Put catnip in it. The smell will attract him in there.

where is it located? We were careful in placing the house for our feral cat. If he feels vulnerable, he may never use it. Is it a high-traffic area, or are other animals (that you know of) coming around?

Would you consider putting something near the back shed, since that's where he goes now? It can be made very cheaply, a styrofoam cooler from a discount store, or a rubbermaid tote can be made into a nice shelter. The link has some ideas. And thanks for getting him 'the cut!'

Here is a link that might be useful: old cat house thread

Has he always been an outdoor cat? I'd be very concerned for a cat that is actually shivering and the low temps you're having. Can you put him in the shed with the heated pad or maybe in your garage (if you have one) so that he has extra shelter during the low temps? He'll never get warm sleeping on frozen ground.

I use the pads shown in the link below because they don't work off the pet's body temp but instead heat to a certain temp. My cat has a kennel she has access to, via a cat door, and has spent lots time on the heat pad when the air temp was around 28. But.....she can come in the house once she starts getting too cold.

Here is a link that might be useful: Heat pad

I ordered a heating pad Monday with plans to put it in the house! I like the idea about moving the house, dogs do come around daily looking for any food he might not eat. I hope that works.

If all those good suggestions fail....

Tell him he is absolutely, under no circumstances allowed in that house. :)

Also, if you pick up food it really helps keep animals from trying to get it. We feed 10 ft from the cat house, and never leave it out more than 20-30 min. I used to leave it out, and we had a possum visiting, along with who knows what critters.

Susan has a good suggestion too:)

Don't know how practical this is for your situation - maybe not. Instead of a free-standing house, I knew someone who built sort of a little box or room in the basement using the basement window to be the opening thru which the cat entered the little room via a cat flap. This room or box wasn't very big, maybe 2 x 3 x 3, and it didn't open up into the basement at all (though maybe you could put a door in it so you could clean it once in a while.) The benefit was that even though it wasn't heated, it was still much warmer than a freestanding house would be. Even if your house has good insulation the temps within a foot or so of your house can be a good 10-20 degrees warmer.

FWIW! Good luck with kitty (my mom had same problem when another feral cat started using the house - her cat would not use it at all, even months/years later. I suggested cleaning it out thoroughly with odor neutralizer.)

The heat mat arrived! Problem though, it's not flexible, so I can't put it through the door! I put it on the porch of my shed and sat down next to it so he would "discover it" while I petted him. He loves it!

Since the porch isn't enclosed blowing rain or snow will be a problem. I plan on cutting a hole in the house then resealing it in the next few days. Depending on my work schedule.

well that's a good development! Sounds like you're well on your way to a solution.

The pad I use is also very hard. Some animals won't lie directly on it so hopefully your cat continues to enjoy it. I usually take the foam bottom out of a dog/cat bed then lay a blanket or thin crate pad along the bottom of the pet bed. I found the foam too insulating and it wouldn't let the heat thru the bottom of the bed, but the blanket/pad absorbs the heat and helps hold it.

Glad to hear he's enjoying it! So, is giving him a doorway into the shed not possible?

I've thought about putting a door in the shed for him. But I'm afraid he might get in to something that would poison him. I keep pesticides, antifreeze, and cleaning chemicals in there. They are in sealed containers, but cats climb and knock things over you know!

I have suspected for a long time that my semi-feral cat wasn't using the fancy new cat shelter(s) I had specially built for her and placed in the barn. On only one occasion did I open the barn door and see her swoosh out of the shelter and past me out the barn door. Lately I've walked in there and smell what has to be cat urine. Have I found the answer? I think the neighbor's male cat has been "claiming" the boxes by spraying, and perhaps my own male is also marking them to prove they are his! Both males are neutered. Would this keep the female from using them?

The female prefers the large brush pile in the orchard whenever she feels threatened, and I frequently see her laying ontop of it on sunny days. Is she using an old groundhog hole? On rainy days, she comes in the house dry. I don't know. However, I am happy to report that she now comes in every night to sleep on my bed until morning, besides coming in for meals and occasionally lays on my lap in the evenings for awhile as I watch TV. She's come a long way. Sorry went OT!

I have had a male cat coming to my house for a bit now I feed him give him water iv had him to the vet with a lot of help from a friend that help me catch him I've had a hutch witch is quite big with heating pads it beautiful clean and warm but the cat looks in but want go in what can I do can any help x

Mine took weeks, then started using hers.

