dm17.753176&esrc=nwtrad080714
Food-Bowl: https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/102920872/list/kibble-time-clever-cubbies-and-drawers-for-your-pet-food-station
Food-Bowl-2: https://www.detailsdesignstudio.com/detailsblog/2017/3/7/designing-for-the-pampered-pet
Cat-Tree: http://greenball.site/easy-way-to-make-a-cat-tree/
Cat-Climber: https://undhallowelt.tumblr.com/post/153493664582/diy-cattree
Barkitect: http://ww7.the-barkitect.com/?z
Cat-window: http://my-cute-pet-collections.blogspot.com/2013/11/repurposed-shelving-using-old-door.html
Sandbox-Cat: https://www.hgtv.com/design/packages/pet-friendly-design?crlt.pid=camp.XmAuJ3huGmhf

Luke Oleenik
XL Building

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