Feral house escape door- Good idea?

[lochness350]

Ok, so I have 3 feral cats that have been TNR'd and recently a new kitty has shown up that I need to trap.

I have made them 2 of the Rubbermaid outdoor insulated cat homes (can fit at least 3 kitties each). When I first made them, I did not put an escape door because all of the tutorials I had seen did not say to.  Then I read a few horror stories about peoples cats getting attacked by predators (raccoons, etc.) because they could not escape. I freaked out and immediately added an escape route out of each home on an adjacent side.  The homes are under my deck and are completely sheltered from the elements, so I am not worried about wind going through but we get super low temps here in the winter.  With this new added opening, will the cats be warm enough?  I get a lot of raccoons since we have 8 acres of woods, they are always coming around, pretty much nightly.  I only keep food out for the cats in the day time and completely take up there feeding station and all bird feeders every night as not to attract any other animals but they still come around.  With getting so many raccoons, I think the escape door is a necessity, but am worried I have now made the homes to cold for the single digit temps we will no doubt be getting soon.  I did place plastic flaps that I zip tied into place on the escape exit, but that will not insulate it at all. The deck that they are under is only about 3 feet high, so I also made of barrier of straw bales to help a little more.  Thoughts??

 

[lochness350]

I should add that I am not able to get electric to the houses.  So I cannot put a heating pad or anything like that into the homes.  I also thought about getting the microwavable heating pods that last 10 hours, but the feral homes are pretty hard to get to everyday.  There is a lot of military crawling to get under there.  I cannot do that twice a day.  =)

 

[StefanZ]

Yes, escape route is essential.  some cats even refuse to use a hut without a backward entrance.  Security reasons, yes.

 

[msaimee]

Yes, the houses need an escape route. Once the cats become comfortable with the house, you can drape a blanket or two over it for protection against wind and blowing snow, partially covering the exits but allowing room for them to push through and get out. My feral is so accustomed to his house that in frigid weather, I cover the house with a sleeping bag, too. He is able to crawl in and out under it. As long as you don't leave food out in the dark near the shelters, raccoons and other wildlife shouldn't disturb the cats. They don't want conflict any more than the cats do.

If you fill the shelter with straw (not hay, which retains moisture), they will nuzzle into it. You can also purchase the emergency heat reflective "blankets" (they are actually thin sheets of foil) sold in sports stores and line the shelters with it. For about 15 dollars, you can order a thermal heat reflective pad for the bottom of the shelter, which works the same, but provides additional cushioning. I do not use a heating pad, but my feral seems warm and comfortable in his home nonetheless.  

 

[ondine]

If they are under the deck, there shouldn't be too much direct wind. But you could build a wall of plywood or even straw bales in front of the houses, Maybe leaving a gap big enough for them to escape if needed.

It sounds like you have all the bases covered.

 

[lochness350]

This is why I love this site.  You always make me feel so much better when I am in doubt.  What a great community. 

The shelters all have thermal reflective material in them .  One is completely made out of reflective insulation and has a reflective blanket inside.  The other, just the reflective blanket and regular insulation.  They are loaded with straw and are both on top of Styrofoam sheets to keep the bottoms off of the ground and warm.  They are completely sheltered and out of the elements. Under the deck is only open on one side as the other side goes into the earth at a slope, so I have made a straw bale barrier on that side with a few small gaps that they can get through.  I feel much better with my decision to make the escape doors.  Once know they are using them ok when the temps drop, I will attempt to cover them with some type of sleeping bag.  Thank you so much!

 

[ritz]

The escape route doesn't have to be very big, just big enough for a cat's head, really. If a cat can fit his head into an opening, he can fit his entire body.
Straw is a great insulator, as is the reflective material. I used straw last year; based on some recommendations of this site, I added the reflective material which I wrapped around stryofoam. I placed the cat shelter (large rubbermaid container) on top of a hill almost IN some bushes so it is not visible from the road, with a lid and opening on the front. I don't have any legal reason to be on the property (condo complex) so I needed to hide the shelter. Otherwise, it would be thrown away.