SPOT'S STORY

Spot is a little stray that lives on my garage. She is not allowed by my colony to come to the condo. I guess she is from a different clan. Last year she got caught in a garage for quite a long time and nearly died. I had been feeding her on the garage but when she came out she was not in any shape to fend for herself. She made her way to the cat condo area and I found her in one of the condo units. She stayed in her box for 2 weeks. Since she did not venture out much the other cats did not challenge her. I fed her near the door. She would crawl out, eat and go back in. When she started feeling better she moved back to the top of the garage for her feedings and I gave her another box. Its an odd place for a cat to live but that is where she was comfortable coming for food. It was still winter and she needed a safe place to live. The box had insulation but was not warm. It gave her a place to survive till spring where at least she was out of the rain and wind, and had a relatively dry place to sleep.

She spent last winter in that box. During the summer she slept there only for a few hours every day. It gets quite warm and she had other places to visit. Funny though she is always on time for meals! The shelter keeps her out of the rain and has blue insulation. She spent an hour dragging out the old sweater from the box. Maybe she is redecorating.

This fall I made her a new house. A bit larger than the previous one it promises much better conditions. Like the old one it has blue and pink foam insulation. Not so much to keep the house warm but to provide a good surface to curl up against. The door is level with the head when she is curled up and she can watch the outside through the little curtains. (I just added them after the picture was taken.) The curtains cut the wind.
Because the garage is windy, I added a covered porch to the box. She spends time there if its raining. The little overhand of the porch prevents rain from being driven in the cat house. There is also a window on the porch, just for fun. She watches birds from there. (She is quite useless as a birdcatcher fortunately) I added a heated bowl to prevent the water from freezing and a very low wattage heating pad inside. The pad is not warm enough to warm up the space but adds just a bit of comfort.

This model of feral shelter is my most successful. It always has a cat in residence when the weather is cold. The little porch with the overhang keeps the house dry and the porch area is perfect for just hanging out. The door is a good height to keep watch comfortably.

Over the couple of years I have known her she has gradually become easier to approach. She is getting quite tame and could possibly be adopted, I don't think she is feral but has been on her own for a long time. Her nicked ear shows she has been trapped, neutered and released. If you are interested just let me know, she has a nice temperament.

Spot has a family of her own!

My neighbour mentioned to one of her friends that Spot was available and certainly could testify to the natural good looks of the cat in question. My neighbour came to my door, got a cat carrier, and PRESTO! Spot was on her way to a new life.

Reports came in that she was transported with a minimum of yowling, spent only the minimum time in a closet assessing her new home, and has taken over the management of her new family. More info as it becomes available...