any members have any experience building feral/outdoor cat shelters? I'm dedicating my weekend to building one or two, and would prefer to build some nice wooden ones rather than the big Tupperware variety. I've found plans like this: http://animalwelfaresociety.or...l-cat-shelter-plans/

But if you guys have any other experience I'm all ears! It's FREEZING here right now, our house is full of pets and foster animals so I figured the next best thing I could do would be to build some outdoor shelters.

Those in your link would be nice if you could pack them with fresh straw. Its cheap by the bale. I gotta work out a make shift shelter for a kitten tomorrow. I have storage bins and animal transporters to work with. I plan on useing second hand soft clothing to fill the interior. The little guy can crawl in and make body heat.

About 15 years ago I used my front porch. We had a porch swing with an old quilt on it. Momma cat had a kitten with her. Just one. When I first saw it I thought it was the cutest kitten I'd ever seen. She still lives with us, but indoors.

So we added another blanket to give them some shelter from the wind. As temps went below zero, I added heat. I just put my golden rod out front, between the first quilt and the blanket. I then noticed that the momma cat sat right there and rarely moved. Just like cats enjoy warm sunshine, she liked the added heat the golden rod provided.

But then my wife put her foot down and insisted there would be no more feral cat care provided at our address. Women can be so mean at times.

It didn't bother me too much. Our dog died and I catnapped the little kitten to inside duty.

quote:

Originally posted by David Lee:
Those in your link would be nice if you could pack them with fresh straw. Its cheap by the bale. I gotta work out a make shift shelter for a kitten tomorrow. I have storage bins and animal transporters to work with. I plan on useing second hand soft clothing to fill the interior. The little guy can crawl in and make body heat.

If you're looking for something quick and easy:
Definitely insulate it beyond towels.

If I could come up with that styrofoam that would be very clever. We will see. Maybe kitty food to lure him inside. Hey thank you for the great idea.

We built several houses just like the ones above. We added K&H Pet Products Pet Bed Warmer Tan - MET Safety Listed from amazon and they work great. They don't cost much to run at all

I just put one out a few days ago. Saw a momma cat and some kittens a few weeks back, and saw their paw prints in the snow by the back patio the other day. Always tugs at the heart strings when you think of animals out there.

Had a big cardboard box and insulated it with newspaper and put a blanket inside. Wrapped the whole thing in a plastic drop cloth.

Why not use spray foam instead between the totes? If not for all the insulation, you could use it to fill voids in the pieces.

quote:

Originally posted by Skins2881:
Why not use spray foam instead between the totes?

I actually offered that foam to the wife when we were making it. She was anti spray foam for some reason. Don't think she trusted herself with it.

Out here in the country I have found that feral cats are reluctant to use a small shelter that has only one way in, or out.

I’ve suspended a heat lamp over an open top box inside a structure. If the box is roomy enough, your guests can control their comfort level by getting as close as they like to the heat source without feeling trapped.

It's not a problem for us. We have an old barn that is easy for critters to get in and out of. When it's cold out a number of feral cats take up residence and make it home. We don't feed them because they would just stay and breed like rabbits. They seem to do just fine living off of mice and what not.

Several years ago the wife was out in the veggie garden when a hawk swooped down and snagged one of the cats. Totally freaked her out and she wanted me to do something about it. It took a while for me to explain to her that some things can't be fixed and mother nature will always sort it out in the long run.

In answer to your question, I think David Lee has the right idea.

Jim

I take care of 6 feral cats. When the cold weather hit, I ordered 3 heated outdoor cat houses from Amazon. They are $55 each-- so not cheap-- but I have them all plugged in and each one will accommodate 2 cats. There is a shearling heated pad on the bottom of each house. I already had a heated water bowl, so they are pretty much set, I hope. But the wind and extreme cold has me a bit worried for them.

If you search heated cat houses on Amazon, it will come up. If you decide to try this and can't get a link, email me and I will send you the link.

And to second what ggile says, ferals will want two doors. The cat houses I described do in fact have two, each covered by a clear plastic door they push through.

One of my ferals, Crazy Eyes, has not been out of the house for weeks. He pushes half out of the front door, eats, and backs in again.

I used a cooler to build a shelter for my feral. It’s simple and it makes it real easy to clean. I bought a cat door online and installed in one side of the cooler (he wouldn’t use the plastic door so I had to take it off). I filled the cooler with straw (do NOT use hay) and I place a heated bed in it for the winter.

I built a small table to cover the cooler because rain would make its way into the door. As you can see, I’m no carpenter but it gets the job done.

The cat loves it!

I take it you guys aren't converting Yetis into cat-houses, unless, your cats happened to be the 1%

quote:

Originally posted by lkdr1989:
I take it you guys aren't converting Yetis into cat-houses, unless, your cats happened to be the 1%

My guy is blue collar; he got a Coleman

We have about a dozen feral cats here on the farm. We use the Tupperware shelters, nesting two together. They don't need insulation, but having two prevents condensation from the cat's breathing. The cat's body heat stays inside the cat, it doesn't heat the shelter. What they need is a place that is dry and draft proof. The cat's natural coat will take care of the rest. Our shelters only have one door. The same shelters work for ducks.

Just my opinion, based on years of experience. I've never had a frozen cat.

Several years ago I built the resident Dorkhound an insulated house, and installed a neat item called a Hound Heater.

It's not a converted Yeti, it's custom-built!

Our semi-feral outside visitor has a plastic tub with a cardboard box inside with old towels for cushion and insulation. She sleeps on top of it, not in it. Cats.

We aren't super cold, but it has been freezing for the last three nights.

My 3 feral cats (who frequent my back yard and I feed) have as shelter an old plastic dog house with a soft pad inside; for heat I shine a 100w light bulb into it. It seems to be sufficient for the needs in this area. That shelter only has one door, but it's big.

flashguy