Cats and Dogs Also Feel the Bitter Idaho Cold

We have some outdoor cats at work.  One has been with us since she was born in the spring nine years ago.  She and the others have survived some harsh winter weather.  It still doesn’t mean they enjoy the cold.  They’ve got some shelter in a storage shed, and we have some heated dishes.  Unlike warmer days, the cats don’t venture out much on very cold days.  Usually, they race to greet me and get breakfast on mornings above 20 degrees.  At zero, I need to coax them out later in the day.  I shake a bag of food and they tenuously crawl out into the sunlight.

My house cat is similar.  He’s an old guy and in summer he likes to spend hours sunning himself on the patio.  Below 40 degrees, he has no interest in being outside and favors boxes.  Huck has been an indoor cat for so long, that I don’t believe he could survive bitter cold nights.

The same for short-haired dogs.  Your domestic breeds generally weren’t bred for arctic weather.  I was appalled last winter when someone abandoned some baby animals outside the local shelter.  You couldn’t at least do that on a warmer night?

I envied my cat this morning.  After checking Monday’s football scores and the results from Iowa, I fed him and then checked the temperature.  As I was getting ready to leave, he sat on the couch looking at me.  I love my job, but for a moment, retirement looked good!  I could spend the day indoors lounging with him.  He’s worth it.

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