Garages Can be Deadly For a Neighborhood Cats

Many people have indoor/outdoor cats. And these cats usually go outdoors on a warm day and return at the end of the day to go indoors. But what happens when the weather is rainy or cold, will your cat go in an open garage or shed? Most cats when they enter a garage they will investigate and some may lie down to go to sleep especially if it is raining or cold outdoors.

Garden shed can also be deadly for a cat.  If the door is left open

The homeowner will have no idea the cat is in their garage because when a human approaches the cat may hide. The garage is closed because they are unaware a cat is in their a garage.

Now, what if the homeowner goes to work and returns 12 hours later and do not open the garage. They park their car in the driveway go to the back bedroom to take a nap or watch TV and do not hear the cats meow.

Know that a cat can go without food but they cannot go without water. Water is a necessity. What happens to the cat if the homeowner closes their garage door and leaves for vacation?

An open door is inviting a cat to come indoors

Garages that are left open then closed at some point with a remote are dangerous for a neighborhood cat. My neighbor leaves his garage open for many hours then closes with a remote. He told my husband that where their garage is situated that they would never hear a cat meow. He also said that they went on vacation and came home to a horrendous stench. They opened their garage door and found the remains of a cat.

This is why I say an open garage can be deadly for a neighborhood cat.

Garages can be deadly for a neighborhood cat and I am hoping that everyone spreads the word, people know to sound their horn in winter for cats that may climb into their engine block for warmth. Maybe we can get the word out about garages that are left open and that everyone should check for a neighborhood cat or leave a bowl of water.

We always leave a bowl of water and some food, especially if the garage door is left open. It is the only way to know for certain that no cat or other animal is inside. If food and water are missing then you will know to leave the door open and watch for the animal to come out.

If you leave your garden shed open, be sure to check for animals by leaving food and water and closing the door, then recheck the next day.

Why Do Cats Sleep on Your Pillow

Ever wonder why your cats sleep on your pillow or around your head? Know that it is not because they want to be close to you and they are not lying on your pillow because it is so comfortable. The real reason for the attraction is because sleeping on your pillow is a way for a cat to keep warm.

Yes it is true and you can put this to the test, note when your cat sleeps on your pillow, I bet it is when your bedroom is cold. (leave me a comment below with your findings)

All of my socialized feral cats sleep on my pillow next to my head and a one will lie on my head making it hard on my hair and I put on a hat. The hat on my head was a deterrent so my cat will sleep on my husband pillow or in a self-warming pet bed on the floor.

Even kittens are heat seekers, this is Hairy and he loved to sleep under the blankets

Never underestimate a cat because if they are cold they will go to the place on your body that emits heat. Okay, it is safe to say that not all cats will sleep on your pillow. Some cats will sleep under the bed blankets next to your feet. Why, because feet put off heat.

Know that any part of your body that is exposed to the cold more than any other part has the potential to lose heat and your cold cats will lie closest to the body part. If you would prefer your cats to be off your bed and away from your pillow then buy them a self warming bed. I did and the cats love them so much that they rarely sleep on our pillow, but do occasionally sleep at the end of the bed.

Gracie sleeping on her Purr Pad.  An inexpensive self-warming bed

Ways to Stop Kittens from Biting

When my darling kitten turned two months old she began to play rough with me. Okay, it is totally normal for kittens to play at this age, but unfortunately, along with their play, they do not realize that they need to bite something other than their person. My husband thought she was hungry but learned quickly that it was not the case, because the darling kitten was biting his toes while he was making her a bowl of food and after she at a few bites she gleefully resumed her biting.  Through trial and error, I learned the best way to put a stop to the biting. 

The best way is to distract your cat when they begin to play rough or bite you is to introduce them to a cat activity.  .One way that works is to spray their scratching post with natural catnip then pick your cat up and take to the post. Set their paws on the post, once your cat picks up the scent of the catnip they will forget about biting you.

