Someone Designed and Built a Wooden Teardrop Camper for Cats

Before you start to question why an automotive news website is writing about a product meant for cats, it’s kind of obvious, wouldn’t you say? Being the camper and cat lover that I am, I had one of those warm fuzzy feelings when I saw this design.

The mind behind the idea is designer Jaejin Lee of Seoul, South Korea. Not much is known about the designer except the work that he does; even his home page is not accessible. Luckily, his Behance page is functional and tells you right away the sort of building material he prefers to work with: wood.

The Wood Caravan for Cat, as the design is dubbed, is nothing more than a home for our beloved furry friends. Sure, it may be marketed for cats, but a small dog shouldn’t have any issues using it either.

Unlike other teardrop campers you may have seen on our site, this isn’t one you can simply hitch up behind your car. Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on your perspective, this camper is meant as a stationary home for your cat.

Sadly, after a few hours of searching, I was unable to find any full designs of the caravan, so all you and I have are these images. Hopefully, this article will run across some designer's or engineer’s screen, they’ll love it and set out to create one in their very own garage. For now, I'll just be presenting what I’ve got.

One of the images in the gallery reveals that the trailer is composed of several wooden pieces that can be assembled for a complete structure. Supports struts, side panels, joints, and even entry points are all included. By the looks of it, the wood used seems to be birch, as it’s one of the most common and affordable plywood structures on the market.

Two side panels, which include cut-outs for a door and windows, offer the teardrop shape, while the support struts help create the interior space. Another function the struts perform is that of creating a frame upon which to place the roof.

Now, the roof of the trailer is actually quite neat. One feature it includes is that it opens at the rear, much like you’d find on some real teardrop trailers. However, instead of exposing a kitchen or storage space, it lifts to allow your cat access to its sleeping quarters.

The final component you’ll see on this caravan is the wheels. The same wooden structure is now enveloped in a bit of felt, giving the impression of a tire. More felt material is used to line the exterior of the wheel wells.

Another component covered in felt is the roof. Why so much darn felt? Oh wait, this trailer is to be used by cats; have you ever seen what cats like to do to felt? They completely love sticking their claws in it.

What I like about this design is that you can assemble it in the comfort of your home with nothing more than some wood glue. Personally, I don’t understand why this idea hasn’t popped up in stores everywhere, or at least as an open-source project. Heck, I'd pay up to $100 bucks for a kit like this.