| Cats
                  can be happily kept inside all the time, and an indoor
                  cat is much
                  healthier and safer than an outdoor cat.  But, if
                  you have the
                  space, you might want to consider providing your
                  kitties with a "cat
                  run" where they can go outside at will and watch birds
                  and doze in the
                  sun.  Below is the cat run we have had since the
                  first year I
                  bought the house.  It's about 3/4 the length of
                  the house, and 5
                  feet deep, built of redwood and wire mesh. | 
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| The cats access
                  the cat run
                  through a door in the large
                  window (off of the laundry room). The sides and top
                  are wire mesh. In
                  the first picture are Tuxedo, Beauregard, and Sophie.
                  The cats have an
                  upright tree branch for scratching and climbing.
              The "shelving
                  system" is
                  made of pine planks and was purchased
                  ready-to-assemble (we bought two
                  units) from Fred Meyer's store, plus there
                  are other shelves throughout the run.  There are
                  two houses inside
                  the cat run.  The photo with my shadow shows the "people door" into the run. The last photo is of the backyard: what the cats see when they look out from their cat run. If you want to see more photos of my pond, arbor, garden, and rose trellises, I have a photo album at Webshots.  | 
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Here are some links
                  to cat runs/enclosures built by others and a few
                  pre-built enclosures
                  you can
                  buy:
 Articles about enclosures/cat runs: 
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