My new enclosure

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ondine

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FeralVR:  I know!  That would be the first thing I'd do when I win the lottery.  I really want to build another enclosure, attached to the house, for my inside cats.  They love sitting next to the open windows.  Schofield's project came first though.  In time, if things work out, we'll introduce everyone and connect the enclosures with a tunnel.

Augie:  Schofield is definitely not feral - he was socialized as a kitten but kicked out of his home at around 12 weeks.  Right now, he's just a little rough around the edges but is coming around fast.  I have been spending more time with him, playing and just visiting.  As he gets used to his new home, he's calmed down a lot.  I would have brought him inside but we simply do not have any more room.  The enclosure was a lot cheaper than adding on a room!

I do not know if he was part of a colony or not.  I do not think he was being fed regularly, except by me.  He's just too thin.  Now he's on a grain-free diet, as are my inside kitties.  He's started eating the dry food I set out for him now (I tried a couple of types and he likes the For Health from Tractor Supply). 

I think between being neutered and then being confined, he just had a lot to get used to.  Even though his new home is a palace, it is new to him and he needed time to adjust.  Thanks for the tips.  I am always amazed at how knowledgable TCS members are!
 

krz

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Your enclosure is amazing!!   A few years ago I inherited a colony of about 10 cats.  I took the four youngest in and adopted 3 to good homes.   The next 4 older ones I also brought to my home and they are doing very well.  I kept the 2 oldest cats at their original place and went everyday to feed.   Their caretaker had moved and that was how I came to inherit them.  Her place rented and her next door neighbor allowed me to put a feeding station and shelter on her back porch.  She has been so wonderful watching out for the girls for me.    I have gone every single day for a year and a half.   She even lets me keep a heated house on her porch during the winter.

A few weeks ago,   a neighbor on the other side complained about the shelter and feeding station stating it was against Home Owners Rules.  It is a townhouse community.   He essentially wants rid of the cats but that was the way he could achieve it.   I am planning to move them to an enclosure on my property.  I am nervous that they will be unhappy as they are used to being free.   They don't seem to roam too much,  they go from this woman's house to another yard right up over the hill.   They are usually waiting for me when I get there.   Trapping them again will be tricky,  I hate to trap anyway,  and this whole situation has me stressed.

I guess I don't have many options for them,  I have way too many cats inside as it is,  I refuse to leave them there to fend for themselves after they have been fed and sheltered for so long, and if I just relocate them to my yard and hope they stay, they will try to go back and I am afraid something worse will happen to them.

The funny thing is that the president of the HOA knows how all cats were altered, and now there are only 2 there and he has been fine with it.   But the woman who has been so kind is so afraid of her neighbor getting angry with her so I don't want her to be troubled.  I am just so upset over having to move my girls and how they are going to react to being enclosed.
 
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ondine

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I was worried too, when we first put Schofield in the enclosure. He was used to wandering our neighborhood, so I was hoping he didn't have a girlfriend or something. But he has adjusted really quickly to the new set up. I think it might take a few weeks but they will be fine, especially since they will have each other.

I hate trapping too but it goes quickly. Good luck and thank you so much for helping these kitties!

BTW I ordered the cedar cat tree. Can not wait for it to come!
 

krz

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I plan to have 2 heated houses in the enclosure and I already have an outdoor cat tree,  hope that they like it.  There is also a large dog house which I will fill with straw.  It is actually a large dog run that we had for our German Sheperd so we wouldn't have to keep him tied but he could enjoy being outside.  It is a very nice size,  very long,  I just hope they will adjust.  I will do whatever I can to make them feel safe and secure,  if I could bring them inside,  I certainly would.

They run to me when I go to feed, but I have never touched them.  They trust me as far as knowing I will feed them,  but I don't know how our bond of trust will be when I take them from the only place they know.  That is what I am worried about,  and them trying to get out and then getting hurt trying to go back.  It is only about a 10 car drive so not impossible for them to attempt.

Anything else you can think of to help with this transition,  I would greatly appreciate!!
 
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ondine

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They'll be grumpy and scared for a bit - cats don't appreciate any changes, good or bad. The only thing i can think of is to make sure the kennel has no large opening (on the corners, for instance). The pre-made kennels often do. You can use wire to close any gaps.

They might appreciate a table to eat on. Schofield really likes his dinner up high.
 
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ondine

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Schofield has been in his new kingdom for a couple of months now.   We got the cedar cat tree assembled and up with no problem (thank you Laura, it is great!) .  But it's been raining ever since, so he's only been on it once or twice.   It is supposed to rain all next week.  The enclosure itself is boggy and in spots, it is flooded.  But there are small ponds all over our backyard, too.

We had to have the fence moved, so we decided to enlarge the enclosure - it is now 15' x 40'.  I am hiring someone to look it over and perhaps put in a drainage system.  We live on a lake, so that's not as odd as it sounds.  Our crawl space used to flood all the time but has not since we got this guy in to design the drainage.

