In our community, we have a lovely stray cat. Knowing that winter was coming and that the weather was turning cold, my husband and I attempted to catch the animal to bring it to animal control so that it could be pciked up by the SPCA. As luck would have it, things did not go as planned. Instead, my husband had to go to the hospital to get antibiotics after being bitten and since rabis is something that is currently running rampant here, the doctor contacted animal control, as did we. After animal control came, we were informed that because the cat had bitten someone, it could not be adopted (except by us) and in 10 days, it would be put down. My husband and I acted quickly by contacting animal control and informing them that we would adopt the sweet cat. We saved her from the grim reaper and then took her to the vet to get her checked out as a precaution. She was given a clean bill of health, but we are unable to keep her since we already have a cat. What should we do now?

Ok so I live in Louisville KY and we have always had severe weather but I have NEVER been in a tornado. I live in the Ohio Valley so Tornados aren’t too common and I have never really been worried. But now that I have a child I am for some reason terrified of the thought of a tornado! We’re suppose to be having serious storms tonight that could produce tornados and my question is, is my basement that I have to walk outside to get into, safe? It’s underneath the house but I have to walk out the back door to get into it. The door isn’t secure at all and can’t lock from the inside. It’s also un-finished and not big at all. Now my house is old and brick. The basement walls are 5 feet of concrete so I feel like thats a very good thing. My fear would be that the door could fly open and then we get ripped out of the basement or something! I don’t understand why I am so terrified. I guess because before I only had to worry about my own life but now I have a child I have to worry about as well!!! Any reassurance would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

We just got a small 4mo old 6lb puppy from a shelter we think she is an italian greyhound… so very little to no fur.I made her a custom fit coat with sleeves and a martingale colar even, but no one has ever tried to house train. Obviously that was our first goal, and she does pretty ok during the day, but when the temp drops at night she freezes up and will not move more than to shiver and beg to be picked up. with or without the coat! I have tried sitting out there with her forever, taking her back repeatedly to the spot she goes at during the day… even tried puppy pads and locking her in the bathroom… the puppy pads are a joke, she moves them out of her way to go where they were, so how do I get her to go outside when it is cold?

It is a lean-to, saplings are cut and set against a small drop off, large enough to sleep in. Green vegetation is piled on top to block out any possible precipitation and help keep in body heat. A small dakota fire pit is dug inside, with the air tube leading outside. The fire would be fed little by little throughout the night. I would curl up close to the fire to stay warm…
Just an idea for surviving cold weather. What do you think? Any faults I can’t see? anything you can add?
@Aaron… wtf?

I might be getting a pony soon and I’m really excited! Except I’m stuck on which rugs to buy. I’m not sure whether they’ll live in or out as I’ll keep them in or out depending where they lived in their own home.
Can you please tell me whats the minimum number of rugs I’d need in each of these situations
(1) In winter, Stabled but let out during the day
(2)In winter, out most of the time in field with shelter and brought in when too cold outside or to stay in for a few nights to be ridden

This summer my family, and I moved from Virginia to Northern California. We bought my horse with us. Since we are coming into winter soon I want to blanket her but I only have a heavyweight blanket from the freezing Virginia winters. She is boarded in Sebastopol, which is 1 1/2 hours north of San Francisco and 15 minutes from the beach so it gets pretty chilly with the wind. I am currently talking with my riding instructor about giving her a trace clip since she gets very sweaty with her winter coat on (she’s ridden a minimum of 4 times a week). The barn owner suggests between a 100 and 200 gram rug. And then she also suggested keeping my heavy rug just in case it gets really cold some nights. My horse lives outside in a pasture with 2 other horses and a shelter large enough for all of them. I’m wondering if anyone has any suggestions of brand? Or even a blanket that they use and love? We are on a bit of a budget, (nothing over 0). Thanks!

