Playing cats and ladders in Switzerland

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Zigzagged slats along the wall of the house reaching a length that allows the cat to go to the second floor. A kind of fence protects the cat in the upper area from the fall. Brigitte Schuster

A cat-ladder has many subdivisions reaching to the second floor. Brigitte Schuster

Cat stairs with a dwelling place for the cat and possibly other animals. Here is also cat food ready. Brigitte Schuster

A ladder reaching to the third floor. One of the highest ladders seen in Bern. Brigitte Schuster

Mailboxes are used as a support to extend a ladder to the threshold. Brigitte Schuster

Grapevines help support the cat ladder, the vine attached to the façade are not affected. Brigitte Schuster

Left: The model of the so-called 'simple chicken ladder' is used here to gain height. Right: A spiral staircase. / Brigitte Schuster

This model can be folded up or taken away at any time. Brigitte Schuster

The pet cat living here can climb from the tree to the cat ladder and from there to the balcony. Brigitte Schuster

Cat ladder from the second floor at the side of a modern housing block. Brigitte Schuster

The cat must climb upwards, over several roofs, using two cat ladders. Brigitte Schuster

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One in three Swiss households has a cat. So it's no surprise that the Alpine nation's cat lovers go to extremes to make the lives of their feline best friends more enjoyable. One photographer has documented a peculiar widespread effort to help cats get out and about, no matter how high up they live: cat ladders.

These private gangways for cats are usually attached to building façades or drain pipes, allowing cats to traverse the often dizzying heights of Swiss apartment blocks. This allows them both access to the outdoors and the comfort of food and lodgings. Some ladders are more elaborate than others, as we can see in this selection of pictures taken from the book, ‘Swiss Cat Ladders’External link. While the apparatus exists in other European countries, cat ladders seem to have a high concentration in Swiss cities and villages; they’re not just popular as household pets, farmers also use them to catch mice and other rodents.

A cat’s right to roam

Fabian Gloor, responsible for tenancy law at the Swiss Tenants’ Association explains that renters need permission before they go to the expense of installing a ladder leading up to their apartment windows. Cat ladders that stretch beyond their own balcony are forbidden without the consent of the property owner. If a building is listed, permission would be needed from the landlord and the local department for listed buildings.

A cat net, which acts like a net curtain around the balcony to keep house cats safe, can be put up without asking for permission, but many landlords don’t allow them – and this might be stipulated in the lease or in the house rules. For the ban on netting to have legal force, the owner would have to give a good reason, such as the building having important historical significance.

Cat facts

Switzerland has a feline population of 1.6 million.

Calculations put a Swiss cat’s average life expectancy at 15 years. The typical household expenditure on a cat amounts to around CHF 20,000. This is without potential vet bills due to accidents and illness.

Unplanned veterinary costsExternal link can be high for cats, amounting to more than CHF 1,000. A tooth infection, for example, could set a caring pet owner back CHF 500 – 1,000, whereas a broken cat bone could add up to CHF 2,700 in vet bills.