A Tropicool Cat Oasis
While this will be a short post, it’s one I feel obligated to share because: cats. Everybody loves cats. My two favorite things happened: I took adorable photos of my mittens yesterday AND it’s #monsteramonday. Not to mention, Urban Jungle Bloggers’ feed is all about Tropicool Summer. What’s more tropical/cool then cats relaxing in the sun?
Harvey and Harlequinn were all sssuuunndaazzee on Sunday, enjoying the warm sunshine. As some of you may know, I love the Urban Jungle Bloggers feature they put out every month. For Tropicool, I visualized a whole scene of a styled shoot, with beach umbrellas and margaritas. Really, these photos are way more truthful to my Sunday mood in reality.
See?
If you own a cat (or dog, I’m sure this doesn’t just apply to cats…), have you noticed they enjoy your houseplants as much as you do? Yes, they are jungle-y, and hide-able . Since acquiring more houseplants, my cats sometimes seek them out, nap beneath them, and enjoy their company. It’s important to only incorporate pet safe plants if you have a curious pet since eating place is up high on the list of no-nos. While I have some toxic large leaf plant, I know my cats are not at all interested in my Monstera or Rubber Tree.
Cat Friendly Plant Placement
I keep my medium-sized lush plants on pedestals or carts all of the time, especially my palm, which cats love to eat. My Monstera and Rubber trees are in floor planters near windows.
I typically move everyone to the porch in summer where the humidity is high and put comfy cat-friendly cushions on my wicker chairs. The plants love the moisture in the air and the kitties love the sun, heat, and general sauna atmosphere, despite being covered in fur.
Sometimes the rug is just fine, and Harvey lays there like a garden slug. Not the most flattering angle but cute nonetheless. She really needs to go on a diet…
I always look for ways to make my indoors even more outdoors (sans bugs). If you have been collecting pet safe plants, it’s a nice idea to create small garden-like areas for them to explore. During one of my first Leaf and Paw photoshoots in my house, I left my plants like this for a few days and the cats loved it:
Especially for indoor cats, the greenery, increased oxygen, and air cleaning effect plants have are all beneficial to keeping them healthy. A bunch of fresh catnip in a pretty pot helps, too. Speaking of which, I actually like this article from The Spruce.
Not a plant mom yet? Check out this blog for pet friendly plants to get you started, you’ll be happy you did! Soon, you can have you own tropicool oasis.
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Hi there! I sill love checking out your blog 🙂 I’m hoping you can answer a question for me: Crispy Wave plant (aka Japanese asplenium nidus fern) – yea or nay? I can’t seem to find anything out about it online. I bought it anyway, and it’s beautiful, but my kitties are already poking around it so I’m looking to confirm that it’s safe! Thanks!
Hi Cathleen! The crispy wave fern is perfectly safe. My kitties were curious when I first brought it home, but they have ignored it since. Even if they nibble, you’re fine. Thanks for checking back and supporting my blog! <3
Awesome, mine have gotten over their curiosity as well, but I just need to be sure 🙂 Thanks again!
Hi there, a quick question: I was about to buy a large (6ft.) fig plant – you have it in the picture above as well, but realized that it was not safe for cats. I own an indoor cat who is 15 yrs old and she actually never expressed interest in eating any of the plants. Is being near such plants dangerous enough? Really like the indoor dog tree, but I love my cat more. Any thoughts?
Hi Katerina – I have not had any issues with my cats even interested in my fiddle leaf fig. Especially with it being so tall, and as long as your cat is not a climber, I would say you are absolutely fine. Like I caution all pet/plant owners, monitor your cat when you first bring home your fig. Good luck!
Thank you for getting back to me on this. I realized it was a misspelled *dog tree was supposed to be *fig tree..
I love your blog! I’m a fairly new plant parent newly interested in (obsesssed with) plants (tropical especially). And I have a cat. So this is exactly what I need, help to learn about and hopefully get tons of plants and keep Kitty safe!
I was wondering if, as a new plant parent, should you get a bunch of plants at once if they all fit the bill of light, ease of care and pet friendliness or should you get one at a time? I have a bunch I want (need!). I also want to dive in and decorate with these beauties and give the home seem the life andd greenery it is lacking. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.
What I don’t know is if my cat will play nice. I think so
Hi Vanessa! It totally depends on you, amount of time you have to devote to plants, etc. More plants equals more time for watering, bugs checks, repotting, but if you have the necessary sunlight and time, go for it! Just be mindful of your cat and make sure there isn’t any munching going on. I did one at a time (I started with a larger plant, Rudy, my rubber tree) for a bit in the beginning to get my cats used to it and found they didn’t have an issue.