A new shelter can sit untouched in the garden for the first few days. That's completely normal — it doesn't mean your cat won't use it, it just means it hasn't decided yet. Cats are cautious about new things, especially outdoors. This guide walks you through the five steps that make a real difference, the mistakes to avoid, and what to do if you're setting up a shelter for a cat that isn't fully yours.
Why cats hesitate
A cat's world is built on familiar smells, sightlines and routes. A brand-new object — even a warm, dry one — doesn't smell like anything your cat recognises yet, and it hasn't been tested for danger. Give it time and a few nudges in the right direction, and most cats come round to it on their own.
The 5 steps
1. Place it somewhere your cat already goes
Don't put the shelter in a new, unfamiliar corner of the garden. Put it where your cat already spends time — near a spot it naps in, a sheltered wall it walks past, or wherever it currently waits out bad weather. Familiar location beats “perfect” location.
2. Make it smell like home
Add a blanket, cushion or bedding your cat has already slept on, rather than anything brand new. Scent is one of the strongest signals a cat uses to decide somewhere is safe. If you don't have anything pre-used, gently rub a soft cloth on your cat's cheeks and place that inside — cats mark territory this way, and it can help.
3. Leave the entrance open and visible
Don't close off the entrance or angle the shelter away from where your cat approaches. It should be easy to see into and easy to walk into without squeezing past anything. If your cat can't see there's nothing threatening inside, it won't go in to check.
4. Use food to build the association
For the first few days, place your cat's food and water just inside the entrance, or right next to it. This is the single most effective step: it turns “strange new object” into “somewhere good things happen.” Once your cat is comfortable eating near the entrance, move the food further inside over a few days.
5. Give it time — and don't force it
Most cats take anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks to start using a new shelter regularly. Don't pick your cat up and put it inside, and don't block other options so it “has” to use the shelter. Let it explore in its own time. Forcing it tends to create the opposite association to the one you want.
Mistakes to avoid
- Moving the shelter around while you wait. Constant repositioning resets the “familiar place” signal your cat is building up. Pick a spot and leave it.
- Cleaning out the bedding too soon. Once your cat starts using the shelter, its own scent is doing a lot of the work. Don't wash everything at the first opportunity.
- Placing it somewhere convenient for you, not for your cat. A spot that's easy for you to see from the kitchen window isn't automatically a spot your cat feels safe in.
- Giving up after a few days. Some cats take a couple of weeks. Slow progress isn't failure.
- Skipping the food step. It's the single biggest factor in how quickly a shelter gets adopted.
If you're feeding a cat that isn't fully yours
Many people who buy this shelter aren't the owner of the cat they're setting it up for — they feed a cat that visits, or a small local colony. The steps above still apply, with two extra points:
- Consistency matters more. A cat you don't own has other places it could go. A shelter that's reliably in the same place, with food nearby at a similar time each day, is far more likely to be adopted as “its” spot.
- Read up on feeding community cats responsibly. Cats Protection publishes practical guidance on caring for stray and feral cats, including feeding, shelter and when to involve a vet — it's a good next read if this is a cat you're supporting rather than one that lives with you.
What we won't promise
We can't guarantee your cat will use this shelter on day one, or that it will use it every night, or that it will never choose somewhere else instead. What we can tell you is what actually helps — placement, scent and food — based on how cats behave, not marketing claims. If, after giving it a proper try, it still isn't working for your cat, our 30-day returns policy is there for exactly that reason.