Contrarian Pet of the Week
Meet Raven!
By Kim L. Scheppele
Name: Raven
Age: Perhaps one year
Breed: Free-spirited feral cat considering domestication
Hobbies: Roaming the wilds of central New Jersey
Worst moment: Wandering into our home as if she were a house cat and then panicking when she realized what she had done.
Best moment: Discovering the outdoor house we built for her as the weather got cold, complete with heater, multiple exits (so she never feels trapped again) and room service.
If I could put in a good word for feral cats: They need care and feeding even if they don’t want to live in our houses, and they very much appreciate outdoor shelters with heaters in winter.
I had a fluffy black feral. It took three months, and lots of treats and tuna, but I finally got her inside. It took another few months until she stopped hiding. She lived the last ten years of her life inside and pampered. Sophie was a lovely cat.
So nice of you to build her a little cat house! I have two rescues that don’t do well indoors so as an alternative we clipped a large infrared lamp to the back of a chair with a pet bed so they have a warm place to go when it’s cold.