Izzy the cat’s favorite litter box is the one outside in her catio. When it rains, the litter gets wet (yuck), so awhile ago I put an old cookie sheet over the entrance and secured with with duck tape. It wasn’t elegant, but it worked, until the duct tape failed. Hm. I don’t know why I didn’t think of the scraps of metal roofing by the chicken coop then, but I did remember this time. A couple screws to attach the corrugated metal to the frame, tin snips to round the corners to reduce risk of injury, and tada, a outdoor resistant rain roof for the litter box. Faster and easier than duct tape. Please forgive the dirt, it will wash away with the next rain and it has been a very busy week.
Metal roof scrap repurposed into a litter rain shield
My folks gave me a formed cat tunnel house (we call it a cat donut). Izzy liked it once I put a cushion in, but then stopped using it for some feline reason. When the kitten showed up, we moved it upstairs and my eldest had the fantastic idea of unzipping it to make smaller hiding spaces. Thor decided it was the best hiding space, and when we moved his food down to the floor, he also stopped pitifully crying when we left the room. Phew.
Kitten in a split tunnel bed
It also makes a great exercise surface since Thor has developed a love of the red light game (RLG for short, aka cat laser toy). As he becomes more comfortable in his new space, he is also settling into the center well of the cat house instead of hiding all the time.
Our foster kitten is doing well. He had his first official trip to the vet; he has had his first round of kitten vaccinations, has been dewormed, and is getting ointment for his eye goobers. He has discovered a favorite hiding/nap spot, but comes out when we come in. He has leapt joyfully into play, and has been receptive when we substitute a toy instead of fingers. His favorite thing right now is a spring toy. His purr is like thunder. The vet paperwork names him Thorn (since I pulled him out of a thorn bush), but we affectionately drop the “n” and call him Thor (or little man, or kitten, or … we use a collection). To keep his dander down, we’ll use a waterless bath foam and brushing, and a few days after his shots, he’ll get his first flea treatment.
Thor with a collection of toys in front of his hiding spot
Today you get a picture of a time cat, because Izzy was perfectly lined up with the grandfather clock in the background and it made me snicker. Izzy was not amused at my antics.
I had just picked up coffee from my favorite coffee shop, and was driving down Main headed home, when I saw something dart across the road. It was the size of a squirrel, but didn’t move like a squirrel, was a streak of gray and white, but wasn’t an opossum. I slowed down to look as it ran toward a tree and saw the outlines of a cat. I pulled off the road and approached. It ran away and I could tell it was a kitten. Oh dear. I cornered it in a rose bush (or something with thorny stems, I didn’t even feel the scratches) and pulled it out by the scruff of its neck. It is amazing the problems that can be solved in the heat of the moment; I dumped all the items out of my car organizer and had a make-shift carrier, complete with zipped mesh top. (I’ve had it for years, never considered that it was appropriate temporary containment for small critters.) I took him (definitely a he) by the vet’s office and they said he was about 2 months old and yes, a boy, and did not seem to be harmed by his flight across four lanes of traffic. I took him home (the local cat shelter is full up with bottle fed babies), brushed out the burrs, clipped his nails, and gave him a bath with baby soap. One of the vet techs suggested the name “Thorn”.
Kitten after a water and soap bath
He is set up in the spare room, which is where I usually put ferals to recover from getting fixed. We’ll see how he does with some kitten food and cuddles, get him an official vet visit and get him neutered, then see about finding him a home. My husband is allergic to male cats (our working theory is they don’t tend to be as fastidious about grooming as some females), so he is safe and cared for now, but can’t stay here. I guess I’ve been selected to foster.
