Cat experts......

[RobDavies]

...how do I stop next doors cat from taking regular dumps in the middle of my lawn?

It's a recent occurance - I went out there the other day and there was 7 different deposits all within about a square metre of grass. I cleared it all up but then two more appeared yesterday in the same place. It's not nice, especially as I've got two kids who love to play in the garden.

I though cats were supposed to bury their business?

[macguffin]

Sprinkle pepper where it shits or lemon peelings, cats hate citrus.

[MattANJH]

There's two none harmful methods I know of. One uses a device that lets out very high frequency noise, humans can't hear it and it drives cats mental, so they run away, and it's set off on a proximity thing. The other is setting up a sprinkler device or other such thing again with a proximity sensor, that way when the cat approaches it gets squirted.

You could try a fairly powerful water pistol, like the old super soaker things, and hiding, then squirting them when they appear.

[Col.Decker]

buy your own cat, then it'll keep all the others away.



on the down side you will have a kitchen full of dead mices, dead froggits, and enourmos dead mothids

[MattANJH]

Originally Posted by Col.Decker

buy your own cat, then it'll keep all the others away.



on the down side you will have a kitchen full of dead mices, dead froggits, and enourmos dead mothids

Not true, my parents cat runs away from other cats and the only dead thing it's ever brought in was a long dead bird it had found, couldn't catch anything herself because she's a bit crap at being a cat

[macguffin]

Originally Posted by MattANJH

There's two none harmful methods I know of. One uses a device that lets out very high frequency noise, humans can't hear it and it drives cats mental, so they run away, and it's set off on a proximity thing. The other is setting up a sprinkler device or other such thing again with a proximity sensor, that way when the cat approaches it gets squirted.

You could try a fairly powerful water pistol, like the old super soaker things, and hiding, then squirting them when they appear.

Those very high frequency noise devices are very good for the local wildlife

edit: NOT VERY GOOD FOR THE LOCAL WILDLIFE!

[fatherjack]

The only problem I'd imagine with the sound devices is that you can't guarantee the sound stops at the edge of your property. If it affects next door's cat while it's in its own garden, you can look forward to a neighbour dispute and one of Fret's colleagues will think of you every time he sips a cocktail on the deck of his yacht in the Bahamas...

[MattANJH]

Originally Posted by fatherjack

The only problem I'd imagine with the sound devices is that you can't guarantee the sound stops at the edge of your property. If it affects next door's cat while it's in its own garden, you can look forward to a neighbour dispute and one of Fret's colleagues will think of you every time he sips a cocktail on the deck of his yacht in the Bahamas...

Hmm, I suppose you'd have to get one with a sensor pick-up range no bigger than your garden.

[sfocata]

Basically, anything you do to scare the cat (throwing stuff, spraying water) will teach it to be wary of you. It'll pick its times more carefully.

Cats go by smells... they want to recognise both their own scent and the *lack* of another cat's scent. So you can confuse their sense of smell by using smells they hate... like macguffin says, they hate citrus, and that goes for other acids. You can get various products based on citronella (the oil from lemongrass)... we got a toilet-training spray from Wilkinsons when our kittens were learning to use their litter tray, and it worked really well.

The other option is something like Silent Roar, which makes the cat think that spot is already taken. They also like a quiet secure place, so hang washing above that spot

Oh, and it may be a comment that your grass is too long. One of the neighbours' cats used to come and shit on our lawn once it got too long.

[sfocata]

Originally Posted by RobDavies

I though cats were supposed to bury their business?

It varies. Our two kittens are still using their litter tray occasionally, and the female is absolutely hopeless at covering it up. She does the digging motion, but mostly on the side of the tray, the floor, even the wall nearby... never managing to cover up the turd

It was the same with our two older cats when they used to use a tray... the female always covered it up perfectly, but the male would just shit on top of the litter and walk away casually