There is no question that cat lovers will do just about anything to keep their companion animals happy. In a small living space, though, it is not always easy to give your feline friends the space and toys they crave. Designer Seungji Mun came up with this sofa in an effort to keep domestic kitties happy and active.

The sofa includes regular seats for humans, but it also incorporates a play tunnel for cats. The tunnel, which doubles as a backrest for human sitters, loops behind the human seating area, putting one entrance on the floor and one at the level of the seats. A peek-a-boo hole in the tunnel’s midsection allows you to interact with your cats as they hide and frolic in the tube.

Mun’s cat furniture design came as a reaction to the increasing number of companion animals in Korea. He noticed that furniture is a common ground, something that both the cats and the humans can utilize to their mutual enjoyment. Maybe the future of living with animals includes ridding the house of complicated cat-only and human-only zones in favor of shared furniture all around.

“In our lives many kinds of pet are already recognized as another family and are loved by many people. As time passes, numbers of households raising pets are increasing and now new industry related to pets became one of big markets. After all, pets coexisting with people are establishing themselves as a companion. Companion animals are no longer pets but positioned as companions of people. And in Korea, more than 10 million people are living with pets.”

“For this reason, the living space of humans is shared with a companion animal. Between humans’ and pets’ living space, ’ the furniture’ took the largest and the most important position. We would like to use ‘the furniture’ as a tool to share emotions and feelings with pets. This Cat Tunnel Sofa is to communicate and share feelings with a cat.”