Have you ever had to use a hair dryer to melt a birthing mother cat and her one surviving kitten out of an puddle of solid ice.  I have and it wasn’t pretty but the mom and baby did survive.  The look in the mother cat’s eyes will be with me for the rest of my life. She knew we were helping – the gratitude was pure trust – she purred.  Building one or two of the pictured winter shelters is not costly and with straw (never hay) used for insulation the mother and all babies could have survived this horrible situation.  Please if you know of a stray cat and cannot take into your home – build a basic winter shelter and toss in a handful of fresh catnip to encourage its use by the cat.  Daily food and water is a must.  This action will keep the cat safe until more permanent safe arrangement can be made for the animal.