How to keep cats from using garden as a toilet?

[Taffy Turner]

We have just dug up our front lawn as it is on the north side of the house, and so never gets any sun and consequently the grass always looked manky.

We have replaced it with a nice bed of flint pebbles with some shrubs in tubs, and it looks really nice.

However - there is one slight snag with it - all the local cats have now decided that flint pebbles makes a nice litter box, and so we are having to clear up 3 or 4 piles of cat rubbish a day.

Doe anyone have experience of a cat deterrent that actually works? We have tried the one containing lion poop, but it is useless!

I have had a search on the internet and there are loads of cat repellers / scarers about, but do any of them actually work?

I have no wish to harm them in anyway as I love cats, but I have got to stop them crapping in the gravel!

Regards

Gary

 

[Steve Maskery]

Hi Gary
It's a pain isn't it? Have you tried old-fashioned cat pepper? I think you only have to do it few times to get them out of the habit.

If you want to be more ambitious, you can water sprinklers which turn on as they pass by and scare them off! Probably not very environmentally friendsly though, in the current climate.

If you do find a good solution, let us all know!

CHeers
Steve

 

[Taffy Turner]

Yes - I saw the ones that squirt them with water controlled by a PIR, but the trouble is we would need our wellies and souwester on everytime we went in or out through the front door!!!!

I shall look into cat pepper - got any more details?

Cheers

Gary

 

[LyNx]

a good swing with a heavy boot is the best result. They start to understand after a while and don't return.

I used pepper at my last house but the cats loved it and the garden was full cat poo.

 

[dedee]

Gary,
I've always wondered if those sonic repellants actualy work as well as advertised. I saw some in local garden centre last week and there are a number advertised in the sunday papers.

Andy

 

[Good Surname or what ?]

Get a cat yourself? :roll:

 

[RogerS]

If they come around and you can see them then a handful of gravel chucked at them or a bucket of water. Not that harmful...mainly annoying and they soon get the hint.

 

[matt]

Get a cat yourself.

 

[Sawdust]

Get a cat yourself.

Or better still a dog

 

[llangatwgnedd]

1.Jeyes Fluid

2.Staffordshire Bull Terrier

3.BSA Supersport .22

 

[MrsX]

G's gone away for the rest of the day but thanks for all your suggestions.

Cat is out of the question, as is a dog for the moment unfortunately, but will bear it in mind!

Would the Jeyes Fluid rot the membrane laid underneath the aggregates?

I'm at my wits end, as a stop-gap measure I'm going to cut down some brambles from the wood behind the house and lay that over the stones!

Thanks again.

 

[Shady]

I've had a water pistol recommended before: if you really are being driven mad, get hold of one of the 'super squirter' jobbies (the big ones you can pump up), and sit and wait for a day (eg Sunday) Blast all who approach - they'll soon get the hint.

 

[LyNx]

It's a dirty job, but it worked for a mate. Become a friend with the cat, let it know your not going to harm it... then one day, wearing rubber gloves, grab the cat stick your finger in chilli powder then stick it up it's a**e.

The cat can't lick it's own a**e as too hot and it's ring will be sore for a good week. Worked for my mate and never seen the cat again.

 

[Chris Knight]

Air rifle - preferably .22 FAC variety.

 

[Johnboy]

I have heard that you just need to put a small piece of lead in their ear to stop them. Administered with a 12 bore. :twisted:

John

 

[Paul Chapman]

My cat Sparky has just read this thread and he's very cross with you lot - in fact he's a good mind to come round and s**t on your respective doorsteps :lol:

Paul

 

[johnelliott]

I can hardly believe people are suggesting air rifles, even in jest. Air rifles are a particularly nasty weapon to use against a cat because of course they don't kill the cat but can do all sorts of nasty harm to an animal that is only behaving naturally.
Better to kill it outright than to use an air rifle. I don't allow my cats out BTW, so my neighbours are neither bothered by their poo or severely risking their own health by using an air rifle on them

What on earth is wrong with using a powerful water pistol, it's cheaper than an air rifle and doesn't do unseen and unpleasant damage to the insides of the cat

John
Member of the Cats Protection

 

[matt]

I can hardly believe people are suggesting air rifles, even in jest. Air rifles are a particularly nasty weapon to use against a cat because of course they don't kill the cat but can do all sorts of nasty harm to an animal that is only behaving naturally.
Better to kill it outright than to use an air rifle. I don't allow my cats out BTW, so my neighbours are neither bothered by their poo or severely risking their own health by using an air rifle on them

What on earth is wrong with using a powerful water pistol, it's cheaper than an air rifle and doesn't do unseen and unpleasant damage to the insides of the cat

John
Member of the Cats Protection

Yep - have to say I was equally disturbed by the glib references to using an air rifle.

 

[Sailor]

Hi,

Have found the water pistol idea works well! The one we got, (I seem to remember, from a sports shop,) is a pump-up type thing, no brand name and did a really good job.
It literally only took a couple of times getting wet for each cat before they got the idea that they weren't welcome to defaecate here.

We still use it occasionally, particularly during the nesting season, as it seems the attraction outweighs the getting wet.

HTH,

Colin

 

[mailee]

Just give the garden a good dowsing with Agent Orange, worked in Vietnam, messed up the vegetation though! :roll: