Winter Shelters: What Am I Doing Wrong? I feel like such a failure

MoonstoneWolf

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Tourmaline will NOT go into that winter shelter no matter what. She doesn't like fish, she's totally unimpressed with catnip. She prefers the cat tent. She avoids the straw like it's a plague. I did get the tent with a self warming pad and a table propped up against bricks and black plastic bag to block any wind but wondering if she'll be ok. I know I asked this last year but that was for cats born and growing up feral and used to the constant changing weather (Treasure is laying on cold concrete right now like it's a hot summer day. But Tourmaline is a dumped pet. This may or may not be her first winter outside. She only showed up a few days after Shaman left me but super friendly so I'm assuming she was a pet? Right now it's 22 degrees with a windchill of 8 degrees. Looking at the hourly forecast the temp will drop to 12 degrees and sadly and yikes not sure what the windchill will drop to. I'm really worried and sad. I have no litter box or anything to sneak her inside tonight. Does anyone have any idea or do you think she'll figure out the winter shelter and go inside. I make too many mistakes with these cats, I don't want anything bad happen to Tourmaline. Please, can someone tell me one way or the other? I'll sneak her in if I can but no way at this hour on Christmas Eve to get litter and litter box. :(
 

fionasmom

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Is she using the pad in the tent? If she likes the tent can you put another heating source inside? Evidently not on Christmas Eve, but next week? Is she friendly enough for you to put her in the shelter and show her what it is? Would Tourmaline use a box with shredded papers or dirt if you have to bring her in?

I have had dumped pets use my outdoor shelters over the years. Long stories of how I knew they were pets, not relevant here. Of my outdoor ferals now, I have shelters all over my property in the back, heating pad on a patio chair, and an open side garage door with another heating pad and several bed. To my knowledge, no one uses them except one very happy possum. Admittedly it is not 22 here but one would think that they would use it.
 
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MoonstoneWolf

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Yes she loves the pad in the tent. I put her in the shelter (she lets anyone pick her up) but she just walks out and goes back to the tent. I did that several times. She does not like treats, does not like catnip and does not like mackerel or other fish. I don't know about shredded paper.
 
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MoonstoneWolf

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Well she took off with Gypsy so I'm at ease now. Gypsy was born feral and is 6 years of age. He knows where all the warm spots are I'm sure. Both are fixed so no kittens so no worries there. Just that Gypsy decided to take her under his paws. I guess after the raccoon incident two weeks ago she doesn't want to be in the tent at night.

Or she did. She's back now. Ugh another sleepless night I see.

I'm such a failure with these cats. :(
 
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CatladyJan

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Well she took off with Gypsy so I'm at ease now. Gypsy was born feral and is 6 years of age. He knows where all the warm spots are I'm sure. Both are fixed so no kittens so no worries there. Just that Gypsy decided to take her under his paws. I guess after the raccoon incident two weeks ago she doesn't want to be in the tent at night.

Or she did. She's back now. Ugh another sleepless night I see.

I'm such a failure with these cats. :(
You are not a failure but a kind and caring person.

Lots of cats will not use the shelters unless it’s extremely cold. Since there is an option it would appear the tent wins. If you have some cardboard that would be better than the concrete.
 
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MoonstoneWolf

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😩 No cardboard. No outlets. Nothing. 😥😥😥

their breathing is labored. What a horrible situation 😩
3F06E43B-3DDB-47CD-BF27-C0E48C990D08.png
 
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di and bob

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Cats can handle cold a lot better than you think. If she is using a heat pad under that tent she will be fine. She obviously doesn't like straw. I use blankets in mine and wash them frequently when they are out of the shelter. I had one little feral that slept all winter curled up on a padded patio chair with a heated shelter right beside him. and we get below zero. When it got really cold, like zero and below he did crawl into a little tent-like, zip together cat house I got on Amazon with a heated pad and a blanket thrown over it to partially block the doorway. If it makes you feel better, I had ferals at the lake where we lived and they would just curl up under the snow and sleep. They would just be mounds and scare you by jumping out when you walked by. They preferred this to an open shed with beds, and it was often below zero!
 
