# minimum temperatures the domestic cat can withstand

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minimum-temperatures-the-domestic-cat-can-withstand/204947>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [October 1, 2003, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minimum-temperatures-the-domestic-cat-can-withstand/204947 "2003-10-01T17:08:20Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![blah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d07c76/32.png) [@blah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blah)\
**Post date:** [October 1, 2003, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minimum-temperatures-the-domestic-cat-can-withstand/204947/1 "2003-10-01T17:08:20Z")

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what is the minimum temperature your average domestic cat could withstand comfortably overnight?

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**Author:** ![gluteus\_maximus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f17d59/32.png) [@gluteus\_maximus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gluteus_maximus)\
**Post date:** [October 1, 2003, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minimum-temperatures-the-domestic-cat-can-withstand/204947/2 "2003-10-01T17:22:54Z")

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Why do you want to know?:dubious:

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**Author:** ![Momotaro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/2bfe46/32.png) [@Momotaro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Momotaro)\
**Post date:** [October 1, 2003, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minimum-temperatures-the-domestic-cat-can-withstand/204947/3 "2003-10-01T17:50:04Z")

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Domestic cats can stand very cold temperature if they live outside continuously and can adapt to the changing temperature. I lived on a farm near Montreal. The winters can get very cold (-40 C), but farm cats can stand that sort of temperature just fine. House cats, on the other hand are something completely different. A bit like the difference between an urbanite and an eskimo.

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**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\
**Post date:** [October 1, 2003, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minimum-temperatures-the-domestic-cat-can-withstand/204947/4 "2003-10-01T18:21:10Z")

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Cats are very smart about keeping warm. The barn cats at my barn have no trouble surviving Michigan winters which often dip below 0F – and this includes the one that was an indoor-only cat for the first 8 years of her life. They will often sleep in the hay, or find some other snoozing spot soft and insulating and out of the wind.

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**Author:** ![cainxinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@cainxinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cainxinth)\
**Post date:** [October 1, 2003, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/minimum-temperatures-the-domestic-cat-can-withstand/204947/5 "2003-10-01T19:13:59Z")

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there’s only one way to find out for certain… 😛