What do dog owners do in the snow and cold or rain when their dog has to go potty? I don’t want everything wet and paws all dirty. I would like to build some sort of enclosure on our deck to make life easier for him, and yes us. Also, doesn’t dog urine and feces wreck your lawn? I tried the UGODog(inside potty system) but I didn’t think it was sanitary for my family- even though he did use it 90%. I do want him to go outside, but any ideas to make it more pleasurable during Minnesotas weather?
We wouldn’t have him pee/poop on our deck; just needing some sort of shelter ideas

She has no shelter or anything.It was storming here really bad and she was out in it with no where to shelter herself.Now its like 40 something degrees outside and she wet…..I can`t seem to find any place to call in my town I`ve been searching the internet and cant find anything.This is really sad I want to do something for her……
This is not the first time this has happened shes out there all the time with no shelter.
Just letting everyone know I finally got a number and someone is going to come out today and check on the dog and if thers no one home they will post a notice on the door and if theres no change by Monday he be out again and they will get fined…. THANK YOU all for your help in this.

Audrey is short hair. She is an indoor/outdoor dog. She sleeps inside and is outside when we are not home for longer periods. Sometimes I leave her inside for maybe an 1 - 2 hours but never want to leave her for too long to avoid mischief).

She loves to play outside but some days she prefers to spend her entire day inside playing with toys (aside from her daily walks).
Its usually up to her (she rings a bell when she want to go out for play or potty).

So now, I will be going back to work this winter and will be away from home for 8 - 10 hours. Commuting about an hour away so I can’t just get home quickly. I’m also at the mercy of the train so there will likely be delays here and there.

I can’t afford doggie day care but would have loved to do that.

So, should I keep her in our small garage which is more like a work studio - not alot of room to play. On top of that it would not be much warmer then being outside, as I would have to leave the door open for her to go in and out. On the other hand it would keep her dry and sheltered from the wind.

OR should I get her a dogloo or other type of doghouse cover the floor with wood chip for warmth. I’m thinking it would be less room for her but she would have all the access to backyard if she wants.

I’ve always had dogs with long hair (shepards, retrievers) this is my first short hair dog so I am figuring out all these new things I have to consider as time is goes on.

Currently the weather is great, its been a bit chillier in the morning so I want to prepare now.

Thanks and any other options you can think of to share would be appreciated.

She was crate trained from the very beginning but I have not really needed to keep her in one since I work from home.
and when considering crating her again I started thinking that would be too confining. It is still an option - just one at the bottom of my list.

Just a note she has not been destructive in the house or anywhere else for that matter. (oops, one exception, one time when we were out of town for 5 days the dogsitter said she was bummed the whole time and she tore her bed apart).

Leaving her inside for too long has not a chance I have been willing to take.

She is trained to stay off of carpeted areas of the home. So she is only allowed in the front to rooms. I’ve considered that her luxurious crate.
Great ideas so far, however, I live in a pretty crappy neighborhood. There aren’t any neighbors I would trust to check on her.

Doggy door,is a good option, I will defintely ask my landlord.

I recently rescued a one year old German Shepherd from a local animal shelter. Due to the fact that he was caged up at the shelter for so long, he has a LOT of energy. As expected, he loves his daily walks and running around in the back yard. The only problem is that I live in the Midwest (US), and it can get VERY cold here in the Winter; sometimes with a wind chill as cold as 20 below zero. I assume it can’t be very good for him to be out in such extreme cold for very long. So I’m finding that our afternoon walks are getting cut short. As a result, he gets very anxious around the house due to the excess energy. Is there anything I can do with him inside that will give him a chance to release his energy, without destroying my house?

I already have him in obedience training, and that seems to release some energy. But I can tell that he still wants to play and be active long after were done training and practicing training.

An A-Frame or Wedge Tent has been around for years and years. With all the fancy geodesics and tension designs out there, do Wedge tents hold their own as an actual long term shelter? Has anyone truly had any "real" and practical experience with them as a four season shelter? Are they a good investment? Thanks for your help!
Thanks Mountain man for the great websites, I appreciate your input. Thanks to Chris W. also who pointed out that you can use a wood stove in a canvas wedge tent. Beckel Canvas has some very fair prices as well. While surfing the web I also discovered The Wall Tent Shop who has a great wedge tent design but it costs over ,000 which is a lot! I appreciate both of your excellent answers. A big Thank You!

