Dog Proof Cat Feeder

We just added two kittens to our family.  I have resisted cats for a while, as I am a dog person really, but I have to admit it has been a fairly easy and amusing adjustment.  

Except for one thing.

The dog loves the kitty food.  

He is a good dog, but training him to stay out of the cat food seemed like a pretty hard thing when buying a dog proof cat feeder seemed like an easy thing.

Except they cannot be bought.  

I found one I liked on the internet, but alas and alack it isn't available anywhere I looked.

Here is the one I wanted.

I found it listed multiple times on pinterest, and the blog where this picture came from described it as prohibitively expensive, so they made their own.

I am not particularly handy and was kind of stuck.

Until I found this at IKEA

I bought two.  I figured it's a little small and I'd need a double wide.

Here's how I assembled it:

I attached two back pieces together using some 2 inch brackets from Home Depot.  The brackets fit just fine in the holes provided for regular assembly.  For steadiness I drilled some holes and added some dowels in between the two pieces, but you can't see that.

Then I assembled it according to the instructions, leaving out the middle piece and just making a rectangle instead of a square.

 There is a floor piece that just rests on the bottom - I cut off part of it with a hand saw so the kitties could climb up in the bottom.

I cut some IKEA placemats to cover the bottom, so the kitties wouldn't have to jump across the gap, and drips and spills wouldn't fall through.  I cut them with scissors, and went back and forth trimming just a little bit here and there, so it would be a pretty tight fit.  It ended up stabilizing the floor pieces, which just rest in there on a lip against the side.  I thought I'd have to nail or glue the floor down, but the placemats are holding it in place just fine.

The kitties can come up through the bottom and the dog can't get in.  I am so proud of myself I could bust!

I don't know what the fancy one on Orvis would have cost since it is now unavailable, but this cost me $80 for the two IKEA storage stools, $3.00 for the IKEA placemats, and about $5.00 for the brackets and dowels at Home Depot.  Roughly $88.00 total.