The Great Bear Cave!

So, Sunday found me celebrating Easter, but it also found me in the cold shadow near the garage helping my boyfriend hammer in nails. We were finishing The Project. What was it? Well, let me explain. My dear kitty, Bear, has a tendency to, uh, pee on things. We can't break her of the vindictive habit, and my love for her runs too deep to give her up, so the bathroom became her temporary "bedroom." When we couldn't supervise her, we would put her in her "room." Well, after so long I couldn't stand that any more! So we found two solutions: make her a mostly-outdoor-cat, and, give her a new room to live in when she comes home. That meant building her a very tall structure for her to sleep in, in the garage, when she isn't outside. We used 2X4s and chicken wire and it worked like a charm! (After four separate nights of trying to finish it...) I furnished it with all of Bear's favorites: scratch post (up high so she can see out the window), favorite bath mats to keep her toesies warm on the concrete, her fave toys and squishy bed. I was so happy to get it done! Now she just needs a TV and a few pictures on the walls! LOL. I put her in it Sunday afternoon and watched as she wandered around, a little confused. After learning of the window view, though, she was pleased! Thank goodness! Up next? Cleaning the bathroom! No more kitty hair and spilled kibble! I couldn't wait. What a wonderful day it had been to get that big loose end tied! Now that it's Tuesday, I can safely say that the new enclosure is working just fine. I've covered some of it with blankets to insulate it at the moment. It's been snowing here! Brrr! Yesterday morning, I went out to check on her and she was sitting, impatiently, near the little door to her house. With worried eyes she seemed to say "Mom? I don't mean to judge, but I think you accidentally left me out here last night. You went to sleep before putting me back in the house..." Whoops! So, now she has the walls insulated and a heat lamp. That will get her through the next few frigid weeks, then she'll be comfy. The next big item for me then is letting her become an outdoor cat. This is huge for me. I'm so scared of something happening and her little self not coming home. I'll work up to it. At least for now she can wander the house when I'm home, and when it's sleepy time she can curl up in The Great Bear Cave. And I'm more than content with my sparkling bathroom, finally litter free! This roof now covers one very happy home--for woman and cat alike.

My honey, stapling the chicken wire.

Bear in her new house!