Ok the temp is 37 and it feels like it’s 25 with winds from the north at 20 mph with it raining. I have a 24 year old appy, 14 year old OTTB, 14 year old Pinto arabian, 11 year old Qh, 2 year old Qh, 7 month old Qh. I have 3 blankets, at the moment. Should I put the heavyweight one on the old appy and the medium weight on the OTTB, the other heavy weight on ?? My Appy and OTTB are shivering. I have one sleeazy hood but do they trap moisture and make them colder or not. The Appy is not ‘allowed’ into the shelter by the other horses. Any info thanks.
The blankets are water proof, the Appy is 4th in dominance over the 2 year old and yearling. i am ordering blankets but thought I’d have until late Nov early dec before I really needed them. No way am I moving my horses. No boarding place around for 50 miles.

I am looking into getting a few ducks this summer. I have a large empty dog kennel (and I’d build a house for them) and was thinking about getting 2-4 ducks.

What type of ducks can handle extreme weather (when provided with shelter) and preferably do not fly?

We spend most of our lives inside artificial shelters that are climatized to our liking, lit to our liking, and free of wind and precipitation. Inside our buildings, it’s always summer, and the "suns" are on whenever we wish.
Yet, when the outside we only see sporadically through window panes, and experience even more sporadically when sprinting from one building to another, is blustery and cold, it seems to depress people severely. "What do you say about that weather" we exclaim. Why do we? Who are we foolong, we know perfectly well we’ll only need to put up with it when we make the 30-second leap from the office to the car door.
Is there something else at work here, a weird, psychological hangup of some kind?

hey everyone! i just wanted to post this question asking for help. have any of you experienced bad weather? i know you all may have heard of the tsunami and earthquake in Japan that happened last night. very, very tragic. i live in the Hawaiian Islands, and we have a tsunami watch too. some of the beaches are just flooded for now. no one knows how much worse it will get, since the first waves aren’t always the worst.
but i need to know what to do for my dogs in case i have to evacuate. some towns and cities already did on my island. plus there was an earthquake on one of the other islands. that wasn’t too bad cause it’s kinda a daily thing over there. i have their medical records, i.d. collars and dog first aid kit. i have a 15 pound bag of unopened dog food that i keep in case of emergency. we have water, blankets and a few toys and bones for them. is there anything else i may need? in case i have to take them to the shelter, i would like to know. any help is appreciated. i’ve never been through this with animals. i just want to be prepared if worst comes to worst, you know?

I am one step away from living in a homeless shelter. I have a disability that makes me sensitive to certain weather climates. The local shelter makes you leave in the day and return at night. The crime where I live against the homeless is high so I don’t want to be helpless in the street just cause it’s raining. What options do I have? Not being homeless is not an option at this point.

ok so i have been thinking of getting a guinea pig. i heard they make great friends with rabbits but since my rabbit will be outside in a hutch i was wondering if it would be bad to have a guinea pig outside during the winter with my rabbit the hutch will have a little shelter for them and every thing in there to make it cozy. the hutch looks sort of like this. http://www.animalanticsonline.com/items_images/1204571324image_2,_rabbit_double_hutch.JPG.jpg
but i will still probably cover it up a little bit. so what do you guys think? thanks in advance.
oh i forgot to mention i live in utah and it can get pretty cold here so..

Is skittishness even a word? On February 28, 2009, my husband and I adopted a chocolate lab mix from the humane society. She was 6 months old then (8 months now). They found her on the side of the road when she was 6 weeks old. She was very sickly when we got her. She had been up for adoption for several months and no one wanted her. She was living in a "foster home" with about 20 other dogs, 10 cats, and one eccentric hoarder (female). That woman was the only person my dog (Maddie) had ever been around prior to us.

The first time we met her, she walked right up to my husband and started wagging her tail and playing with him. She loved him right off the bat. But she’s very shy around other people.

