Outdoor Cat House Ideas

I have recently been taking care of a stray cat - now named, Knuckles the Cat. Actually, he appears to have been somebody's pet as he is not afraid to approach me or let me pet him. He was in pretty bad shape when I found him - definitely malnourished, perhaps dehydrated and was suffering from a lack of sleep. I couldn't let him continue in that state so I provided food and water and have been doing so since I found him. The weather turned cold and rainy after a brief spell of sunlight and warmth here in Central Ohio so my next concern was building him some kind of shelter.

I started off with just a cardboard box that I cut a hole in and added some bedding. Heavy rains came and I had to upgrade the outdoor cat shelter to something a little more weatherproof. I started searching on the net and found some great ideas:

Here's how to build an outdoor cat shelter out of two plastic storage containers - I adapted this by putting the cardboard box shelter inside a plastic storage bin.

Here's the catpod - An outdoor cat shelter built from a storage container and adding a cat door.

Here's the FeralVilla - An outdoor cat shelter with two levels with the top level being insulated with a capacity of 2-3 cats. This looks really interesting and I may pick up one. You can also find plenty of videos on YouTube of various outdoor cat structures. These are some links to resources if you are looking to provide shelter for strays or keep your cat outdoors because of refusal to use the litter box or other reasons.

Update December 5, 2010 Outdoor Cat Shelter - I bought Knuckles the Cat a Feral Villa but I had to wait several weeks before it was delivered. In the meantime, I took my plastic storage container and lined all the sides and top with reflective insulation. I started to use liquid nails to glue the insulation to the side of the storage bin. Liquid Nails is some toxic nastiness so I substituted double sided carpet tape. I found a foam heating pad that fit the box perfectly and placed that on top of some carpet padding at the bottom. I drilled a hole for the electric cord and had already cut a hole for the entrance. I took some plastic and used duct tape to adhere it over the entry way to help keep out the rain and wind.

To initially get the cat in the box, buy some catnip and sprinkle it inside. If it's cold out and the heating pad is on, the cat will get the idea and use it for shelter. Keep food and water well away from the sleeping shelter. In fact, I usually take the food and water inside my house for the night so as to not tempt raccoons and others varmints.

As temperatures continued to fall this November and December, I became a little worried that the cat was still cold inside the shelter. I would check on the cat from time to time inside the shelter, and he seemed comfortable. As I write this, it's currently 28 degrees outside. I placed a remote thermometer inside the shelter. Despite being 28 outside, it is 69 degrees inside the shelter. We are going to have a low of 11 degrees in a few days and I'll be interested to see how warm it stays inside the shelter.

I've noticed that Knuckles' appetite has increased quite a bit as the weather has turned colder. Be sure and increase the frequency of meals as well as the portions during the winter. Knuckles has put on some weight but that should serve him well this winter.

I have finally taken delivery of the feral villa but Knuckles has pretty much decided on the old green storage container as his home. I may keep the feral villa around or donate it to a friend who cares for stray cats.