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MoonstoneWolf

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Cats can handle cold a lot better than you think. If she is using a heat pad under that tent she will be fine. She obviously doesn't like straw. I use blankets in mine and wash them frequently when they are out of the shelter. I had one little feral that slept all winter curled up on a padded patio chair with a heated shelter right beside him. and we get below zero. When it got really cold, like zero and below he did crawl into a little tent-like, zip together cat house I got on Amazon with a heated pad and a blanket thrown over it to partially block the doorway. If it makes you feel better, I had ferals at the lake where we lived and they would just curl up under the snow and sleep. They would just be mounds and scare you by jumping out when you walked by. They preferred this to an open shed with beds, and it was often below zero!
I'm sorry but you misunderstood: The ferals are absolutely fine. Tourmaline is not a feral never was and hopefully never will be. She's a dumped pet that no one wanted and has only been here 10 months. So as I stated in my post she is not used to the cold like the feral cats are. We also do not have outlets outside for a cat heating pad. Sorry for the confusion.
 
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MoonstoneWolf

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Cats can handle cold a lot better than you think. If she is using a heat pad under that tent she will be fine. She obviously doesn't like straw. I use blankets in mine and wash them frequently when they are out of the shelter. I had one little feral that slept all winter curled up on a padded patio chair with a heated shelter right beside him. and we get below zero. When it got really cold, like zero and below he did crawl into a little tent-like, zip together cat house I got on Amazon with a heated pad and a blanket thrown over it to partially block the doorway. If it makes you feel better, I had ferals at the lake where we lived and they would just curl up under the snow and sleep. They would just be mounds and scare you by jumping out when you walked by. They preferred this to an open shed with beds, and it was often below zero!
You did give me an idea though. I do have a throw as well as an old shower curtain. I can get the old shower curtain for around the sides of the carrier and use the throw. Currently what I have is a large plastic bag on the concrete with Cardboard inside. Then another large plastic bag over that. The tent, another black plastic bag, the mat that came with the tent, a self warming pad. Sadly I have to hold the whole shebang down with bricks or it blows away but I may stick the old bricks in un matched socks so that is a bit warmer. Then I'll put the old shower curtain on the back and sides of the tent, the throw on the top and slowly lower the blanket (throw) to the front til she gets used to just going in.

Thanks for the idea.
 
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MoonstoneWolf

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Here's my set up so far. I got old socks and cut them in a way that would fit a brick in side. I then laid 2 black plastic bags on the ground with an old cardboard box. Placed the tent on top of that, layer another black plastic bag, the mat, warming pad, beach blanket towel , held all of that down with 4 bricks in the socks. put a shower curtain over the back and sides anchoring with bricks and on either side and backed up against the wall. Then the throw on top of that. I do have to be careful or the tent will lean forward. I may take her a bit to get used to the new set up, so I'll have to put her inside and see how she takes to it.
 
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TooManyFelines

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I feel for you! We purchased a shelter and body heat warming pad for "our" stray and he just won't use it. Put catnip in there, put his food in there, and he will enter to eat the food but then walk out again. I put inside-out fleece sweats around the pad so he can be cozy when it does get cold at night, but he is just not interested. We've noticed that he seems to spend nights elsewhere sometimes, so hopefully he has a snug place to hunker down when it gets cold. Thankfully we don't have very cold temps for extended time periods here.
 
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MoonstoneWolf

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I feel for you! We purchased a shelter and body heat warming pad for "our" stray and he just won't use it. Put catnip in there, put his food in there, and he will enter to eat the food but then walk out again. I put inside-out fleece sweats around the pad so he can be cozy when it does get cold at night, but he is just not interested. We've noticed that he seems to spend nights elsewhere sometimes, so hopefully he has a snug place to hunker down when it gets cold. Thankfully we don't have very cold temps for extended time periods here.
Oh she'll go in the tent but I don't think it's warm enough and of course she has to constantly underfoot so trying to fix it for her comfort is almost an impossible task. I have to go back out to smooth out the self warming pad as well as fix the cam inside. All while straddling her while trying to do it. She'll just flop on the ground under your feet and won't move. lol

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The best I could do with what I have and a cat flopped under my feet.
 
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I wish I knew the magic word. We set up 2 styrofoam and straw shelters about 10 feet apart under our awning for our 2 loving semi-ferals. one of them took to them immediately, sleeping inside, and they both started to sit/sleep on top of them. the other took a whole 3 months to sleep inside, the day of a snow storm. now she's in there every night, it seems.
 
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