We walk her several times a day and take her to the park at least 2x a week (if the weather is decent). We let her meet as many dogs as she possibly can & she’s very friendly with them. She’s VERY sweet with us and warms up pretty quickly to people who own dogs. But she’s very shy around everyone else. She rears away with her tail between her legs or sits and won’t budge.

Should we take her on errands with us whether she likes it or not? Last night, we took her to an ice cream/show cone stand that was really busy and all these little kids wanted to pet her, but she was absolutely frightened.
I noticed that sometimes because she’s shy, people back away from her thinking she’s going to lash out at them. I honestly don’t blame them. But I know she’s a sweet dog who just happens to be shy. She’s great around our friends and family. She just has a phobia of strangers.
The humane society here is run by volunteers. They do not have enough room on the premises for all the dogs that are brought in, so they let some of their volunteers raise them in their homes. This woman was single and she was a nurse, so she told us herself that she’d be gone for 3 days, home for 4. Her house was DISGUSTING. All those animals, their deification all over the floor and furniture, rotten sandwiches and other food, dishes, and garbage completely covering her counter-tops and kitchen table. It was disgusting. I’m not lying or exaggerating when I say she was a hoarder. We told the humane society and they let it go on.

I didn’t ask you guys to judge me for getting my dog there. My lord. Get over yourselves.
Like I said, she’s completely fine with my husband and I….. that wasn’t my question.

With humidity, the heat index today is supposed to get up to 100-105….yuck! Maybe that’s not too bad for some of you, but heat index over 90 is bad here. so 100-105 is absolutely horrible. last time it got close to this (about 95), my horse was miserable. he’s not really a sweater, but his butt was soaked, and he was incredibly cranky. I’m going out at least 3 times today (now, in the heat of the day, then this evening), so i’ll be checking on him to make sure he’s not suffering heat exhaustion and he’s getting enough water. But what can i do make sure he stays cool? My major problem is the fact that he’s pasture boarded. There is enough shelter for all of the horses, but those shelters can get stuffy, and i have no way to get a fan in there. I’m also not sure about hosing him down, because it’s SO humid he doesn’t dry. Also, then it washes off his fly spray. Is there anything i can do, other than hosing veiny areas (neck and insides of back legs) and making sure he has enough water? Thanks!
Oooh, I like the frozen food idea

I already put out 2 extra water buckets with ice (in which melted in about 5 seconds), put his fly mask on, drenched him in fly spray, put on his fly mask/sunscreen, wet down his feed, and sponged him….but all of that stuff lasts like, 2 minutes LOL. god i hate the heat.
oh and yes, he has a salt lick.

I live in Arizona (hot weather here) and I pasture board my horse at a big facility. Theres no shelter what so ever, just a big pasture of grass.
Is this not safe? shouldn’t there be shelter? or is it okay?

Hey!Okay so I am 13 and I live in tornado valley basically and we Are ALWAYS getting hit by tornadoes/severe weather.Well guess what?-They are calling for severe weather late tonight and tomorrow.Everytime a storm comes;I feel like I have panic attacks and my parents say to stop it or else(haha)anyway;How can I be prepared for this and get over my fear and actually be able to NOT have a stomach ache Everytime a storm comes.Oh and my family has a Storm shelter and the whole it is in was dug by my dad so that makes me feel even worse!Please help

The birds in my town have been making the strangest noise I ever heard birds make. If birds had their own language, I’m sure this would be their way of warning other birds about something. Are the birds warning about impending bad weather, or even a natural disaster? Because I’ve heard animals can sense when bad weather is coming and take shelter and warn others of their kind about it. Just wondering.

