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I don't have the ability to take in or tame anymore cats with 2 in the house and a dog.
So I make houses for them...I have 2 pet heat pads ($50 each!)...a couple with no heat.
I wrap them in plastic, I place them on 2x4s for any snow melt getting in...I place bricks for
the wind on top.
I put white flour outside, at first, to see if they are being used. They are, whew.
And sprinkle cat nip to lure them into their new, fluffy lined 'cave'.
When I find an end table being thrown out I cover the box with
the table ...what a protection from the snow! (I have a big property.)
My neighbor died and now her 2 20 yr olds are there and don't let their cats indoors ...
I have never seen water outside in yrs. So I have surrendered that they are irresponsible,
and have taken over
feeding them at my place...water drew them over at first...I have a $30 heated water bowl, too.
Animals need water! Squirrels use it, also.
Cats, huh? (They are all fixed, btw.)
Any other stories of cat houses?
(Did a search for 'outdoor cat sheds', hope this is ok I started this new.)
A friend had several built for outside cats and used straw inside as a soft and warming base. Tried to get her to use an old electric blanket but not sure if she did...old heating pad, heated throw...what a difference in cold climates they would make.
I have a heated throw on the foot of the bed...my 3 cats sleep on it, so sweet, all lined up in a row....
For the barn cats I have an old couch and table in an outbuilding and have 3 "self warming" cat beds up on the couch and table, and a couple of sleeping bags too. Then on the floor I have 2 layers of those foam floor pieces for a children's play room, with cardboard boxes on top of the the foam, newspaper on the bottom of the boxes, and plush cat beds inside the boxes. I'm too paranoid about fire to have any kind of bedding or mats that need to be plugged in.
The cats also go sleep in the hay barns - I think they can stay pretty warm all snuggled among the hay bales - plus there's lots of yummy mousies at hand for a midnight snack!
We tried a house few years ago, but they did not use it. Now we just put an old cat bed onto our covered porch, so at least they are dry. There is a table on that porch & they seem to like to be under it.
How do you ensure that other critters like possums and trash pandas won't end up using them?
I think the reason ours were not used, was because the possums found it first. Of course there is no guarantee another creature won't get it first, there is no ticket line
You could always just buy some standard dog house and I'm sure the cats will be happy to use it.
^^^That's a pretty good idea if you can line it or them with something warm.
My big barn cat is 12-13 years. Some years back he started sleeping on top of the tractor in the garage ---- because I keep it plugged in during the cold months and the hood is always warmed "just right".
He can burrow into the hay in the barn but he would rather sleep on the warm tractor hood.
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They are, whew.
(They are all fixed, btw.)
