01/23/2026
❄️❄️REMINDER:
How to build a quick TEMPORARY EMERGENCY OUTDOOR SHELTER
1) Take a cardboard box and tape all the seams shut with duct tape. Cardboard is a good temporary insulation. Maybe you can fit a box inside the box?
2) Wrap the box completely with a tarp or trash bags, making as few seams as possible. Secure plastic onto box with duct tape, liberally and tightly wrapping the tape around the sides of the box and sealing all seams. This will make the shelter waterproof.
3) Cut a doorway in one of the shorter sides of the box approximately 6" x 6", leaving the bottom of the doorway a few inches above the bottom of the box to prevent flooding. Use duct tape to secure the loose plastic around the opening you just made. If possible, doorway should face in the opposite direction of the wind, rain and snow providing protection from the elements.
(4) A. Place straw inside the box, filling it up to the bottom of the doorway in front and a little higher towards the back. The cats will gain added warmth by burrowing into the straw.
(4) B. Place your cardboard shelter beneath something that will shield it, like a porch or tree. Raise it off the ground a few inches by placing it on a pallet, bricks or something similar.
(4) C. Weigh the shelter down with a heavy rock or a few bricks, but nothing heavy enough to crush the roof.
⭐ Once the cold weather crisis has passed, replace the temporary emergency shelter with a more permanent one.
- Edited content and photo are courtesy of Neighborhood Cats.
For more information please visit:
https://www.neighborhoodcats.org/winter-shelter
⭐ alleycat.org/resources/cold-weather-tips-for-cats