I don’t know if this is in a penned area or something but I just thought I’d offer my experience, in case it’s of any use.
My dad iterated on a design for a house for our outside cats. I say iterated because the first design was much like this and we think coyotes came up and ate the cat(s). We had two but really couldn’t tell if they killed and ate both or if one of the cats got away. It was about 50ish feet from the house, so my dad set out some traps and sat outside into the night to take out a few and “run them off”, which is always a temporary affair as they stay where there’s food and not constant threat of death.
Anywho, the design. Imagine a standard shed with a single angled roof. The roof had a hinge that allowed us to open it to clean it out and also just to check on the cats. The front of the house had a small window and a ledge that allowed them to look out and provide light. There were places for multiple cats to lay and stretch out. The entrance, which is the real key piece, was small and had a double turn built in that only cats or maybe small foxes could get into, which is also why the second level had another entrance/exit. It was also off the ground like you have here, but perhaps a foot off the ground or so, if memory serves.
Anywho, in case anyone can use it, that double turn keeps your outdoor varmint patrol safer if you have even one coyote around. Cats are fast, but coyotes are Wiley.
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Is this for the hens or the cat?
I don’t know if this is in a penned area or something but I just thought I’d offer my experience, in case it’s of any use.
My dad iterated on a design for a house for our outside cats. I say iterated because the first design was much like this and we think coyotes came up and ate the cat(s). We had two but really couldn’t tell if they killed and ate both or if one of the cats got away. It was about 50ish feet from the house, so my dad set out some traps and sat outside into the night to take out a few and “run them off”, which is always a temporary affair as they stay where there’s food and not constant threat of death.
Anywho, the design. Imagine a standard shed with a single angled roof. The roof had a hinge that allowed us to open it to clean it out and also just to check on the cats. The front of the house had a small window and a ledge that allowed them to look out and provide light. There were places for multiple cats to lay and stretch out. The entrance, which is the real key piece, was small and had a double turn built in that only cats or maybe small foxes could get into, which is also why the second level had another entrance/exit. It was also off the ground like you have here, but perhaps a foot off the ground or so, if memory serves.
Anywho, in case anyone can use it, that double turn keeps your outdoor varmint patrol safer if you have even one coyote around. Cats are fast, but coyotes are Wiley.