20 DIY Animal Houses and Habitats

20 DIY Animal Houses

Animals both big and small, tame and wild, will appreciate these handmade animal houses, all made from eco-friendly upcycled or natural materials.

Whether you’ve got a pet that you want to pamper, or you want to welcome wild creatures to a safe place on your property, you’ll find a project to inspire you here:

1. Armoire Aviary: Finches will have plenty of room to fly in this upcycled armoire aviary.

2. Bat House: Build a bat house that encourages bats to come live in your yard and eat all of your mosquitoes.

3. Bee Habitat: Providing a home for native bees–one that’s FAR away from your deck!–is as simple as drilling into scrap lumber.

4. Boot Bird HouseObviously, you’ll want to build a pair of these.

5. Bug Barn: Turn any Mason jar or other glass jar into an instant bug hotel.

6. Butterfly House: Got a brie container and some window screening? You’ve got a butterfly house!

7. Cardboard Cat ClimberAt least when your cat tears this up (the way that they tear up everything), you can legitimately toss it.

8. Dog BedThe bedding that you’re done with will be brand-new to your dog!

9. Dog House into Duck House: Convert a vintage wooden dog house into a duck house.

10. Dresser Chicken CoopChicken coops for your backyard flock can be expensive! This tricked-out dresser solves the problem on the cheap.

11. Earthworm Habitat: Earthworms will be happy for you to observe them for a few days in this earthworm habitat made from recycled materials.

12. Hedgehog House: I don’t know anyone who has a hedgehog, but if I did, I’d make them this cardboard hedgehog house.

13. IKEA Bunny House: This rabbit hutch is upcycled from IKEA furniture.

14. Insect Homes: You can use a variety of materials from old tires to plastic bottles to make garden habitats for native insects.

15. Soda Bottle EcosystemA couple of pill bugs and snails will be happy to live in this complete, recycled ecosystem.

16. Suitcase Dog BedA vintage suitcase is the perfect size for a dog bed.

17. Toad House: A broken terra cotta pot makes an excellent toad house.

18. TV Fish Tank: Turn your grandma’s old TV into a working fish tank.

19. Wine Cork Bird HouseGet drinking!

20. Worm TowerUse an old bucket or a PVC pipe from the Restore, and you’ll never have to compost your kitchen scraps again.

Got any other upcycled animal habitats in mind? Link to them in the comments–my kids are always looking for more pets!

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Written by Julie Finn

I'm a writer, crafter, Zombie Preparedness Planner, and homeschooling momma of two kids who will hopefully someday transition into using their genius for good, not the evil machinations and mess-making in which they currently indulge. I'm interested in recycling and nature crafts, food security, STEM education, and the DIY lifestyle, however it's manifested--making myself some underwear out of T-shirts? Done it. Teaching myself guitar? Doing it right now.

Visit my blog Craft Knife for a peek at our very weird handmade homeschool life, and my etsy shop Pumpkin+Bear for a truly odd number of rainbow-themed beeswax pretties.

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