Another way to get your cat to stop biting you is to address the biting as soon as your cat begins behaving badly. Introduce them to cat toys. It is best to have the toys in a pet room or other room that is away from you.

I have often suspected that my kitten may be anxious or bored and this is why she bites me and plays rough with me. So I bought her a cat tree and sprayed the entire thing with catnip. She loves it and when she starts to bite and play rough I will pick her up and take her to her tree. 

* I recommend setting the cat tree next to a window so kitty can climb to the top. It is helpful to hang an outdoor bird feeder close to the window so your cat can watch the birds. Watching the birds eat at the feeder is more enjoyable than biting their human.

Cat Trees at Chewy Product Review

Over the years I have bought many cat trees, some were great and others fell apart quickly, some fell down when cats climbed to the top. So I was hesitant to buy this cat product online until I shopped for cat trees at chewy.com

My FIV cat Sam loves his cat tree

Shopping for a cat tree takes time because not all of these products are quality made. Know that the selling cost is not a guarantee that the product will hold up under daily cats playing. So when I saw that Chewy carried cat trees I knew they must be quality because this website is highly respected for offering the best products to their customers.

Here is a photo of my FIV cat scratching on the post on his cat tree. We bought this tree at a local pet product store, it was very expensive but it did not hold up and the wood is showing on a relatively new tree. 

Scratching posts on the tree are good for cats.

Know that you can't go wrong at Chewy, there are verified customers that review the products and give the product a rating. You can trust what 1K customers say about the cat trees. I always buy products that have many reviews and 5 stars. ed this product with a 5-star rating. They confirmed that the cat trees sold at chewy were very good and all were satisfied. 

Cat tree I bought from Chewy 

So I shopped until I found the right size tree for my cats. I liked that the tree had five scratching posts, a toy for them to play with and a hiding space for napping. I bought a quality cat tree, that was on sale with free shipping because I added it as a one-time purchase to my auto ship. Chewy does ship all pet products with two-day delivery free of charge as long as you spend $49. It is easy to do because they have discounted prices on all their pet products.

Do you shop at chewy.com?  

Here is another chewy.com cat tree review

 

Maintaining Cats Health with Evolve Cat Food

Many people are feeding their cats Evolve food because the maintenance formula has real slow roasted chicken and is made from wholesome ingredients; brown rice, dried kelp, fish meal, dried egg, dried cheese cranberries, and blueberries. A healthy food for your cats that does not contain corn, wheat or soy yet cost less than other cat food in this category.

Feral cat Bob eats Evolve cat food

When you feed your cats the evolve maintenance formula you will notice that your cats are healthier. This cat food provides your cat with protein and natural antioxidants as well as carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, and probiotics which promotes a healthy digestive tract and immune system.

Feral cat in Winter at feeding station

I would recommend this cat food for FIV cats as the products are quality and sourced from the USA. All natural products with no preservatives added sugars or by-products. A healthy food for cats with immune disorder condition. My FIV cat eats this food mixed with the can food and he is doing great, We rescued him when he was two years old and is now age ten. Has a shiny coat and teeth are good, no sickness.

Senior rescue cat has shiny coat thanks to Evolve cat food

If you are interested in this cat food then I would recommend that you shop for evolve cat food at Chewy.com. Sign up for their auto-ship program and get a discount. You can cancel your order anytime. Know that this is a product that you can trust as it is made in the USA.

Feed adult and senior cats Evolve cat food. This food is not recommended for kittens. Follow the average food portion for an adult cat and do not overfeed. A six-pound cat should be fed 3/4 to 1/2 cup of food daily. A ten-pound cat should be fed 1/2 to 3/4 cup of food daily. A fourteen-pound cat should be fed 3/4 to 1 cup of food daily.

Introduce new evolve cat food to your cat by mixing it with their food. Mixing the new food with the old food will help the cats to adjust to the new food flavor, texture, and kibble. Mixing will also prevent upsetting the cat’s digestive tract.

