If you’ve found yourself working from home with cats (or, rather, adorable and fluffy coworkers), you’re not alone. Nearly one-fifth of the United States workforce is working from home in 2025, thanks to a shift from conventional work environments to more flexible arrangements. In addition to that, according to Forbes magazine, 46.5 million households in the U.S. own a cat.
It goes without saying that a good number of us are now adapting to a new and unfamiliar work landscape with our kitty cats. While this modern work arrangement can be amazingly beneficial for both cat and can opener (human), working from home with cats definitely comes with its own challenges. In this article, I will give you a complete guide for making the work-from-home environment with your kitty the best it can possibly be!
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Getting to Know Your Feline Coworker
It’s no secret that working with people has its own set of benefits and challenges. Some of our closest friendships are born out of the workplace, while other times we struggle to navigate certain personalities at work. But what do you do when your coworkers turn into furry little creatures that only know how to communicate in purrs, meows, and chirps? Let’s breakdown the typical cat personality, so you can better navigate working from home with cats.
The Independent Nature of Your Cat Coworker
Cats have very unique personalities, as I’m sure you already know. They are fiercely independent, but also extremely lovable and affectionate when they want to be. This blend of personality traits makes for the perfect coworker. You can typically look forward to less (but not zero) interruptions from them than from your two-legged coworkers in the office. However, when you are in need of a little snuggle sesh on your breaks, you can count on your kitty to be there.
The Keyboard-Loving Nature of Your Cat Coworker
Remember how I said your cat will typically give you less interruptions than your human coworkers, but not zero? Well, your keyboard may be a catalyst for some of these interruptions.
Cats love keyboards for a multitude of reasons, and you might occasionally have to deal with your cat accidentally messaging coworkers or writing a million 1’s all over your report. Between keyboards being warm and your cat just wanting to be close to you, it’s no surprise they might find this a great place for their cat naps. But don’t worry; there are ways you can keep your kitty off your keyboard.
The Selectively Clingy Nature of Your Cat Coworker
But wait…didn’t we just go over how independent cats are and how this makes them a great coworker? Well, yes, but this doesn’t mean there aren’t times when your cat might be a little clingy. For example, I can almost always count on my cat Luna to jump up on my desk and rub all over my face as soon as I get on a Teams call. Why this is remains a mystery. It could be that she finds my voice soothing and likes the tone of my voice when I’m talking on work calls. But then again, cats are an enigma.
Setting Boundaries While Working From Home With Cats
Now that we’ve tackled what you might be up against when it comes to your furry coworker, let’s talk about ways you can set boundaries so you can get your work done (while still bonding with your kitty).
Set Up a Cat-Friendly Office Space
Arguably the most important thing you can do when working from home with cats is making sure your office is suitable to accommodate both you and your coworkers. In my office, I have multiple spots dedicated for my cat, such as a cat bed, a cat tower, a recliner (that was originally intended for me…), and blankets. This gives my kitties plenty of options for finding a cozy place to sleep other than my desk or keyboard.
If you have a window in your office, take advantage of this by putting a cat tower in front of it and opening the curtains. Believe me, your cat will be busy bird-watching for hours, leaving you with ample time to get your work done. My office happens to be very small, so the cat tower is both in front of the window but also about half a foot from my desk chair. This works out nicely, as I can sneak in a pet and a kiss in between phone calls.
There’s also plenty of options for cat beds that attach to your desk. This one on Amazon (https://amzn.to/4cz3rrd) supports up to 50 pounds and even has protective padding so you don’t damage your desk. Pretty neat!
Keep Your Cat Busy
Stocking up on lots of cat toys is also a must for making the co-working relationship with your kitty work. My cats love anything filled with catnip, small balls with bells inside, and anything that makes noise or moves around. Also…hair ties. But make sure you take the proper precautions if you decide to let you cat play with hair ties, as they can be dangerous!
Keeping lots of toys in your office space will keep your cat busy while you get your work done. This will hopefully minimize the amount of work interruptions you face!
Clicker Train Your Cat
Sometimes no matter how cat-friendly you make your office or how many toys you give your kitty, your feline coworker might still want to take over your Teams calls. In this case, you can clicker train your cat. This involves building positive associations with the clicker, such as throwing a treat on the floor and pressing the clicker whenever your cat jumps up on your desk.
Over time, your cat will just jump off your desk whenever they hear the sound of the clicker. You can even train them to lay in your lap instead of your desk if you’re like me and love the companionship of your kitty while you’re working.
The Importance of Play Breaks for Your Feline Coworker
No matter what tips and tricks you implement to make working from home with cats easier, always remember to interact and play with your cat on your breaks or when you are done work for the day. Cats require 30 to 40 minutes of playtime per day, and this should ideally be split into multiple play sessions.
Despite their fierce independence I touched on earlier, cats still need enrichment, and they look to us to provide this for them. They also depend on a strong bond with us for their happiness and health.
In Conclusion
Navigating a work-from-home environment with cats makes for lots of snuggles, funny mishaps, and sometimes challenges. Taking the steps needed to create a cat-friendly space that also ensures you are able to get your work done is crucial.
After following this guide, I have no doubt that you will find success working from home with cats. You might even find this arrangement to be the purrfect way to strengthen your bond with your kitty.
Did you find this article helpful? Let me know in the comments!
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Loved this! I work from home with my cats and this was a perfect guide! I loved the advice about putting a cat tower in front of your office window. 🙂
Thank you so much! I’m so glad I could give you some ideas!