Tunnel of love for cats winds around home

Anyone handy with a saw and a staple gun can build a simple version of an outdoor fun park for felines, devised by Susan and Dan Gottlieb.

The open-air cat run wanders up, down and around their Beverly Hills house. Viewing platforms wind up to the roof for bird-watching and sunbathing. Playpens at ground level invite games and snoozes.

Since the Gottliebs moved to their home in 1985, they wanted each cat to enjoy the outdoors as much as they do. But that would have been too dangerous for the animals, which could have wandered off or been attacked by predators.

And too dangerous for the birds drawn to the plants and trees that fill an acre at the Gottliebs' rambling one-story hillside house.

In 2000, after one of their cats escaped from the house and was killed by a coyote, the couple hired a carpenter to build an enclosed run. At first, it was a small area, accessed through one door. When the couple realized how much the cats enjoyed their protected outdoor existence, the design was expanded. Now five cat doors lead from the house into the run.

The Gottliebs, who own the G2 nature and wildlife gallery in Los Angeles, had the path made of redwood planks and wire fencing sold in 4-foot-wide rolls. They shaped the fencing into a tunnel and stapled it to the sides of the wood platform. Sections are carpeted with rubberized matting typically used as kitchen drawer lining — ideal for protecting paws and preventing skids.

Spike, Shadow, Cleopatra and Angel seem content now that they have the run of the house, indoors and out.

"The great thing about this kind of run is that it's relatively easy and inexpensive to build," Susan says. "People can start very small, like we did. And then let your cats dictate where to take it from there."