It may not stop Fido from tracking in mud on his paws, but this doghouse can reduce your best friend’s carbon footprint while providing different levels of entertainment (plus bonus treat storage drawers).

Topped with a green roof (accessed by a sod-covered ramp), the house features a built-in water fountain that can be used both to irrigate the upper lawn and quench a pup’s thirst. A solar-powered fan also provides indoor cooling for hot dogs.

That green roof ramps down to connect to a lawn below, tying it in functionally and aesthetically to the surrounding yard. All in all, the place combines the aesthetic of a traditional dog abode, a cozy cabin and a modern house.

On the side of the home, a hidden drawer opens to reveal food, toys and other rewards for good dogs, making use of the space under the ramp (much like under-stair storage in a normal house).

Best of all: this sustainable dog house was auctioned off to a good home by Carmel Canine Cottages, its proceeds going to benefit the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA). Meanwhile, no one is stopping dedicated pet owners from building their own!

When we think of ancient persons carefully laying the foundations of stone monuments, or hard at work writing out historical tomes, it’s a bit hard to imagine them brushing away an interrupting cat or dog in frustration, much as we still do today.

But PhD researcher Paul Cooper became fascinated with these everyday moments, frozen in time, as he began to find more and more examples — like 4,000-year-old mud bricks, for instance, “stamped with the name and titles of the Sumerian king Ur-Nammu (reigned 2047-2030 BCE) and left out to dry.”

And while dogs may be less prone to hop on on tables, Cooper has found plenty of examples of cats knocking over ink and bounding across work surfaces to leave their mark, or even outright peeing on pages. The scribe of one ancient volume wrote in his text: “Here is nothing missing, but a cat urinated on this during a certain night. Cursed be the pesty cat that urinated over this book … because of it many others did too. And beware not to leave open books at night where cats can come.”

Left outside to dry, masonry materials often show signs of accidental intervention. One can find paw prints on clay tablets from the Ziggurat of Ur (21st century BCE), for example, and ancient Roman tiles (from around 0 CE) found in England, left by various species wild or domestic, including dogs, goats and sheep.

Made to be compatible with other IKEA furnishings and fixtures, this new first-of-its kind pet collection has something for all your favorite furry friends.

The 62-piece collection was designed by Inma Bermudéz and aims to fill a market gap with quality, aesthetically pleasing but affordable pet products.

Some of the objects extend existing uses, helping customers save money and space, like kitty-scratching materials that attach to existing IKEA table legs or puppy beds that slot into bookshelf systems already on offer.  A number of the products are designed to pack flat and fold away when not in use.

The designs reflect extensive research into pet needs and behaviors, including a bed designed to be stuffed with old clothes, blankets and towles to help dogs feel comfortable and familiar around their human family.

Aside from pet sleepers and carriers, the LURVIG line features an array of brushes, bowls, leashes, bag dispensers spanning eating, playing, sleeping, traveling, walking.and other cat and dog activities.

Perhaps the biggest surprise in this stellar new collection is that no one at IKEA thought to do this sooner — thankfully, now they have.

British inventor, artist and satirist Dominic Wilcox is at it again, this time with a contemporary art exhibition aimed at canine attendees with a range of interactive installations purpose-built for pups.

Play More in London has an array of dog-oriented artworks set low on the gallery walls as well as other more directly experiential displays.

Cruising Canines, for instance, includes a cardboard car with cut-out windows and a fan to simulate a brisk drive through the English countryside.

Dinnertime Dream consists of a giant dog bowl that serves as a ball pit, the balls looking like extra-large pieces of dried dog food.

A series of normal-sized doggy bowls operate as fountains, shooting water between them that can be used for bathing or drinking by so-inclined canines.

“Contemporary art has long been an important source of inspiration and fascination for humans,” says Wilcox, “but never before has it been created with a view to drawing the same kind of emotions out of animals instead.”

Complimenting the interactive elements are a series of original paintings and multimedia displays by artists Nick White, Clare Mallison, Joanne Hummel-Newell, Robert Nicol and Michelle Thompson. While amusing for human companions as well, these works were tailored to be visible to dogs in terms of their colors and shades. The exhibition and its contents were all crafted in consultation with dog experts and veterinarians. It really is, as they say, for the dogs.

Whether your furry friends are canine or feline, this pair of posh pet architecture companies have your Modernist domesticated animal needs (quite literally) covered.

And for those domiciles home to both cats and dogs that do not share space, fear not: the Puphaus is made for the outdoor dog and Meyou created for the indoors cat.

First, the Puphaus borrows domestic architectural design elements but employs a tools-free approach for easy assembly, creating a backyard home for your pup that could be cooler than your own house.

“Sporting backgrounds in graphic and industrial design, dog-loving founders Roy Fleeman and Zach Griggs wanted to design & build something unique for man’s best friend: the Puphaus. Time to ditch the plastic igloos and give our pups some stylish new digs.”

The Meyou line of cat furniture by Parisian designer Aude Sanchez approaches the problem as a question of interior design, aiming to create habitats that will not just look good next to but also become part of your decorative scheme.

The resulting cat cocoons are made for curious and playful kitties to use for shelter, napping, hiding or even sharpening their claws.

The Ball, The Cocoon and The Bed are variations on the same design approach, each with slightly different layouts and features – they can work individually or as a set for various rooms.