Score one for the outdoors. It took a few years between her first attendance on the Portland Catio Tour and building of her own catio project, but Lake Oswego homeowner Etta Wilkins-Foster soon found herself all in. “It’s great — I don’t have to worry about my cats getting lost or injured outside or that they’ll decimate the wildlife,” Wilkins-Foster said. The structure, built in a mid-century style and connected to her main house with a see-through tube, won “Favorite Catio” on last year’s tour, an annual event in September attracting over 1,300 people. Cat owners and bird lovers have not always shared common ground, but that’s changing thanks to the tour, which shows just how easy it is to protect wildlife while giving your cat fresh air and space to roam outdoors. In the meantime, the homeowner’s backyard has been certified as a backyard habitat by the Portland Audubon Society. “That was a nice feather in our cap,” she said. CatsSafeAtHome.org