Reduce your cat's other food daily by adding more evolve. Within a week your cat will be eating evolve cat food only.

Evolve may be an acquired taste especially if your cat has been eating the same food for years. If your cat does not like evolve food they will not eat. You can entice your cat to eat the cat food by adding a little evolve canned food and then mix the kibble into the soft food.

Evolve Cat Food Ingredients:

Chicken, Chicken Meal, Ground Brown Rice, Rice Flour, Chicken Fat (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Natural Flavors, Fish Meal, Dried Tomato Pomace, Dried Egg Product, Taurine, Calcium Sulfate, Salt, Dl-Methionine, Dried Skim Milk, Dried Kelp, Dried Cheese Product, Cranberries, Blueberries, Lactobacillus Casei , Lactobacillus Acidophilus Vitamins (Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Thiamine Mononitrate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement) Minerals (Zinc Polysaccharide Complex, Iron Polysaccharide Complex, Manganese Polysaccharide Complex and Copper Polysaccharide Complex,Zinc Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite).

You will love evolve pet foods

Neighbors Provide Cats with Shelter

There is a gray cat that comes to visit my yard daily; this cat belongs to a neighbor that resides two blocks away. Normally the weather is mild and the cat can play or sleep in my yard, but yesterday the lightning, hail and wind storm was fierce and occurred an hour after this tabby came to visit.

Rain Clouds rolling in

Happy cat in the garden 

My husband says “Sylvester is in the yard and he will never make it home before the storm." We agreed to provide the neighborhood cat with shelter in our garage. My husband picked up the cat and runs through the rain, I follow with a bowl, water and fresh pan of litter. When the neighbors’ cat was safe in the garage I called his people to let them know he was okay. They had no idea that there was a storm because they were at work and thought their cat could find their way home or take shelter in brush or under somebody’s deck or porch.

I told them that the weather was very bad, strong wind, hail, and rain and that my garage was the best shelter for the cat. That we would let their cat out when the storm passed. My neighbor said okay.

Neighborhood cat brought kittens to our garage for shelter 

Know that our roof and car had hail damage from this storm. It was very bad and I am thankful that the neighbor's cat was in my garage. 

My other neighbor two doors down always leaves her garage open about 18 inches so cats can take shelter when the weather is bad.  

Do you provide neighborhood cats with shelter in an emergency?

My 4-Year-Old Cat Died Suddenly

My cat was a normal 4-year -old orange and white short hair tabby that lived indoors and did not have any cat diseases or so I thought. There were no warning signs of sickness but that did not mean that my cat would not die suddenly.

We rescued Dini when he was a baby kitten. He was the first kitten I saw in the trash bag that was dumped in the grassy section of the highway. My husband and I parked our car on the side of the road, crossed the highway carefully and walked slowly to rescue the orange and white baby cat that was meowing and looking very scared. I prayed as I approached the kitten that he did not run into the highway traffic.

Dini / photo taken a few days after we rescued him

We reached the trash bag and kitten extended its paws toward me, It was so small that I put it in my coat pocket then learned that there were other kittens in the bag. We rescued all of them and looked around to see if there were more before taking them home to bottle feed, help go to the bathroom and remove the fleas. My husband and I did not sleep for 10 days because these babies needed our care.

Photo of all rescue kittens on day they were weaned to mushy solid kitten food

The kittens survived and Dini (short for Houdini) was a normal 8-week old kitten even though he was the runt. He had the energy and the courage of a lion and we should have named him Romeo because he was so loving. This kitten kept us entertained because there was no room, cage, the carrier that would confine him., He would slide under doors, open cages, carriers, doors, and cabinets. He would study it by watching me. hence his real name Houdini.

Dini / at 5 weeks old

Dini and littermate Larry fascinated with the vacuum cord. This was the day we bought cord covers to keep the cats safe.  Dini is a one-year-old here.

