Ways to Keep Cats Warm


Our rescue takes care of a lot of outdoor cats. It’s our main mission. Because of that we need to have shelters or places that the cats can live in our horrible winter weather. We get emails asking what kind of shelter people should get for the outside cat that is hanging around. It gets darn cold and windy here, in the northern states. We see long periods of time where it hits -20-30 at night, or worse, and really windy. It’s not easy to stay warm when you only weigh in at 5-8 lbs and only have an inch of fur. We are always on the search for good shelters for them to help them thru. We’ve tried a lot of different kinds and we try to set out more than one kind at each location to see what the cats like best.

OUR RECOMMENDATION FOR A PURCHASED READY TO GO SHELTER

https://thekittytube.com/  These are great. You can get them from their website as well as Amazon. They are well insulated and water proof, made from recycled plastics, and can hold more than just one cat. These shelters are the invention of the Bradec family, and they live here in WI, so know our climate. They made the first one for a stray cat that they cared for, and it worked so well they started selling them. They have a company in Hudson WI.

They are round, which helps with wind and eliminates cold corners. They can handle a snow load with ease. The door has a small overhanging porch roof which keeps out rain and snow and also makes it harder for predators today get in. There is a single insulation option for warmer places, and a double insulation package for the north where we are. Adding a wad of straw helps keep them warm, or the shelter is designed for an electric pet heating pad (also available on their site). The shape and weight means that they are stable in strong winds and not easily knocked over. A small vent on the top helps keep a little air circulation and helps keep the moisture from tracked in snow and their breathing from getting things too damp inside.

We just wish that we could figure out some way to disguise them as trash cans so people could hide them in plain sight if they live somewhere that has banned feeding and caring for stray cats!

All around we highly recommend these shelters for anyone taking care of cats who can afford them and who aren’t interested in replacing shelters every couple of years. Our oldest Kitty Tube has been with us since they first started selling them and it’s in as good of shape as when it was new (other than missing the original door flap, but you can buy replacement parts!) Make sure you have your Kitty Tube in a safe place or anchor them down as they are fairly easy to walk away with. But then we’ve had shelters of all kinds stolen.

GOOD SHELTERS FOR SALE ONLINE

https://www.arkworkshop.com Good wooden houses, but you need to get the insulation - and door flap option or all the heat just pours out the hole. Personally we would add at least an inch more insulation to it. Use straw and not the wood shavings. Cats can’t burrow into those to keep warm in our kind of weather. They should be placed up off the ground to prevent moisture buildup underneath and to keep them dry inside. With work they can be very nice shelters. They work quite well with a heater or heat mat. They come in a variety of sizes if you have more than one cat.

INSULATION IS THE KEY.

Some of the shelters sold are ok for southern warmer winters but not where it’s often below freezing. Some of these are mainly canvas covered cardboard. We have them around for summer time use and the cats do nap in them. We also use them in our basement or other semi-heated areas where it gets cooler in winter, but certainly not outside. These shelters are not recommended for cold weather. If you notice, they have very limited, or even no insulation, or the insulation is fabric. Using cloth type materials inside an outside shelter is always a "NO". When the cats breath moisture condenses on the material, and the cats also track in snow. Wet fabric sucks the heat out of a cat!

Outdoor Headed Cat Shelters not to Use
BUILD IT AND THEY WILL COME

Homemade shelters can be marvelous. These cat shelters were made for another rescue that didn’t deal with outside cats, so they generously passed them to us. I am not sure who made them other than his name was Chris. (Thank You, Chris!) They are a great cat shelter design. The A-frame helps keep things warm because heat rises and there isn’t really much space up there like in a square house, so the place warms up easier. He made them very well insulated using 2” pink board. He even put in weatherproof outlets on the back wall for plugging in a heater mat.

Unfortunately, people would need some pretty good woodworking skills to build them. If you can build things, we can certainly send you some good photos as to how these were put together. There are some really great plans for shelters online, in all shapes and sizes, if you search and have some woodworking skills. Just make sure you don’t go too large as a cat’s body can only warm a small area. It’s like you trying to keep warm in either an unheated small closet or a warehouse when it’s 20 below. Base the floor size on the size of a cat curled up, or two cats or three.

DOGHOUSE REPURPOSING

Another way we cope with outdoor cats is via plastic dog houses. We often have people donate them to us and we hate to waste things. We use some for warm weather placed around the area and some we remodel for winter use. We take some of the larger variety like the house pictured, and some 2” pink board. We insulate the bottom half, putting a hole for a door that is smaller than the dog version (doghouse doors are really big).

