# How to keep cats from using garden as a toilet?



## Taffy Turner (10 Jul 2006)

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


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## Steve Maskery (10 Jul 2006)

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


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## Taffy Turner (10 Jul 2006)

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


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## LyNx (10 Jul 2006)

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.


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## dedee (10 Jul 2006)

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


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## Good Surname or what ? (10 Jul 2006)

Get a cat yourself? :roll:


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## RogerS (10 Jul 2006)

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.


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## matt (10 Jul 2006)

Get a cat yourself.


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## Sawdust (10 Jul 2006)

matt":1mdpuzzc said:


> Get a cat yourself.



Or better still a dog


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## llangatwgnedd (10 Jul 2006)

1.Jeyes Fluid

2.Staffordshire Bull Terrier

3.BSA Supersport .22


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## MrsX (10 Jul 2006)

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.


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## Shady (10 Jul 2006)

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.


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## LyNx (10 Jul 2006)

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.


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## Chris Knight (10 Jul 2006)

Air rifle - preferably .22 FAC variety.


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## Johnboy (10 Jul 2006)

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


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## Paul Chapman (10 Jul 2006)

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


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## johnelliott (10 Jul 2006)

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


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## matt (10 Jul 2006)

johnelliott":2w5bllmh said:


> 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*
> ...



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


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## Sailor (10 Jul 2006)

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


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## mailee (10 Jul 2006)

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


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## LyNx (10 Jul 2006)

or fill the water pistol with petrol................ :twisted: 

only kidding, i throw stones at the fence near to where the cat is. The bang is enough to scare it off for a few days or so.


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## sliver (10 Jul 2006)

Right, worth a try. Someone somewhere,,, I think on T.V. said to use the LARGER gravel as the cats don't associate this with cat litter. We have just recently gravelled our back garden, neighbours have a cat & a beautiful little thing she is too, but never uses our garden as a toilet. I must love cats as I go out to the car some days & she's sprawled across the bonnet (hood to our Murrican friends)  The car is not quite 6 months old & I don't kick off about it. Could be worth a go???

Cheers, sliver. :wink:


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## Colin C (11 Jul 2006)

I think one water pistol will be on my next shopping list as my workshop gets marked buy them ever year and it stinks plus lastyear I bought sand for the kids box and the same day, the cats had pushed the lid and had a s**t in it :evil: ( about £12 down the drain and it was luck that I saw it before the kids went back in)


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## engineer one (11 Jul 2006)

i know it grows like a b*****er, but doesn't mint supposedly 
put them off too??

there are a number of herbs which are supposed to be anti cat, 
and would make the gravel look better too.

the other thing is a spikey plant like a cordyline"not sure about that spelling", or some cacti.

i know that you have gravelled to get rid of the manky lawn, but
a few interesting hardy's make it look soo much better.

paul :wink:


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## Scott (11 Jul 2006)

Lion poo!

Apparently a wee hint of that strategically placed around the perimeter lets them know that the place belongs to a big dude!

You'll need a safari park or zoo and a Pooper Scooper .... :lol: 

Scott (not kidding!)


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## Colin C (11 Jul 2006)

Scott":3dk9zp60 said:


> Lion poo!
> 
> Apparently a wee hint of that strategically placed around the perimeter lets them know that the place belongs to a big dude!
> 
> ...



I have heard this too but I have too much poo in my garden as it is :roll: :evil: 
Ps and I would think it is not as easy to get :wink:


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## Shady (11 Jul 2006)

> i know it grows like a b*****er, but doesn't mint supposedly
> put them off too??



Don't go there!!! We only let mint grow in pots now - it'll take over the entire place in about 30 seconds. Fennell's the same - grows like a maniac...

I must say, some of the comments - although in jest - are a little 'cattopathic'... Water pistol's the best. As to sticking your finger up a cat's bum... :roll: Imagine the fun visit to the surgery to have the resultant scars stitched: "Oh, I was just, er, fighting with a cat, doc..." [-X


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## MrsX (11 Jul 2006)

Thanks everyone, looks like we'll be trying the water pistol then.

Have tried the lions poop stuff, it didn't work for me. I think the little white cat sees it as a challenge because after cleaning up on Sunday and liberally spreading another helping of the pellets within an hour I had to clean up again. 

I used to have success with lemon/lime/orange pieces, but after seeing them covered with ants recently that avenue has been closed. I'd rather clean up after the cats than have the house over-run with ants!


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## Adam (11 Jul 2006)

MrsX":12f1k1k8 said:


> Thanks everyone, looks like we'll be trying the water pistol then.



Do you know who owns the cats? Could you could request them to come and clean it up?

As John said a responsible cat owner should provide/encourage a cat to use a litter tray indoors, if neccasary, keep them in for a few days to get them used to it.

I know someone who runs an electric fence around his vegetable plot to stop the cats coming in. Extreme perhaps but in resedential areas its quite a problem. I know when we reseeded our lawn the cats took to it with a vengence. Its really not pleasant walking across the lawn only to tread in something. Worse still when you have small children. You can't be out checking all the time. I tried every method to get rid of the cats, throwing stones at the fence, water pistols, pepper powder etc. In the end, the owner of the cats moved house. In the end, just the sound of a key in the back door or a window being pushed open and it was off. They soon learn when the waterpistol is going to be used. Its not a long term solution. So I have a lot of sympathy with the OP.

