Fauna Mateus Cat Tree - Blue & Beige - 49x49x153cm

The Fauna Mateus Cat Tree is a 153 cm tower of staggered platforms — the levels are offset rather than stacked, so a cat climbs it in short steps instead of one long jump.

Key Features

• 49 x 49 cm footprint and 153 cm tall, tall enough for a cat to sit well above eye level
• Six staggered platforms, most with a raised rim so a sleeping cat does not roll off
• An enclosed condo box part-way up, with a round doorway
• Offset levels make the climb a series of short hops, which suits cats that are cautious or no longer young
• Posts are wrapped in hardwearing sisal rope — the surface a cat's claws are meant to strip on, instead of the arm of your sofa
• Two-tone blue and beige plush with a paw print on the base
• Delivered flat-packed with fixings and instructions. Assembly is a screwdriver job, not a workshop one

Setting It Up

• Put it where your cat already spends time — by a window, or next to whatever it has been scratching. A tree in the spare room gets ignored
• Stand a tall tree against a wall rather than out in the middle of a room. A cat launching off the top perch puts real sideways force through the base
• Retighten the bolts after the first fortnight and every few months after that. Almost every wobbly cat tree is a loose bolt rather than a design fault

Good To Know

• Scratching is how a cat sheds the worn outer sheath of its claws and leaves its scent. It is not a habit you can train out, so the only real question is what it scratches
• A new tree often gets ignored for the first week. A pinch of catnip rubbed into the posts, or a familiar blanket on the top perch, usually settles it
• Vacuum the plush with an upholstery head and spot-clean with a damp cloth. Do not soak it — the boards underneath are chipboard and swell once wet
• Supervise kittens on the higher levels until they are climbing down confidently. Going up is instinct; coming down is learned
• One tree per cat is the rule of thumb in a multi-cat home. Cats compete for height, and a single tower becomes something to guard rather than share