He absolutely did not like being away from me so he would slide under our bedroom door to snuggle up next to me. I would awake with a kitten on my head. Like I said, Dini was a healthy kitten and 4-year-old cat who brought joy to our lives. He was talkative, played with his toys, played with other cats, loved to eat and even retrieved his plastic cat ball.

I work out of my home so I am with the cats 24/7 so if Dini was not feeling well I would know. But this cat was never sick, not a day in his life until he dropped dead at 4-years-old. Dini died from cardiac arrest from complications of an enlarged heart and suspicion of cancer.

I have read the cats will hide their sickness from their owners and from other cats, I also read that when cats have the same diagnosis as my Dini that they generally die suddenly.  

When a beloved fur-kid die suddenly it breaks your heart.

Here are a few articles that I published about Dini

When Cat Opens Cabinets and Crates

Meet Houdini my Rescued Kitten

Neighbor Took My Cat

If you have an outdoor cat that does not have a collar and this cat goes for walk in the neighborhood your neighbors may think the cat is a stray and if your cat likes visiting your neighbor, snacking at their food bowl, lying on their porch they may take your cat, assuming it is a stray.

My cat is social, she has her outdoor routine which is primarily hanging out in our yard and gardens but she does go to visit a few neighbors. Normally she is gone about an hour but today she was gone for 12 hours and I was worried and searching for her.

At first, I thought she was upset with me because when I left the yard to go into the woods she meowed in protest. I knew my husband was going to be able to console her and groom her in less than an hour. I had to go to the woods and the chance of her following me was low because it is not something that she does. She does protest whenever I leave the yard but gives up and goes to sit on the patio furniture so I did not worry about her. 

I got back from my errand about noon and saw that my cat was not in the yard. My husband said he had not seen her and this is not like her to be gone that long. We were worried, we searched for her by looking in all her kitty spots, called her, walked around the block to her favorite spots. None of my neighbors saw her.

A photo card of my cat in the garden

My cat was gone without a trace.

My husband said he would sit out on the patio and wait for her to come home. We did not want to go to bed without her being home because we must lock the cat house at night due to the wildlife.

When she was gone for ten hours I thought she must have been taken or killed. These thoughts go through your head because there are so many people in the world that abuse animals. Two hours later I went outdoors and called her name again and I hear her calling out in the distance. She is running through my neighbor's yard and she leaps into my arms. My cat is home she is safe and she is groomed! She is one fluffy cat that smells like she had a bath.

I think it is really bizarre that a neighbor would take my cat and groom by giving it a bath and brushing.   No doubt they wanted to keep her because her collar with a tag is missing. Lucky for us that my cat was smart enough to run out through an open door. I do not know where my cat went, if she was picked up by a neighbor or if she visited a neighbor and they took her inside their house. 

Know that my cat has a collar, name tag and a microchip so I think that people should respect that. The only time you would take a cat in is if seems lost hangs out at your house and never goes home is a good sign that somebody may have moved and left their cat behind or the cat is lost. A cat that is abandoned or lost is a reason to take an animal into your home, but as soon as you are able you must check for a microchip and place a classified ad in your local newspaper to report the lost cat and make every attempt to find its owner.

Trapping Feral Cats for Shelter Surrender

Today while on Facebook I asked if anyone put out a bowl of water for the neighborhood cats or wildlife. Most people were kind and said that they did, but one of my followers said that she used a humane method of trapping stray and feral cats and took them to the shelter.  Know that there is nothing humane about trapping a cat, they are terrified and if they are feral the shelter will euthanize the frightened cat.

I have no idea what she was thinking but the animal shelter does not put feral cats up for adoption and they do not sterilize them or place them in colonies. As a rule, shelters will euthanize all feral cats immediately and any cat that is aggressive, even if they are fearful; hiss-spitting cannot be adopted and they are not going to socialize it for adoption.

