Feral cat shelter

[spinbaby]

Cold weather is on the horizon and I’m beginning to look around for ideas for a shelter for our feral cat. I hope to eventually get him trapped, neutered, and absorbed into the collective, but meanwhile he’ll need shelter outside. There are a number of shelters made of styrofoam coolers and I found this rather expensive, but clever house online.

http://www.feralvilla.com/Feralvilla-Outdoor-Cat-Shelter-II_p_14.html

I probably will go with the cheap styrofoam cooler route because I’m hoping he won’t be an outside cat too long.

[CurtEastPoint]

1. I have one of those (or very similar) and it is nice but...

check w/your local PetSmart as they get their tropical fish in styrofoam coolers and they just discard them. They make great shelters. A little spray paint to camouflage it and you're good!

[spinbaby]

5. That's a good idea

Like I said, I’m hoping he won’t be an outdoor cat long and don’t want to spend a lot. He had an appointment at the spa for neutering last week, but managed to evade the trap. The appointment wasn’t wasted, though, because I caught an entirely different tomcat and took him in instead. Someone in the neighborhood just got their cat neutered for free, but the cat we wanted to neuter in the first place has to go back on the waiting list.

[CurtEastPoint]

6. We call it 'spa day,' too! I have 2 in carriers who were tame enough to be 'coaxed in' in my ...

carport going for their day tomorrow... both sweet as sugar.

[avebury]

2. I have seen styrofoam shelters that have a shelter

inside another contained with hay acting as insulation between the inside and outside containers. Extra hay could be put in the interior container.

I bought a small used igloo style dog house from someone at work and then bought a hale bale at Lowe's to put hay inside the house. You could look at Craig's list to see if anyone has something similar that might not be too expensive (or check flea markets).

Another idea - have you checked the Nextdoor Ap for your area? You could put a comment on Nextdoor and you might find local assistance.

[japple]

3. One of my friends who traps made a very nice kitty shelter using a plastic

dog house that she found for next to nothing at a flea market. It was a 2 piece unit that had a a bottom piece (with bottom and sides) and a top piece that was the roof. She glued mylar on the inside using spray adhesive. Then she used a styrofoam cooler (with a door cut out) on the inside and stuffed straw in the spaces in between the dog house and the cooler. She said it needed to be wheat straw instead of hay, because hay gets moldy. She put blankets in the cooler and made some kind of door/curtain out of an old wool blanket to keep out the wind. I think she set it up on a wooden pallet to keep out the damp.

I also have another friend who has a feral cat who lives in her back yard. She made a very snug home for her using a small dog house with a flap door. She put an (outside) heating pad underneath it and the cat hardly ever comes out except to pee and eat.

Another friend made a feral cat home using a cast off dog igloo and just stuffed it with straw. It was pretty cozy for the mild winters we have in the south.

[Kittycow]

4. I couldn't afford much for my shelter....

but being a packrat, I had a lot of odds and ends to make one. I'm trying to remember it since it's been a while.

I turned a rectangular, plastic laundry basket on its side. I put a bunch of old towels down inside (in case I had to wash the bedding at some point). Then I doubled-up a couple old blankets, thoroughly covering the basket. This was followed by a bunch of old windbreaker jackets to block wind and rain. I probably put everything but the kitchen sink on it including one of those big Snuggie blanket things somebody gave me for Christmas.

I was worried about it being warm but once after it snowed, the (stray) cat let me put my hand in there and I could actually feel the warmth radiating from his body heat.

And that's the story of my cat shelter

[CurtEastPoint]

7. Great story and thanks for taking care of him.

[Kittycow]

10. It took him a solid year to trust us enough to come inside.

He would sit at the sliding patio door and stare at us all day through the glass

Eventually he became a spoiled indoor cat who slept on the bed and wanted for nothing. We lost him to kidney cancer when he was about 12 but we had many happy years with him

[CurtEastPoint]

11. Sometimes they are slow to trust but when they do...

love!

[Karadeniz]

8. I have four malcontents who live in a screened patio which gets really cold in the winter.

I bought them little houses that have a heating pad inside that goes on when occupied and doesn't heat higher than their temo. About $40 or so...I found it online.

[eppur_se_muova]

9. Consider one of those "pyramid" beds ...

You may need to weigh them down if it's windy, though.

or one of these ...



I set one of these down facing away from the wind (coincidentally facing my window) and wrapped a piece of flannel around the top like a curtain. The cats easily figured out how to squeeze past the curtain. Eventually, I took two *young* ferals in for shots and sterilization. We are very happy with each other now.

The cheaper, low-tech solution is a cardboard box with lots of hay. I'm told cats take to these pretty naturally.

[radical noodle]

12. We made one out of a heavy duty plastic garbage can

It's long enough that rain and snow are unlikely to blow into the back, and if you just make a hole in the lid, and keep the lid securely on, it will be pretty safe. We then filled it with straw and the cats (there were about five) were good for the winter. We did feed them a bit more in bad weather, too.

[shanti]

13. Styrofoam coolers and

a blanket covering it, will keep them relatively warm. My bro does this for mom's ferals in NW AZ, where it does snow in the winter sometimes.

[irisblue]

14. If you are on twitter....

@StrayLiotta

Website of how his humans, with skills for carpentry, convinced Stray to join the Living Room Lions.Stray Liotta (@StrayLiotta) Tweeted:
@$ https://t.co/t5VTQosxae

Link to tweet

Stray does not like his feet touched😾😏