Thursday, July 16, 2009

Product Review - Kitty City Climbing Hill


When I adopted my love, Lord Dunbar, his first Christmas present was one of those carpet covered cat towers. It was the budget version as I couldn't afford one of the $200+ deluxe versions, but nevertheless the tower was instantly named "The Tower of Power." I bought that tower 5 years ago and I still have it. My goodness it sure is ratty, though. I keep wondering when I'm going to have the nerve to throw it out in the garbage. The truth is that it is a favored scratching post for at least one of my cats and it would be truly stupid of me to throw it out without a replacement.

Today I was in Target picking up some home supplies and I strolled past the pet supply area. I usually avoid that area lest I find something I can't leave without. Well, that's precisely what happened today.

For years the only options for bargain scratching posts or cat condos were either very small boring basic posts, or were terribly put together and still $80 or so. So I was quite shocked to see that Target was offering a modular budget kitty condo unit with all kinds of perks! With the unit being modular, you have the liberty of choosing whether to go all out at once with building an expansive condo or "kitty city", or you can invest in building a city in pieces. Today, I settled for one modular piece - the Climbing Hill.

As you can see, this unit pieces together in pvc-like sections and all the connectors allow for easy expansion. Even the cloth bottom has velcro allowing for easy connection to another unit. The curved "hill" is made of a mesh material and the cloth bottom is made of nylon. Both are easily cleaned up with a wet rag if soiled. Both the scratching tube and the floor toy can be moved wherever you prefer to set them up. This presents even more options when you add the other modules. You can go to the Kitty City USA website to view all the different modules available. Click on the combos tab to see examples of the different combos you can make with different modules.

But how to the cats like it?

Based on their initial reactions to it after I put it up, I'd say it was an immediate hit in this household.




Time will tell if the module ends up being a lasting favorite, but for now, I'm happy with my $18 purchase and I can now see a point where I can finally throw out my ratty, carpet tower.

Update 7/22/09:
I purchased another section to the unit. I purchased the tower. The cats still love this, however due to the velcro fastening the fabric to the poles, it's a little light duty for two of my cats. Frankly, they're too fat for the velcro to hold, Haha! Actually, one of them isn't very fat at all. He's just a Big Cat. So I would not recommend this product for a larger sized or heavier cat. You'll need something sturdier.

4 comments:

Ashni said...

Ooo, thanks for the review! I saw those the other day on Danger Aisle and was wondering if they were any good (being less than $20). I may go pick up one for Princess Poofy Pants.

Unknown said...

Yeah, you know, the price is fabulous and so I bought it with reservations. But I'm happy I did. If I can get Taquita to scratch on that instead of the Tower of Power, I'll call it a 100% success, kiss the manufacturer's feet and the Tower of Power will either be thrown out or donated to the shelter.

I bought 3 sections for my 4 cats and they just love them. I wanted to add to it with the "Climbing Hill" but can't find those anywhere. I have tried emailing and left several phone messages to the contact points listed on the product boxes to no avail. I am disappointed in the lack of customer service. My cats are really wild so I am trying to figure out a way to keep them anchored so they don't flip with their wild antics. I definitely recommend purchasing if you are okay with the fact that there is no customer service.

Unknown said...

Have you tried ordering from Target online? I believe they are available for order.

And yes, there are definitely ways this product could be improved. I would like to see stronger fabric connectors. My cats are a little heavy for the velcro fasteners to hold if they jump up and down. Mine don't knock the thing over or pull it down, but it is certainly light enough where that could happen with more rambunctious cats. If you have the unit next to a wall, maybe Home Depot could help you find a wall anchor of some sort.

Thanks for stopping by!!