nuclear submarines are used every day and keep or sailors safely summered under water for as much as 6 moths at a time,so i was thinking to make some safe storm shelters on land and at sea,under the ocean during a hurricanes they ,could presumably be under the ocean,or on ones land they have to be built with i call sub standards,not meaning below grade or does it? yes know there and idea below grade !! ok i made like a single wide mobile home that was water tight with like a submarine hatch for an entrance,the ventilation shafts were cold rolled steal of different dimensions pressed into each other like inner and the outer dimensions matching perfectly being pressed into one another un till i made a shaft that could with stand any hurricane storm floating trash colliding in to them,like a car hitting a tree the tree wins every time a car crashes into them right. well this was one of the biggest obstacles to over come in the under ground summered hurricane storm shelter.then as a finished product the ventilation shafts were disguised as palm trees ,preferably untrimmed with the dry ed up looking palm leaves. this is where there was fuel tanks one 1 shaft and on the other of witch there were 2 was a water storage tank for a emergency fire sprinkler system. the sprinkler heads are in the mechanical room where the generator hvac systems are and in the kitchen over the cook top . it is a steal shoe box basically with floor plans like a single wide mobile home,steal stud frame work with sheet rock walls 1/2 inch and ceiling all ceramic or clay tile on the floors twin murphy beds entertainment centers computer desk,and full kitchen and bath,with storage room off the small mechanical room that had plenty of shelves and Freezer for food storage, the sheet rock in the mechanical rooms were 5/8 inch walls and ceiling times 2 doubled up making a 2 hour fire wall also a fire door and emergency smoke evacuation vents.the vents went way down into the ground like a male and female pips fitting into a flag pole these were set in cement .in fact the whole shelter was set in like a cement tomb then back filled with rocks for drainage and to inhibit rust from penetrating the water proofing layers on the out side of the shelter,it was like a in law apartment under ground ,good party room after the bars close no one could hear you under ground turn up the music and enjoy,had full security cameras,as to watch the storm as it passes over head.and a emergency response team after the storm in case the entrance ever gets covered from the storms after mass.there’s more but that is what i wanted to do. think it can be done ,is it possible.what do you think.
remember every usa sailor on board a submarine almost all ways make it home.
actually i don’t have the money. i would build if i did yes.

There is this stray cat that has been wondering out, outside for the past few months. He is homeless, and all the time outside in this cold weather. He is now starting to come by me, and everytime he does, I really feel bad for the cat and want to take him in. But I already have 2 big dogs and a female cat who is by the way fixed.

What should I do? Should I maybe take him in and maybe take him up to the vet and if he is chipped they can tell me whether or not he has or had owners? Or should I just ignore the cat and leave him be? What would you do in this situation? I really feel bad for him having to be out in this very cold weather with no where to go for shelter or to be warm? Please help me? What should I do?
To be honest with all of you, I do want to take him in, but I dont want my other animals that I have to spook or scare him off. The cat is a male cat. I know that he is homeless because he is always outside and doesnt even have a collar. I feel so bad for the kitty. I also work 5 days a week from 8 am to 5 pm. So I dont know when I would be able to take him to a vet. And I live on a military base, and the vet clinic that is on the base is not open on the weekends. Should I just take him in and take him to the vet as soon as I can?

S, I’m buying a new house and it has a barn. There aren’t any stalls in there right now but there is a lean to for the horses. My issue is that it gets mighty cold here at times. Today it is -25F. My horse was outside yesterday for five hours in similar weather and he darn near jumped outta his skin to get to the barn.
So my question is basically I had planned on just sectioning a part of the barn off so I can put my horse and ponies in there but without stalls. What issues might I face with this set up? What flooring should I have down? Where can I obtain cheap bedding? Or what does it cost?

Do I need to worry overmuch about the flooring if it’s only for the very cold days and nights throughout the winter?
Thanks!!
That could be the issue…the food. He’s boarded right now as I’m not moving until the 30th. They feed twice a day so he has nothing to do and no shelter…not even trees.
This is the ONLY barn within a 50 mile radius. I have several issues with them. I am not allowed to PAY for the extra electric a water heater would cost so he cannot have one and I’m not allowed to give him extra hay even if I pay for it. They are beyond WEIRD. I have been at this place for 11 months and in that time I have been so upset by them that I am BUYING my own property to properly care for my horse. I do take him seriously, so you WILL have to take my word that I have done everything in my power to care for him. Thank goodness they listened to me and kept him in today though his stall is almost as cold as outside. no wind though.