It sure does look like our eastern tent caterpillars -

Eastern Tent Caterpillar

I'm not familiar with Irish cats, but if it's not the same caterpillar, it would likely be very closely related.

Sherry

Thank you, Serry. Looks like you could be right.

Tent caterpillars are moderately sized caterpillars, or moth larvae, belonging to the genus Malacosoma in the family Lasiocampidae. Twenty-six species have been described, six of which occur in North America and the rest in Eurasia. Some species are considered to have subspecies as well. They are often considered pests due to their habit of defoliating trees. They are among the most social of all caterpillars and exhibit many noteworthy behaviors.