We divide the interior into top and bottom halves and insulate the bottom, but cover most the dog entrance hole, as that’s way too big for a cat and would let out too much heat. We then insulate the top half separately and between the top and bottom we put a pink board floor with a hole in it leading up to the top floor. We put a heating mat on there and a small hole in the wall near the door to stick the cord thru. The cats can go upstairs when real cold and stay downstairs where there is no heater when it’s warmer or gets too warm upstairs. We use straw downstairs.

With this set up we put another donated cat shelter, that was useless for northern climate, in front of the doghouse entrance and the doors lined up nicely so the little shelter functions as a porch, blocking the wind and making it harder for predators to get inside. It also is nice for the cats to sit in in warmer weather. By the time we do all that insulation and such, these are fairly heavy so they stay put, but some plastic dog houses do come apart rather easily, so check and reinforce if necessary. Also clean them out every fall to make sure other critters haven’t moved in over the summer! And make sure the heater still works.

Contact us if you have questions on how to insulate these. Our explanation might not be the best. We can make diagrams and such of you need them.

COOLER & TOTE SHELTERS

Coolers:  Make your own or buy online  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpW69fNzcjc  These can also serve as cat shelters but make sure you get one big enough to hold the cat, or cats. Cutting holes in them takes a little work but is doable. Tape around the edges of the hole or put in a cat door and you have a decent shelter! Fill with straw or add a heating mat. We use a lot of these inside transitional kennels or in sheds

Building a Cheap Tote Shelter:  There are a number of websites out there that give you directions on how to build an outdoor cat shelter using totes and insulation. Do a google search and you can find all kinds of information.

Tips for keeping the outside cats in your life nice and warm!

DOORS: 
If you build a house and use commercially made cat doors, check them daily when it’s below freezing. They hold heat in nicely, but they also have a problem with moisture condensing on the hard plastic from the cats breathing inside. This can freeze when it hits the cold air around the door flap, and it can freeze along the edges, so the door is iced shut. The cats can get trapped inside, so they need to be monitored, or modified so there is enough space between the door and the frame that ice won’t freeze it shut.

Plastic flap strips are good for keeping heat inside if you can get plastic that remains flexible in bitter cold. Rubber roofing sheets and strips (you can find them on amazon under rubber Sheets, rolls and strips) work well as they stay flexible even in cold weather. If it’s a sheet, cut a square about 3-4 inches larger than the hole and then cut strips part way thru leaving an inch or two uncut at the top, and attach that inside or outside the door hole. It won’t be perfect, but it will sure keep things warmer inside. Two layers of strips slightly offset will hold in even more heat.

HEATERS 

Microwave Heaters: Microwave heaters. Snuggle safe heaters are ok temporary heaters for bad nights but when really cold they only last a few hours. There are also some made with seeds in bags, but they don’t hold heat very long either. You have to run back and forth to reheat them.

Electric Heaters: If you have access to electricity for the cats, then these are wonderful. We try to put our shelters near a building where we can tap in to power, especially for our shelters that aren’t the highest quality. They can use a bit of extra warmth. We have a lot of the K&H heater mats in our cat shelters. They come in various sizes so you can get one that fits the floor space. These make a huge difference for the cats. They like to be warm. A good house will keep them alive, but a heated house will keep them comfy and happy.

There are quite a few other brands of heaters that also work well. Make sure you don’t use a lot of insulating straw on top of them though, as that keeps the heat from the cats, and check them often to make sure they are working. We also have a couple shelters that are large and built for more than one cat. Some are two story, and some are just large chest type shelters. In those we use the “hound heaters” if there is enough space that the cats can stay clear of them, and they can be high enough, so the cats don’t get too close. They do get very warm.

Heat lamps also must be used carefully as they can burn the cats and if using straw, can start fires, so always play it safe. We even use regular 100-watt light bulbs inside wire mesh boxes so the cats can’t get too close, but those boxes are hard to find. In large areas the heat lamps they use for chickens also can help a cat out, but don’t use them inside a small, enclosed box.

If any of you have good ideas for shelters, please send them as we are always looking for good ideas. Feel free to contact us with questions about any of this as well. We sure don’t know it all, but we can possibly steer you in the right direction if it’s something we don’t have a clue about.

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