{"id":1723,"date":"2017-01-12T06:17:20","date_gmt":"2017-01-12T14:17:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/?p=1723"},"modified":"2017-01-10T06:21:56","modified_gmt":"2017-01-10T14:21:56","slug":"thoughts-for-thursday-keep-outdoor-cats-cozy-this-winter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/?p=1723","title":{"rendered":"Thoughts for Thursday \u2013 Keep Outdoor Cats Cozy This Winter"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-1494\" src=\"http:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Sept2016-003-300x206.jpg\" alt=\"sept2016-003\" width=\"300\" height=\"206\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Sept2016-003-300x206.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Sept2016-003-768x527.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Sept2016-003-500x343.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>Although cat advocates recommend keeping cats indoors for their ultimate safety, some cats just won\u2019t tolerate being cooped up inside. The model for my Klepto Cat Mysteries, my mother\u2019s cat, Smokey, is one of those. When he arrived special delivery from Idaho six years ago as a kitten (from my sister-in-law\u2019s surprise litter), he already had his mind made up that he would be an outside cat. Especially now that he lived in a nice climate. And no amount of human reasoning could change his mind. So Smokey goes out by day (unless it\u2019s raining or windy\u2014he does have his limits) and he comes in before dusk.<\/p>\n<p>But some cats never step foot indoors. And some of those live where winters are harsh. <img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-1339\" src=\"http:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/gorgebirdbath-225x300.jpg\" alt=\"gorgebirdbath\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/gorgebirdbath-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/gorgebirdbath-375x500.jpg 375w, https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/gorgebirdbath.jpg 480w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/>The cat outside might be one you\u2019re feeding regularly or a stray that wanders in. You may feel as if there\u2019s nothing you can do to protect him during the winter, except maybe leave a plate of food out in hopes he\u2019ll come close enough to get some nourishment.<\/p>\n<p>Did you know there are little igloo-type houses you can set up in your yard for your own outdoor pets (who refuse to be inside) and\/or the stray cats in your neighborhood or even the wild critters that need a little warmth?<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s a link to an article on how to keep outdoor cats safe in harsh winters. They even give ideas for building your own shelter. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.humanesociety.org\/issues\/feral_cats\/tips\/caring_feral_cats_winter.html\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.humanesociety.org\/issues\/feral_cats\/tips\/caring_feral_cats_winter.html<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s a review of ten different types of outdoor shelters you can buy for cats. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.worldsbestcatlitter.com\/clearing-the-air\/2016\/02\/10-awesome-winter-shelters-for-feral-cats\/\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/www.worldsbestcatlitter.com\/clearing-the-air\/2016\/02\/10-awesome-winter-shelters-for-feral-cats\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p>If you see cats outside your window trying to survive another wintery night, consider providing some sort of shelter. If you\u2019re already caring for homeless cats, we\u2019d love to hear about it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Although cat advocates recommend keeping cats indoors for their ultimate safety, some cats just won\u2019t tolerate being cooped up inside. The model for my Klepto Cat Mysteries, my mother\u2019s cat, Smokey, is one of those. When he arrived special delivery &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/?p=1723\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4,31],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1723"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1723"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1723\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1724,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1723\/revisions\/1724"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1723"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1723"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/catscapades\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1723"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}