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interior warm enough to prevent or reverse freezingof food. Before you place wet food inside a shelter,check first to make sure there are no cats sleeping inthere. If the coast is clear, place a small bowl ofwet food in the corner of the shelter furthest fromthe door. Be sure to remove any uneaten food andreplace it with fresh fare – you don’t want the catsto eat food which has been frozen, thawed, thenfrozen again. That’s a way for the food to becomecontaminated. To be safe, you could put a smallbowl of dry food inside the shelter instead of wet.Only place food in a shelter; never put waterinside. For the cats to stay healthy over the winter,photo: Meredith Weisstheir shelter must be kept dry. A container of watercould easily spill, dampening the interior and getting the cats wet. Also, discontinueputting any food in the shelter if you find it is attracting insects or wildlife.Some of the products for preventing water from freezing may also assist withstopping wet food from becoming frozen, like the heated water bowl or the Snuggle Safeheated pad. The problem is that as the wet food is warmed, the moisture in the foodevaporates and the food dries out. So these products will be helpful only if the cats comeand eat the food quickly. NutritionWe believe the guiding principle when it comes to colony caretaking is feral catsshould be fed the highest quality food you can comfortably afford. This principle takestwo important considerations into account. First, nutrition is important for ferals whooften endure a physically demanding and stressful outdoor life. There is no better way tohelp boost their overall health than to feed them well. Second and equally important areyour own financial circumstances. There’s no glory in feeding the cats premium brandfood if this means you can’t pay your rent. Your well-being matters too, and you must beable to afford what you’re spending on the cats. If you’re managing a five cat colony andthe extra cost for high quality canned food won’t make much of a dent in your budget,then that’s a good choice to make. On the other hand, if you’re feeding 30 cats inmultiple locations and buying the large bags of Kirkland dry food at Costco becausethat’s what you can afford, then that’s the best choice and no less of a sacrifice.In order to choose which food within your budget is the best quality, you need toknow a bit about cat nutrition. Here are some of the basics:• Interpreting the ingredients labelOne quick way to evaluate the quality of cat food is to read the ingredients label.This won’t tell you everything you need to know, but it’s a good start. The ingredientsare listed in the order of greatest quantity. If the first ingredient listed is “turkey,” then37