All in all, I am very happy with the project.  Schofield is one of those kitties who prefers to be alone, so I have no worries about him.  He enjoys our visits (we have chairs out there to sit with him, although he's usually in one of them!)  He is very vocal and we have learned to recognize when he's had enough.  If we don't listen, he'll give us a swat and wave as we leave!

I will try to post pictures as soon as the rain stops
 

betsygee

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I love this thread--the cat barn is awesome!  We are building a catio for the four cats we took in earlier this year.  Two of them get along with our three resident cats and are mostly integrated, but the other two, not so much.  We want the new cats to have a comfortable home, even if they can't mingle with our resident kitties.  They already have their own room inside where they will sleep and eat.  The catio, which will be adjacent, will be for their litter boxes, playing and being outside safely.  

The cats of australia website is cool, lots of inspiring ideas.  
 
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ondine

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Just an update - we had an adventure with Schofield the other day.  I am fostering two kitties (siblings) in our shed.  I have a 4 foot crate and a 3 foot crate attached to one another with metal grids that sits inside the shed.  I usually use it to recuperate feral cats after surgery.  Schofield spent a week in there when he was fixed back in February.

Schofield and the two guests are all very vocal.  When I got out in the morning to feed them, they all serenade me.  So Schofield has been aware of their presence.  The enclosure has a small "foyer" with two doors.  I had it built that way so I could go in without opening the inner door, just in case Schofield tried to escape.  He has never tried.  He always waits inside the inner door and escorts me to his table, where he eats.

But Thursday morning, he darted out, ran straight to the shed and walked right in.  By the time I got there, he was sitting outside the crate and had just started hissing at the guests, who were so startled, they hadn't even reacted yet.

I quickly scruffed Schofield and got him back into the enclosure.  (It was the first time I'd actually picked him up).  He gave me a look and tucked into his breakfast.  The fact that he did this before breakfast made me laugh.  Schofield is very food motivated, so he must have been determined to see exactly what was going on in that shed!

My foster kitties didn't even blink.  They were part of a big colony (all inside and all socialized) that recently had to be moved to an area where they will all be outside.  These two were the last to be caught and I recuperated them after their surgeries.  But they are so friendly, I can't stand the idea of them going outside, so I have a mission to find them homes.  One is a white female with one blue eye and one green eye; her brother is a black and white tuxedo.  They are about nine months old and so sweet, it breaks my heart.  But I am determined to find them a home together.
 

krz

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Oh, I hope you can find them a home. So the colony was inside and now has to be moved outside? How sad. Will they still have ongoing caretakers?

I know you told me to be patient about my two girls in the enclosure, and I am trying. They are still hiding out. They both are in one shelter, the one from where they used to be. I have 3 other shelters in there for them, and an outside cat tree, but they have shown no interest in them. When I lift the lid to check on them, they are usually cuddled together.

I know they do not understand that they were going to be in danger if I left them where they were, and they don't know that they are now safe, maybe safer than they ever were, it just breaks my heart to see them hiding. I hope one day I will see them lounging around, feeling safe and secure. It took a while for them to trust me when I took over their care, and now I feel like I am back to square one with them.
 
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ondine

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In a way, you are at square one.  But think of it as a fresh start!  They will take some time to come around but pretty soon, they will feel like "home."  In the meantime, they are safe and comfortable.

Yes, the entire colony (about 13 cats) had to be moved because the owner's house was condemned.  The people who had been working with her to have the cats fixed pitched in and found an area for them.  Fortunately, the owner is moving close by and will continue feeding.  She is also seriously looking for another house and will take as many with her as she can.  Thank goodness, they are all fixed now and have had their shots.

The area they are in is near a boat dock that is pretty well known for it's colony.  Cats are not usually dumped there because there are several city employees who work nearby (and who watch out for the dock colony).  If a new cat appears, he or she is trapped and fixed immediately.  It isn't ideal but it's better than where they were.  The township where the old house was planned to trap them all (after all the work that was done to fix them!) and take them to be euthanized.
 

betsygee

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Oops!  I hope I didn't break some kind of protocol posting in this thread about my non-feral integration story.  
   I just got all excited about your enclosure ideas.  
 
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ondine

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Betsygee - no worries.  I always like hearing how others help their outside and/or feral kitties.  No enough people step up to help solve this problem.

Your solution sounds perfect.  I wanted to build a catio, too but it meant moving a septic tank, which was out of the budget.  At some point, we may add on but for now the inside kitties and Schofield just talk to one another.
 

krz

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Thank goodness they were saved! I love when things work out like that, and I am glad she will continue to feed them!

Thanks for the encouragement, I am hoping they adjust and enjoy their new surroundings.
 
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