 It is a death sentence for stray/feral cats if they are trapped and taken to an animal shelter.  Here is an article from Alley Cat Allies that explains why trapping and killing cats is not a good way to control cat populations

Feral cats that I have trapped for TNR or socialization

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Feral kittens in my yard / both Trapped, Sterilized and socialized.  Had they been trapped and take to shelter they would have been euthanized.  They were Feral, wild and terrified of humans.  Cannot be adopted. Shelters would euthanize.

Many people assume cats without collars are strays or feral cats.  We find cats without collars in our yard all of the time, some stay a few days hanging out, others find their way back to their homes. 95% of them are neighborhood cats.

This cat without collar hung out in our yard for 4 days.  He was afraid of us, hissed and spit he also meowed.  Feral cats do not meow and they run from humans so they do not hiss or spit.  Today we saw the flyer, this cat was lost and scared.  He may have looked like a stray/feral cat with no collar, but the story is he got out of the house and was lost.

 If the cat hangs around for several days we will take their photograph and post it on a “found cat flyer” and pass it out to our neighbors. We will also go online to Facebook to share a photograph of found cat at the Humane Society and our contact information. We never trap the cat to surrender to the shelter for fear that the cat will be euthanized.

Here is a flyer that I use when looking for pet owners.

Lost or Found Cat Mailbox Flyer

by Susang6

Backside of cat flyer:

Lost or Found Cat Mailbox Flyer

by Susang6

As for feral cats we do trap them and take them to the veterinarian for feline disease tests, sterilization and rabies and other vaccines before we release them to an area called a colony where there are caretakers to feed these cats and watch to make sure they are okay. Learn more about neighborhood cats and their TNR at Alley Cat Allies  

Stray Cat Hiding in Garden

Tonight a gray and white stray cat came to our backyard. At first, we did not see him because he was hiding in the grass garden. When there was movement in the garden my husband and I went to investigate and that is when we found a nice looking adult cat.

When the cat realized that we saw him he sat up and started to meow. His meows were loud and sorrowful. My husband decided that the meowing was anxiety or he was trying to tell us he was hungry. So we decided to offer the stray cat a bowl of food.

We fed him Natural Balance limited ingredients duck and chickpea morsels that were mixed with two tablespoons of water.  This food was given to us by a neighbor and the feral cats like it because there are only one protein source and no fillers.

My husband brought the food to the cat. The cat did not hiss which is an indication that it is not feral. He put the food down two feet from the cat and the cat walked by my husband, his fur brushing up on his leg. This tells us that the stray is not fearful of humans.

There was no collar on the cat but maybe the cat has a microchip? We did not want to pick up the cat because it might frighten it. So we will watch the cat, to see if it hangs around our house or goes back into the neighborhood. It is possible that it just came to visit our yard and hang out in the gardens.

The stray ate every morsel in the bowl then went to our pond to get a drink. Then we watched as the cat walked toward our front yard. Instead of heading back to his house the cat laid on our front porch until the neighbor's cat came to visit, then the stray ran into the woods.

We are not sure if this little guy is lost, abandoned or what...but will watch out for him to make sure he is okay and will look for "lost cat posters" in the neighborhood.

Here is a photograph of the stray kitty in our yard. 

Cat Foods That Trigger Allergies

An abandoned cat that I rescued was showing signs of a cat cold constantly even though he was current with all of his vaccines. When I asked how he could be sick the veterinarian informed me that the vaccines were like the human flu vaccines being that it did not protect you from all strains of the virus.

We were told that our cat may be sick from household stress and was advised to buy the Feliway products for our home and the veterinarian suggestions to give our cat Viralys L-lysine supplement to boost his immune system. After doing everything that we were asked our cat still had cold symptoms which included the feline herpes virus, coughing, sneezing and eye drainage.

