How to Provide a Simple but Effective Heating Source for an Outdoor Pet

One cold evening last fall a stray cat suddenly appeared at out back door. Chances are he was of many who no longer wanted by their owners is dropped off in a populated neighborhood in hopes that someone will care for them.

The poor stray was obviously cold and hungry by the time he found his way to our door. Having out own indoor cat we were well stocked with cat food which we were happy to share with the homeless cat. Perhaps that was mistake number one as from day on the hungry vagabond camped out on our doorstep daily until his bowl (yes, he now had his own bowl) was filled to the brim with food.

The stray soon became known as our "outdoor cat" and after a family vote we named him Buster. Staying outside was no problem for Buster as he was relatively wild and did not like to be held or enclosed in any manner. He showed no interest in entering our house.

As the winter temperatures began to fall my family began to worry about Buster being out in the cold. This was especially worrisome to us when the forecast began calling for temperatures significantly below freezing. Buster is a short-haired cat with little fur coat to protect him.

I began encouraging Buster to take refuge in my attached garage by moving his feeding bowl to a position well in the interior of the large two car insulated space. After several days of feeding him there I introduced a small fleece lined cat bed by placing it next to Buster's food bowl. I noticed that on very cold and windy days Buster would curl up in the bed and nap until conditions outside warmed up.

While getting Buster to use the cat bed inside the garage was progress I was still very concerned that the unheated garage would provide little relief once January and February temperatures reached the low teens. At best the unheated garage provided a temperature only five to ten degrees above the outside temperatures.

Being reluctant to leave an untended fuel burning or electric heater in my garage I began to search for ways to provide some warming source for Buster.

The idea that came to mind proved to be both a simple, effective and safe solution to the problem.

I purchased simple outdoor floodlight kit from my local home improvement store. The kit consisted of a plastic bulb holder, a stake for mounting the holder in a lawn and a separate bracket for mounting the holder on a wall or soffit.

I mounted the bracket on the wall stud nearest adjacent to and 12 inches above Buster's fleece bed and inserted a 90 watt floodlight bulb. I angled the bulb holder at a 45 degree angle that positioned the light beam in the center of the bed. Using an extension cord I plugged the floodlight into an inexpensive 24 hour timer installed in the nearest wall outlet and set the timer to come on at 6:00 PM and to turn off at 10:00 AM (Buster's rise and shine time).

This has worked beautifully.

Our daily nighttime routine is Buster is fed in the garage promptly at 6:00 PM. As Buster eats the floodlight comes on. When he is finished eating and as the outside temperature drops, Buster retires to cozy, warm bed in which he sleeps comfortably and warmly through the coldest winter night.