My cat loves to go out on the patio. I usually let her out in the spring/summer--under supervision of course. One time I stepped inside to grab a broom to sweep it off & she had jumped off & went underneath. As you can see, the patio is several inches off the ground:
Shortly after I moved in I came home from work & found what used to be a bush hacked completely down. I suspect either the landscapers or maintenance did that because my cat loves to sit or lay at the doorwall & look out, they saw her & decided to give her more of a view.
This morning I opened the doorwall to see what she would do. She sniffed, then started to step out.
She didn't get very far. Naturally, as soon as she stepped on the icy, wet coldness, she retreated.
And chose to look out from her scratching post/perch.
For a while after that, her highness was upset with me. Like it was my fault there was cold wetness covering her patio.