Will the cat be ok

So a cat wondered up a month or two ago and so far it hasn’t been really cold but tomorrow it’s getting down really bad. I have a currently unused very nice insulated dog house near the porch where I feed the cat. Will she use this on her own? She’s 3/4 wild so just grabbing her and putting her in prob won’t happen.

I have a heat lamp in there but my neighbor made me paranoid about using with a story of his coworker house burning down. I had intended to do that and figured she would notice the heat and go in.

Any suggestions appreciated

Hi Joe;
Cats are survivors, even if you did nothing she would be fine.
We have wild cats that live outdoors, down in the old cars, under the house, and up in the barn.
It is currently 5 above zero with 28" of new snow on top of the previous foot.
Tonight expected lows are -12 to -24...
They will have a cubby someplace (maybe your dog house) they will curl up and be fine.

I think you could run the heat lamp for one night if you really think it's too cold but I would not bother.

I agree, she will be fine. I'd probably throw an old pillow or something in the doghouse for her to snuggle in if she wants. Maybe give her a good supper and have fresh water nearby. She might settle in, or she might have already made her own accommodations and not use any of it.  

I would put a bunch of straw or shredded paper inside the dog house and I always pile straw bales or blankets all over the outside.  Cats are surprisingly resilient.  I have seen a lot of semi-feral cats with the ears frostbitten down to nubs though.  That has to be unpleasant.  I wouldn't run a heat lamp, but I have put heating pads inside insulated boxes for my cats when it is very cold.  Our lows tomorrow are in the range Thomas mentioned.  

I have inside cats, outside cats and in between cats.   I also seem to be in a colder climate than you.   We seldom intervene  regarding colder temps unless it is a especially severe drop. Even so, one cat has made it clear she lives outside.

I woud go with the already mentioned straw bedding idea.   As an aside, as long as the heat lamp is secure and 3 to 4 ft above the straw (assuming we are warming a cat.  Bigger animals will need a higher lamp). I don’t see it as a problem.  If it is placed where it can be knocked down, that is a different story.  We use heat lamp fixtures from Premier that allegedly can be laid in the straw, but I have never put them to the test.  They are pricey. I think the last one cost me around $25.00.

Oh yes those warnings about when to bring animals inside that the various weather people give out are climate based. In my area, it is about 32f.  In MN is is around -20….. maybe -30.  I was out in Santa Rosa and warnings were given out at +50.   I am not saying the animal doesn’t have to adjust to the temp, but I wouldn’t panic either if reasonable measures are taken.

To your credit that you are concerned for her, Joe.

With good insulation available- especially straw and snuggly materials she can nestle into - and plenty of food so she can burn extra calories to stay warm, she should do fine. Cats are expert at finding places to stay warm, just make sure the options are there for her.

John F Dean wrote:
Oh yes those warnings about when to bring animals inside that the various weather people give out are climate based. In my area, it is about 32f.  In MN is is around -20….. maybe -30.  I was out in Santa Rosa and warnings were given out at +50.  

Lol, the latest catch phrase is "If you're cold, they're cold".  Tell that to my Central Asian Shepherd that LOVES it when the weather is 15 F outside, and starts to get really uncomfortable in the house if it's above 65 F.  People are silly.

I'll second &/or third all the above. Cats are hyper-resillient thrivers, not merely survivors, and are pros at finding what they need, when they need it, on their own terms.

Ok. I never had a cat before and didn’t want her to get in a bind. She’s a hard worker bring me “gifts” quite frequently although I’d rather more mice than birds. Just want to make sure she has what she needs to keep up.

Thanks all for the advice.

Sometimes stray cats will even have a buddy to cuddle with on cold nights.
They will be fine.

Joe,

I had an outdoor cat growing up that would shelter in an old, extremely rickety doghouse we kept in our garage.  The temperatures dropped to slightly below negative twenty Fahrenheit, not including the windchill.  And as this was my childhood pet, I was understandably concerned.

Similar to as mentioned above, we placed an old, square laundry basket in the doghouse and lined it with a very old sleeping bag (but use whatever you have around.  We then placed an old blanket over the doghouse, loosely covering the entrance and giving the thin shell just a bit of insulation.

But I was still concerned.  I, too, thought about a lamp, but my parents didn’t like the fire risk.  So I thought about filling up 3 1-gallon milk jugs with hot tap water.  I wanted to use boiling water, but my mother refused (the burn potential was pretty high). I stuck all three jugs in the back of the doghouse, behind the laundry basket and put my cat in (he would have gone anyways) and closed the blanket covering the opening.

After about 2 hours I was wondering how things were going.  I stepped outside into the bitterly cold garage which had only gotten colder and approached the doghouse, expecting the water jugs to have completely cooled off and the temperatures to be only slightly raised.  WRONG!!  When I lifted the blanket covering the opening and stuck my head in, I was greeted with a warm blast of 90 degree air on my face and the sound of my cat purring LOUDLY!!  He was very warm on a terribly cold afternoon.

I was expecting to have to add new warm water every 2 hours or so, but for the night we swapped out the water, filling two jugs with warm tap water and the center with boiling water. I placed the boiling jug in the center for the night and slept soundly, knowing my cat was warm.  By morning the jugs had cooled to tepid but the air was still plenty warm and my cat was practically on vacation.

This is a long-winded way of suggesting that maybe you consider using the warmth of hot water for space heating in place of a light.  We used this trick for years.

Good Luck!!

Eric

How did things work out with the cat?

Cat survived without issue. Did not use the doghouse. Was worried because I didn’t see her for a day or two but she’s back now

I'm glad she's okay. Must've been a worrying time when she didn't come visit!

Our cat, Tiny Kitty had cabin fever plus we at folks here so at noon she took off and spent the 14 F night outside.  She survived as she came home this morning around 4 am.

She still has to put up with visitors.