01/24/2023
Helpful information for our friends caring for outdoor cats. ❤️
Let's talk about tomorrow Wednesday January 25th in the Indianapolis metro area. What to do and what not to do!
Tomorrow, early morning, we are going to start to see snow coming into the region. Please feed your cats this afternoon and give them lots of fresh water. Tomorrow morning and afternoon, do not encourage your cats to come out of their shelters. While temps are not going to be terribly cold, the snow is going to be heavy and wet. Cats coming out during this event will get wet. This increases their chances of hypothermia. Cats are smarter than we are. If they are not coming out for food, that is normal behavior. Leave their food in feeding stations and make sure it is protected from wind and water. They will come out when it is safe to do so.
Wind is also a deterrent for cats to be out and about. It is their survival instincts. Those instincts have been in place for thousands of years. We all worry about our friends outside but sometimes intervening can be a danger to the cats.
So help them by letting them do what nature has taught them and give them some extra food today!
More tips below:
- Leave fresh food and water at their feeding stations.
- Do not move any food closer to or inside their shelters! Cats won't sleep where there is food and they will leave and try to find alternate shelter which can lead them into danger.
- Do not call your cats out. If they are hunkered down, there is a reason for it.
-Some cats may hunker down for a day or two rather than venture out - this is normal.
-Take a shovel to create a path for the cats or you may need to dig them out if a snowdrift covers the opening to their shelter door.
- If you know of a cat that seeks shelter under a deck, shed, or even under a car to escape the high winds, heavy snow or sleet.....they could get snowed in and trapped. They won’t and can’t dig out.
So, if you don’t know where the cat is, think, “If I was a cat, where would I hunker down?
- Mix kitten dry food with cats meals for extra calories, if possible.
Feeding at the high point of the day will give the cats the longest duration before wet food freezes.
- Do not mix wet and dry food together in winter months. Dry food freezes but cats often swallow whole.
- Remember ping pong balls floating in water bowls keeps the surface moving and delays freezing.
- A small spoon of table sugar will also delay freezing.
Very important: Do not dump ice from water bowls at the feeding area. When ice melts, it will create dangerous wet / muddy ground, exposing cats to frigid water.
