SALEM, Ohio - Amid the recent winter storm and sub zero temperatures, some are keeping an eye out for their local feral cats and ensuring they too have shelter from the cold.

Brenda Austin, Salem's Trap and Release (TNR) project coordinator, said she has been checking up on areas she knows are frequented by local strays, making sure they have access to shelter from the cold. In recent months, the TNR project has introduced the idea of using old or donated coolers, with a hole cut in one side, as makeshift winter shelters for stray or feral cats. The shelters are filled with dry straw to help keep any feline visitors warm. 

Since the weekend snow storm, Austin said she has been out making the rounds at each of the locations she knows has a shelter or two. TNR also maintains a list of who has the shelters, "so when the weather breaks we can get out there, trap and fix them," Austin said.

While the Salem TNR program provides the shelters to anyone who requests them, Austin said they rely on community cat caretakers to maintain them and keep a supply of food and water available for the cats that frequent the boxes. During the winter, TNR also advises community caretakers to leave out more food than usual, as the cats will be burning more calories to stay warm through the nights. Anyone interested in a shelter for cats they have noticed in their Salem neighborhood can reach out to Austin on Facebook. She also provided additional tips on how to care for feral cats during the winter back at the start of the colder months.

Austin describes her role, in some respects, as "overwhelming and discouraging at times." In some locations, she said she has had to dig the snow away from shelter entrances. Oftentimes she notices pawprints outside the blocked off shelters, a sign that the snow blockage was preventing cats from getting in and getting warm.

"We have had a few situations, unfortunately, where shelter entrances are not shoveled out [and are blocked by snow]," Austin said.

Bedding inside the shelters is also a key piece. Dry straw is a necessity, Austin explained. Any blankets, towels or fabric bedding will absorb moisture from the air or the cat's paws— it can quickly become wet and subsequently freezing cold. In one instance, Austin recalled getting a message about a cat whose tail had been frozen to the ground because there were towels in its shelter rather than straw. 

Recent donors have included community members and local hospitals with old coolers. For anyone who wants to build their own shelters for cats roaming their neighborhood, Austin advises placing entrance holes high "to allow for a deep layer of straw bedding to be maintained within." An off-center entrance also provides a warm corner inside the shelter. 

When the weather warms, Austin said the program may shift its tactics and instead start moving through entire neighborhoods at a time, trapping feral cats block by block spaying and neutering as many as possible. She added that they hope with this method the program — only in its first year — will see more positive impacts.