Feral Cat Sleeping in Bed Made of Straw Post Card

Winter has finally come and the feral cats that live in the woods have come to our shed shelter to sleep in the beds made of straw.  These feral cats usually come into the shelter sometime before 9 PM and exit in the early morning.  If I did not see the indentation in the straw then I would not know they were there.

I decided to watch for the cats going into the shed and got lucky,   took photographs of them from outside the window.  These photographs were not as clear as they should be so I bathed with hunters soap to remove the scent of a human and hunkered down with my camera in a dark corner of the shed.  I was hiding behind boxes.   Yes I was determined to get photographs of the feral cats.  These woods cats are nocturnal and terrified of humans.

I waited for the feral cats to come into the shed for several  hours and when my leg was falling to sleep and I was ready to give up a cat did come through the kitty door.  I was happy that the images of the feral cats turned out, as well as they did, because most people do not see this side of a feral cat.  They never see them safe, warm and sleeping in a bed made of straw.

This post card was designed from one of my photographs of feral cats sleeping in bed made from straw.  

Feral Cat Sleeping in Winter ShelterPost Card 

Feral Cat Sleeping in Winter Shelter Post Card

Insulated Cat Houses Donated

Cat house and feeding station

Handmade insulated shelters were donated last week. These shelters will provide a warm and a safe area for the outdoor feral and stray cats that are in my care. 

The cat houses are made of wood and they have an inch of insulation on the top, bottom and all of the sides.  There is a front door and an exit door to keep the outdoor cats safe.  

My husband painted the houses hunter green and then applied a water repellent.  To provide the cats with extra warmth we filled them with thick layers of straw before setting them up in the yard.  One cat house sits close to the woods entrance.  

This outdoor shelter will attract the feral cats that are terrified of humans and only venture out at night.  The other shelter is close to the backside of my home; it sits next to a rock wall as it provides a wind block.  I also set a wooden cat house on my side porch as the awning will keep it dry and it enables me to set up a feeding station.  The shelter on my porch is filled with a foot of straw and then topped with an insulated pet blanket.

We have watched for the cats but have only viewed one cat enter the shelter up against the backside of our shed.  

This cat was viewed taking an afternoon nap.  The other shelters do indicate evidence that cats are lying in the house.  The straw is molded to the shape of a cat’s body and we have found evidence of cat hair on the pet blanket.  

The outdoor cats know the cat houses are there and I am certain that when the weather turns colder that they will be seeking warmth and will enter the  insulated cat shelters.  

Here are photographs:

Insulated interior of cat shelter, black cat fur on blanket

Cat sleeping in shelter

Insulated shelter with overhang