Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I ordered this by accident, on my phone, as I was browsing Amazon's cat beds. I thought it looked neat and wanted to look into it later so I "added to my cart" or so I thought! I must have hit the "one click purchase" instead and did not know it until I checked my email the next day and it had shipped. So I couldn't cancel and return shipping would have been half the price of the item. So I kept it since I was on the lookout anyways. It cost more than I'd like but I think it will be around a long time. After having it a couple of weeks, I can say, I really like this kitty tube and a couple of the cats do too but I have not seen all of them go in it (but that could be a territory thing). We have taken in 5 cats that have been dumped and just shown up at our rural home. They typically live in our detached garage but the recently dumped cat (I watched this jerk dump her but he was gone before I could get in my car and get him!), I believe, was an inside cat and does not care for the other cats. She is not mean to the others but wants to be away from them, likes people and dogs more than other cats, likes clean stuff and not to share beds. I was in search for a home for her when I bought this because she spends many nights outside (she is the one in the video), and for our others, that get left out at night... We lock up the garage at night because we keep food out for them, and to keep other animals from making homes in the garage and keep the cats safe. I like the simplicity of the kitty tube. It is just a round, plastic "igloo" with a 1'' layer of foam insulation. The plastic will last forever. The insulation I was worried about being scratched on but they have not touched it, outside of a feral spraying in it but I sprayed bleach water on it and the bleach didn't hurt the insulation, thankfully, so I believe the insulation will hold up for years, as well. There is only one door, which I was not a fan of, but it works and is easy to maintain. I like the little eve over the entrance and I think it helps a little to keep out some blowing rain (we get terrible wind our on the farm). My fear is not of big animals, like coyotes, getting the cats, but more like the opossums (or skunks) that I have seen go in the other outdoor beds, and a opossum could easily get in the kitty tube, so that is why I have always been a fan of having an escape entrance. The entrance is about 4'' off the ground. The issue I see with this is that the rain could bounce off the ground, saturating the bed, or even blowing snow can enter. I wish the door was twice as high as it is. I think a higher door would be nicer because of the wind coming in and even rain bouncing off the ground and being able to come in contact with the bedding. If the door was higher, the cat could still easily see what is in the bed already and could easily climb in as well and then hunker down. It is all give and take though. Some cats (maybe more wild or feral) might like a lower door because they could see out easier. My cats are pets and around the house there isn't a lot to be worried about for our cats. A solution to the weather elements is putting the kitty tub under a covered porch, like we did, or even on some bricks, or supports, and place it facing the wall of the house where the eve/gutters of the house over hang the kitty tube entrance. We built a cat house with 2 entrances and the main entrance is under our gutters about 12'' from the house, and we have the entrance about 8'' from the ground and we put the house on 2 by 4 supports to get it off the ground so rain or snow will drain away. We also covered it with a tarp and the back "escape" exit is fully covered by the tarp (so no wind, rain, or snow can get it, and they themselves can't enter this way, but if they needed to get out of the box, they can leave, and then get under the tarp we have being held down by some bricks, except one looser corner. Kitty tube approximate dimensions: Outside dimensions: 25'' diameter, 22'' tall Inside with the single insulation: 21.5'' diameter, 16 ¾'' tall Inside with second layer of insulation (sold separately) : 19'' diameter, tall 12 ¼ `' There is a heated bed made for this kitty tube and it is a circle and would fit in nicely but is costly so I have not made that purchase yet. The Kitty Tube has a little hole specifically made for there heated bed's cord to fit thru so it would probably be a snug fit and air couldn't get in around the cord. When not using the heated bed, there is a plug to place in the hole and it comes with the purchase of the Kitty Tube and is made out of the same plastic as the tube. We have used the plug. There are other small heated beds out there, which I like and use in our garage, that are not round but would fit in the tube at a lower cost; you would just have to run the cord through the entrance of the tube, which is no big deal. I would recommend this tube and will purchase another in the future.