catalytic converter question

Last week, my car started making a scraping/rattling noise from underneath. This past weekend I jacked it up and poked around, and it looks like the heat shield on the cat has rusted off or broken. Of course, poking around with it made the rattle 10 times worse, so I have to do something about it, like NOW.
First off, I'm 99.9% sure I can't get a hi-flow cat. NY is about to go to CA emissions standards, so that's not going to fly. And I don't want to change cats every year at inspection time. It's not worth it to me or my D16.
But it's looking like a stock cat from Honda is in the neighborhood of $400, which is insane.
So I'm thinking I'm just going to jack it up again, take a hacksaw to that beyotch, and cut the heat shield off the rest of the way. (Or unbolt it neatly, if that's easier, which I somehow doubt.)

Question one: by doing that, is the cat gonna end up burning a hole through my friggin floor? If so, any suggestions?

Question two: am I going about this all wrong?

Thanks, guys.

take it to midas...they will weld it back on for little or nothing...the same exact thing happend to me and its embarrasing as hell to have your car rattle all the dame time...Midas welded it back on and its good as new, just ask them to spot weld the heat sheild back on, they can do it unless it is too rusted...then u just gotta get a metal hanger and tie that bitch around it as tight as u can

the front 2 bolts on my heat shield broke off

I just went to NAPA and got a metal hose clamp.
completely unscrewed it and then wraped it around the front part of the shield and cat. tytened it back up and cut the exsece off

works fine and only cost $2 and five minutes to fix.
works great and its permanint

Thanks, guys. Both good suggestions.

I guess this afternoon I'll pick up a hose clamp on my way home. If there's enough left on the shield to clamp it, I'll do that. If that doesn't work, I'll stop at my mechanic tomorrow and see if he can spot weld it back. And if that doesn't work, maybe THEN I'll cut off.