May I recommend putting a shoebox inside of the house. My cats lots them...

I made feral cat houses using a big and small bin. Cut holes for the openings, put insulating spray foam between the two bins and straw on the floor of the bins. The cathouse is on our deck where they hang out, but they won't go in the houses. Anyone have an idea as to why?

Just want to update the heat pad I recommended earlier. I now use this one.

It comes with a fleece cover, is soft, flexible and can be used outdoors in protected areas. We all love it.

This is my first year trying to help the ferals. We have converted some hooded catpans into mini shelters by filling with straw and putting them behind our bushes. We also bought a house with the heated pad. These were all being used by a couple regulars, but now they’ve gone unused for 3 nights, and the windchill here in MI is -15. Im so worried and don’t know how to get them to use the shelters again.

I used a hooded litter box too for my outdoor girl. I had it up off the ground and covered with a moving quilt, making a tunnel to the box. It was on my front porch, out of the wind. Hope this helps.

Thank you! I have done everything except put out a welcome mat! Maybe I’ll try throwing a quilt over the top as you suggested. I saw one of the cats limping today—I’m worried his paws may be frostbit. He won’t let me near him though.

Thank you so much, Theresa for the suggestions! I will try to relocate the houses and see if that makes a difference. We do see occasional possums at night, so maybe the cats have too.

My husband and I have been caring for several feral cats for a couple years now. We are absolutely going to have to have them fixed as soon as possible. My problem right now is we bought have 2 houses to keep them out of the cold weather, and put nice fuzzy pads in them, but them just wont go into them.. We put catnip inside them both but still no luck..

As Theresa mentioned, the houses need to be elevated, especially if there are dogs, raccoons or other wildlife that stroll thru the property. We used a folding picnic table, set the cat house on top and ran electrical with an outdoor extension cord for heat. I also set up a motion light in hopes it would scare away other creatures and hopefully be a warning for our feral of any animal approaching. Unless you have an area the cat feels completely safe in, you must have two doors in a cat house. One for entry and another for an emergency exit. The exit door is usually located across from the entry and in the opposite corner, but could also be placed at the end of the house. All cat houses should have insulation, but especially plastic cat houses. Otherwise, the cat's body heat is quickly lost and it will suffer from the cold.

The little 'feral' we were feeding was afraid of everything and it didn't take long for her to learn our garage was a safe haven. She would follow my DH into the garage while he did his chores so we started closing the man-door for a few seconds at a time while she was in the garage with him. This allowed her to slowly adjust to being indoors, otherwise she'd panic in a closed room. We then installed a cat door to the garage and she now has her own cat condo in the there.

i have a feral cat i got a heated house for last winter and it took a while but she started going in it. So this year was the same but then one day I notice after starting to go in she stopped and I found out why another cat was in it. So that cats gone I trapped it and animal control took it and it got adopted it. But yesterday I moved the house from under a table I have over it with storm windows around it and a tarp. I wanted to make sure the heating pad was working because it’s been in the single digits at nite and I know that those pads only have a one year garuntee. So I did move a towel in there because it was on the pad so I thought she might not feel as much heat with the towel on it so I cut it and placed a peice of it back on the pad . All day yesterday all night and all today I can’t get her to go in after doing that.

ive noticed a few times her not going in for a little whe I think because we have a opposisim on our property but don’t no what the reason is for yesterday and today is it because I disturbed the house or the opposum? this is the longest she’s gone without going in it. I have a garage and shed with doors cracked for her or the other feral cats to go in but she’s seems scared of other cats I don’t think she goes in either of them. Any thoughts as to why this may have happen?

You should have left it alone since it took awhile for her to get used to it. I'd put it back where it was, elevate it off the ground so the opposum can't reach it easily, make sure the house has an escape door and start feeding her next to the house. If you're only feeding dry, try feeding wet food to entice her back to the house, then remove the food when she done eating. Opossums come thru at night looking for food.

Why did you trap the intruding cat when you have the garage door cracked for other feral cats? If you have a several cats you should try making cat houses out of storage bins and place them in sheltered areas. There are web sites that explain how to insulate and make the storage bin houses.