Here is a video that is helpful in learning more about foods your cat may be allergic to

Our veterinarian was certain that these symptoms were coming on due to the stress of being abandoned, rescued and living indoors. They noted that it was common to have sick cats in multiple cat homes where there were also dogs and any changes to a cat's life could cause the cat to get colds due to the stress.

I can understand that BUT my cats and dogs all got along and normally when one cat is sick they all are and none of my other cats had symptoms of cold or another feline virus.

When none of the other cats got cold like symptoms I thought that what my cat may have is food allergies. So I changed the cat's food to Natural Balance limited ingredients duck flavor because if a cat is allergic to food then you should stay away from chicken, beef, grain, gluten, egg and seafood including salmon as these foods will trigger allergies symptoms.

After feeding the limited ingredients duck cat food for a week I noticed that the cats cold like symptoms went away. I am certain that the food I was feeding my cat was causing him to have an allergic reaction.

From Chewy.com website a quote: “If your furry feline has a sensitivity to fillers and additives found in most canned cat food, natural balance L.I.D. Green pea & duck formula is a perfect choice! duck meat, duck broth, duck liver, and real peas provide the vitamins and minerals needed, with no grains or fillers tiger wouldn’t eat in the wild. Limited ingredient diets are great for cats of any age with food sensitivities, or for owners that want a simple, wholesome, natural meal for their pet. They are rich in antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals needed for a long, healthy life”

Here are some shopping links for limited ingredient duck food formulated for cats. Know that you should always seek veterinarian care before making changes to cats lifestyle because your cat may have another health condition.

Chewy.comNatural Balance Limited Ingredients Cat Food

Cats Choose their People

Cats are social animals that will choose the people they want to be with and the yards that they want to visit. Some visits are daily and other visits seem like the cat will never go home.

Know that when neighborhood cats visit your yard that it means that the yard has a positive energy, Cats visit my yard daily, they drink from my pond, lie in my clover garden and lounge on my patio furniture. These cats are feral, stray and cats from the neighborhood. My neighbor has a pond and a natural looking yard but no cats go to their yard and I suspect it is due to the energy, they do not like cats and the felines sense this.

Here are some cat cards that I created from the photographs I took of the cats that have chosen my yard.

Beautiful Tabby Cat in Grass Garden Photo Postcard

Feral Kittens in Garden Postcard

My husband and I love cats, but that does not mean that we do not respect their space, as we make no attempts to bond with them because if we did they would not go home. We care for a feral and stray cat colony that is away from my home but we do not put out a bowl of cat food in our yard.

Know that over the years I have had two neighborhood cats decide that their visit would be indefinite. Both cats had no intention of going back to their homes. Both cats were from the same family and they were subjected to abuse. The cats decided that they wanted to live at my house and showed me that I was the chosen one by jumping up on the bench where I sat to lie next to me when I read my book in the garden.

Eventually, I did put out a bowl of food and fresh water for these cats. I also opened the kitty door on my shed so they could take shelter when the weather was extreme heat, cold and the rain.

Photo card of feral cat being fed in winter

Cat in Snow with Greeting Christmas Card

But before I did any of the above I researched the family and found that the mother was a hoarder and that she had many cats that did not get along. She trained her cats by allowing them to fight among themselves and work out their indifference. The cats that got beat up were put outdoors and the cats that ruled the house lived indoors.

Both cats that came to my yard, arrived with multiple bite wounds, and these cats were seniors, age 14 and 17. The cats choose to my yard as they are free to leave anytime between 6 AM and 7 PM ( the time when the cat shed is opened/closed.) The cats were always prompt to go in for the night because they choose their people.

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If you are thinking of adopting a cat or a kitten then I would recommend that you allow the cat to choose you. Whenever we have taken in feral or rescue kittens I have told the adopters to sit away from the kittens then wait for the kitten to approach them. To allow the kitten to check them out and the kitten that shows affection is the one that has chosen them as their person. These unions have been very good and no kittens were returned to me.