Cats and central heating this winter

[Stripedbag101]

I have been working from home the last couple of years and this winter will be back in the office, so my cat will be home alone from about 7:30am until about 7pm for three to four days a week.

I am worried she will be bored, lonely and cold! With gas prices sky rocketing I am reluctant to boost the heating during the day so have bought a few self heating blankets for her to sleep in.

other just be in the same boat - anyone else planning ahead? And if so what are you doing?

Just a thought, could you pull your fridge / freezer out a foot or so, they pump out heat. Caveat - I do not know if this is safe, I'm putting this out for opinions, I'm sure someone will say whether it is or not.

A bit harder if you have built ins. But you are, I assume, not turning your fridge of.

I once found my fluffball wrapped around the slow cooker, she isn't allowed in the kitchen unsupervised now.

I will be working from home still this winter and will only heat my office between 9 and 5, my cats are welcome to join me, but as they are cats they will do their own thing.
This includes sleeping outside when it is raining, despite having a cat flap
Laying flat out in the sunniest part of the garden during a heatwave.
Being outside when I get up and it’s below freezing.

Having spent a small fortune over the years on cat beds and other accessories I now just let them get on with it, there will be throws on the sofa, human beds to sleep on, hopefully some sunny patches and when the heating is on our landing is really warm.. at no time do I expect the cat beds to be used.

I think they will be plenty warm enough inside a house that you will heat at some point in 24hrs for yourselfs.
It’s -20 here some days and our heating usually goes off at 8pm and on again at 6am, so 10 hours. It’s usually 21 with heating on and only every drops to 18 lowest with it off for 10 hours. So they won’t be frozen

My lunatic cats like to sit in a pile of snow freezing Until he last minute. Then come inside and ignore blankets, sheepskin and beds and sleep on a tiled floor

Cats have a higher core temperature than us so get colder faster. Definitely a good idea to consider how to keep them cosy.

blog.petwellbeing.com/blog/cats/parent-help/brrr-its-cold-understanding-your-cats-body-temp

my cat isn’t a feral or farm cat. She is a spoilt indoor cat and is only three so has always had me home from work all day in winter with the heating on at some point. On colder days she slept on my knee while I worked. Covid has meant her life as been to date living with someone who works from home. That will change this winter.

I have said I am asking for tips to make sure she adjusts to being alone now for twelve hours a day in a colder house than she is used to.

she will inevitably be bored, lonely and colder than she is used to.

most people have understood what I am asking. Some haven’t.

I have got some great advice so thanks to everyone for that😺

Interesting, I've been thinking the same for ours except mine are Sphynx so don't have a fur coat to keep warm and certainly won't grow anu extra hair 😂 they already have enclosed beds, and can access our bed during the day but they're favourite place is on top of the radiator with a blanket over it so they don't burn.... I haven't decided what I'm going to do yet in terms of the heating for them. We are fortunate in that we can afford some increased hearing costs, but not enough to leave the thermostat set at 22 for them all winter like last year 😂

@ChickyNuggies Do they wear jumpers? angling for Sphynx pics

My cats slept anywhere they fancied, often choosing cooler draughty places such as below a window. Their fur kept them warm. They had a couple of those igloo things and a basket lined with fleece but mostly they slept in or under my bed.
If your cat is young and healthy I don’t think you should worry.

None of the houses I've lived in have ever retained heat that well!

Sheepskin rugs get really warm. What about a cardboard box wirh a sheepskin rug in it and a hot water bottle to snuggle up to

I used to leave the heating on for my 21 year old cat all day. She wouldn't have managed without it as she had arthritis. She's gone now and I have two younger cats. They will be fine without heating. They have cosy beds and both get under the duvet when they are cold. They sleep all day anyway when I am at home.

They don't at the moment, jumpers make them greasier than normal 🤢 however come winter maybe they will have to start 😂

Sphynx pics!!

Last year we had a half-bald skinny rescue and she went for an igloo with a self heating mat in it. She didn't like the crinkly noise at first but soon got used to it. And although she wouldn't go under a blanket herself, she would accept a fleece over the top of her once she was settled.

In fairness, I think most of the posts which the op is objecting to are in the reassuring ‘don’t worry too much, they’ll be fine’ camp, rather than the judgemental ‘fgs, they’re only cats!’ one. This is the litter tray, and most people on here want the best for their cats.

<3 sweet baby aliens.

If people don't like Sphynxies I tell them they don't really like cats then. That's what all cats look like under their fur. Sphynxes are the most cat of all cats really. Cat distilled.

Domestic cats initially come from North Africa and apart from a few breeds that have adapted to cold climes (and have long, layered, fur as a result) they prefer warmth.

@Stripedbag101 If she’s bored, have you got a wobbly or ball treat dispenser for her? Or one of those interactive cat mats from
catit? Or an electronic laser toy?
ours like the ball treat dispensers and the bouncy hook on the door feathery birds, and stuffed mice. One loves a flippin fish.
There are automatic food dispensers for her meals - which would give her something to listen for and you could hide treats in her blankets for her to find. I leave a radio on low for mine.

Covered dog beds are comfy, you can leave an iPad on with cat tv on them. The videos last for 12hrs. Our cats favourite is a one hour rabbit video.

I have four cats so they snuggle up for warmth. They love warm blankets, fleecy or sherpa type of things, and igloo beds. I also previously had one of those heat pads that goes in the microwave and retains heat really well, they seem like a safer option than leaving any type of heater on.

Hmm. I have the same question about husbands. Mine is elderly and arthritic and feels worse when it's cold. I am elderly, not arthritic and don't feel the cold. I plan lots of light covers for him, and a halogen heater when it gets proper chilly.
If I had a cat I'd keep it in one room with blankets to snuggle into .... and previous house owner had cat flaps so it could get outside.

You could also leave a hot water bottle under your duvet, my cat likes to sleep on top of the bed curled round it.

Hello crosstalk

I bought two of these for a friend with arthritis, she has one over her shoulders and one over her knees.

They really are good.

www.careco.co.uk/item-p-dl06254/comfi-heated-luxury-cosy/

Beurer does them too.

www.raynaudsdisease.com/beurer-cc50-heated-cosy-cape.html?gclid=CjwKCAjwpKyYBhB7EiwAU2Hn2SCywjNuOOktIEJuJwgFuIUzAO2nfSFqMn7SHKtu6OJvFJxgw4_stBoCPh4QAvD_BwE

Mine love that thick teddy fleece and will lie on a folded up blanket and sink into it.
I’ve never had any luck with cat beds!
Girl cat will make a nest under the duvet in one of the beds if she feels cold, she’s always toasty when she emerges.

I was worrying about this as well as my girl cat is old and getting quite frail and even though I am wfh I won't be able to afford heating on during the day. I do have a heated throw but would not feel safe leaving it on but I do have a reptile heat mat for my tortoise which know is safe so I have bought one of those, dusted off my maths and calculated on Oct prices if it's on 24hr a day it will cost 5p a day. And if she doesn't use it it can be a spare for the tortoise (I found last year it was also fab for putting feet on under my desk)

Harry is lucky as I'm going to be at home at least 4 days a week and DH is retired so the heating will be on all day.

@Stripedbag101 theres nothing wrong with spoiling your cat! We were on holiday one year and the weather got colder. We always leave the heating on low when we're away but we used the Nest thermostat to turn the heating up for Harry as we didn't want him getting cold.