WE HAVE BEEN FEEDING TWO FERAL CATS FOR AWHILE NOW. WE JUST BOUGHT A LARGE CAT HOUSE WITH A HEATED PAD IN IT. THEY HAVE NEVER COME UP TO US. THEY KEEP THEIR DISTANCE. THEY DO COME UP ON THE DECK RIGHT OUTSIDE THE DOOR WHERE WE PUT THEIR FOOD. WE PUT CAT NIP IN THE CAT HOUSE BUT THEY HAVE NOT GONE IN YET. CAN ANYONE GIVE ME SOME IDEAS? THANK YOU! LT

Lots of things you can do. We have a small feral colony that we've fed and sheltered for a while now. We have a Shed In The Box, with interior smaller shelters inside there..and a five feet by 8 feet kennel that is tarped off for winter that has shelters up off the ground...however, when our ferals got caught a few weeks ago in our first very deep winter storm, they all ran scared and frightened up onto our back porch. So, we prayed and asked the Lord for his Guidance and Wisdom and he helped us. We got tarps and heavy duty shower curtains and heavy duty tension rods and paneled off the back porch...then, we put vinyl and rubber mats along the floor of the back porch. Then, we added cat igloos, and made other shelters out of Sterlite plastic chests...and made an interior tent over those shelters with a camoflauged tarp. When the temps dropped below freezing, we cracked the back door from the kitchen to let heat go out into the now enclosed back porch area...made a tremendous difference. Right now, it's sleeting and we are letting them come into the kitchen to get extra warmth, and we have litter boxes and fresh water in a corner of the porch as well. As someone has already mentioned, shoeboxes, cardboard boxes, cutout coolers with straw in them....cat igloos...we put yoga mats covered with soft cardboard in ours. The main things, give them a break from the wind, give them warm shelter, food, water, and a feeling of security...you're good to go. The more love you put into it, the better your results, you know. Good luck and God Bless. FYI, we also do trap n release and we are seniors in our late sixties, so if "we" can do it, so can anyone else, you know.

HU-94228819, Kudos to you for all you're doing to help the ferals.

Linda, the cats probably won't use the cat house as long as it's near your back door. Find a sheltered area in your yard that gets the least wind (back wall of garage, underneath trees, under shrubs) and make sure it's elevated. A folding table is very useful for elevating cat houses. Run a heavy duty extension cord out to the area and you're good to go.

Also, if the house doesn't have one, cut a second door in the back corner of the house and install a plastic flap as a door (you can use the flaps that are made for cat doors). Cats that live outdoors aren't fond of places without an escape route.

Moderators, will you please delete this thread? My Tom died years ago, leukemia. I don't want constant reminders that he is gone.

wertach, i'm so sorry for your loss. HU-106844468 has been annoying the pets forum for quite some time by finding articles and then copying/pasting them into a long, drawn out post, some with inaccurate information. it can be a post from years ago. i have reported this person to houzz customer service and hopefully, they can put a stop to it!

My problem is a little different. My stray had apparently been abandoned. She was very loving and very skinny. I have been feeding her and she wants to come in the house. I have a house cat that has other ideas. She brought me five kittens today. They are sleeping on the cold ground. I heard a dog out last night. We built a shelter and placed the kittens in. The mom is not anxious to go in. The kittens tried to get out. My husband and I are going crazy. We put the shelter where she had placed the kittens behind a bush near the back door. Felt she was comfortable there. Don't know what happened. I can only hope I don't find the shelter empty tomorrow. It is starting to get cold out there.

carole,

First call around to shelters and see if they can take the mom and kittens. If you plan to keep them then try to place mom and kittens in your garage or a spare room. You may have to trap her but you need to get all of them into a safe, warm place.

Since she was very loving before she'll probably do fine once she realizes you've put her in a safe secure place.

At some point get her to a vet or take in a stool sample to see if she has worms. Whatever parasites/worms she may have could pass on to the kittens.

Thanks for your response. Mom moved the kittens back into the woods yesterday. So we will see what happens next. We will have to trap and spay them or we will have a lot more cats outside. we have a rough few months ahead of us. FYI shelters destroy 70% of the cats they take in. Even no-kill shelters send out the unadoptable. Very sad.

cat houses need two openings, in two different sides for escape, most strays won't go into a cat house if they know there is not exit escape. also, make sure the blankets, etc don't smell like your cat, they think it belongs to another cat. also make sure at least one exit is kind of facing a wall so they can escape without being seen if needed.

Catnip works like a charm. I followed the advice of lukkiirish.