Although ineffective, at least dog wardens have some clout to stop people letting their dogs mess on pavements. Cat owners seem to turn a blind eye to the problems their animals create. All the solutions suggested rely on the party whos property is being "invaded". Have you asked the cat owners to stop their cats coming over? Why not ask them to pay the bills for the spray/fertiliser/pepper etc. As I see it, cats are domestic animals, so, the owner is responsible. If they cannot be trained not to venture outside the constraints of a garden could they perhaps not be penned in - like a rabbit or a guinea pig? - ableit with a massive area to roam in. Can't be any worse than keeping them permanently indoors. I know that would go down like a lead balloon with cat owners, but I don't see why its the responsibility of everyone else to suffer from a domesticated animal which in most cases definately has an owner who whould be responsible.

Adam

Adam


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## dedee (11 Jul 2006)

I was hoping that someone would chip in with their experiances with one of these or simliar.



Andy


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## Adam (11 Jul 2006)

dedee":fpody328 said:


> I was hoping that someone would chip in with their experiances with one of these or simliar.
> Andy



Sorry, that was the final item I was working up to, when their "for sale" notice went up. So I never got to try it out. 

Adam


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## gwaithcoed (11 Jul 2006)

Hello Gary, 

When we moved into our present house some 10 years ago we found that our neighbour had 19 cats that she fed. Most of which were ferral cats and lived in the wood at the top of our garden. She would come out and shout "kit e kat" and you could see them come from all directions. The problem was that their garden was like a jungle so all of the cats seemed to use our flower borders and lawn as a toilet.
We bought one of those sonic repellant things, £35, Extention cable £7, mains transformer £25 and what happened? 
Instructions said to place it where the cats normally come into your garden.
O.K this was the wall between us and next door where they used to jump over.
Set it up and waited. First cat over landed right by it and jumped two foot in the air and shot off back over.
Great result I thought until a couple of minutes later he reappeared with another scraggy old cat who stood on top of the wall for a few seconds, jumped down by the sonic scarer backed off a little, then approached very warily turned his backside to it and peeded all over it.
It was a complete failure. No matter where I put it, if they passed it they would jump but then come back have a sniff and pee over it

I was able to solve my problem with these PIR operated water jets as I have a large garden. I have two permanently coupled up and keep moving them around so my garden is cat free.

I have just been into the workshop and found this sonic scarer, the plastic lens on the front is missing but it appears to be in working order. If you would like to try it out it is yours for the cost of the postage.

Cheers Alan.

PS it no longer smells of cat pee


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## Richard in Smithville (12 Jul 2006)

Some of the things that i have seen around here include moth balls, hurling stones of clods of dirt at the cats, water guns, and the one that works for me .......my really big dog.

( The woman next door feeds loads of stray cats. You always know when a new one comes around....you see it once in my yard. Usually the dog sees the cat, the cat sees the dog, and the cat clears a five foot fence no problem. Never see that cat on my side of the fence again.)


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## RogerS (12 Jul 2006)

Richard in Smithville":2x8fp9bv said:


> and the cat clears a five foot fence no problem.



So do builders :lol: We used to have two bassett hounds and they were able to roam free inside the fenced-off part of the garden via a massive 'dog' flap in the kitchen door. Whenever the builder was due, we'd secure the flap to keep the dogs in. Alas, one day we forgot to secure the flap and the builder arrived. Two things then happened almost simultaneously. One - the bassetts realised that the flap was open. Two - the builder realised that One now applied. It became a race to see who could get to the garden fence first


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## dedee (12 Jul 2006)

Alan,
thanks for that, rather confirms my suspicions that they would get used to the sound and learn to ignore it.

Andy


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## Sawdust (12 Jul 2006)

Why not build up a stock of dado cutters (there must be loads spare) and throw them at the little devils.

Best solution I've found is a dog. Ours does a great job of keeping cats at bay and it's good to see her happy in her 'work'.

Mike


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## RogerM (12 Jul 2006)

Sawdust":3g1z8b8s said:


> Best solution I've found is a dog. Ours does a great job of keeping cats at bay and it's good to see her happy in her 'work'.



Yep. A Cairn terrier will make your garden a nature free zone, seeing off everything from moles to high flying swallows. And they're great little fellas as company as well. Of course - that does create a new problem!


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## Taffy Turner (12 Jul 2006)

To all of you who posted helpfull comments - thank you very much.

For those of you who suggested air rifles, chili powder (????) etc - shame on you. The cats don't realise that thay are doing anything wrong, so how would you like it if someone shot you with an air rifle just as you were settling down for your morning ritual??? To be honest, anyone shooting a cat with an air rifle deserves to be reported and prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Or if I saw someone shoot a cat with an air rifle (or crossbow or catapult etc), they would be praying for the law to arrive PDQ to help them remove said weapon from where I had just inserted it!

Alan - thanks very much for your generous offer (once again!!), but if you found the sonic cat repeller useless, then I can't really see much point in trying it, and this was the whole point of my original post.

Regards

Gary


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## Richard in Smithville (12 Jul 2006)

Roger Sinden":zqzx3ji9 said:


> So do builders :lol: Two things then happened almost simultaneously. One - the bassetts realised that the flap was open. Two - the builder realised that One now applied. It became a race to see who could get to the garden fence first



Sat here this morning lmao. Had vissions of when a door to door salesman came baning on the screen door. Time I got there(and got passed the dog, who was sleeping by the door when he knocked) the salesman was waving at me from the street-30 feet away :lol:

As for the cats...have you tried contacting a garden center? I'm sure there must be something really expensive that they would sell you.


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## LyNx (12 Jul 2006)

you could ship it off to the north pole!! 



> The cats don't realise that thay are doing anything wrong


 
I think they do :wink: 

Next doors is fine, comes up and all friendly, never scared of me BUT when it's in the garden and wants to drop of a parcel, as soon as i walk into the garden, it's off, straight over the fence. 

It knows it's doing wrong. 

I have noticed that since my borders are filling up (with plants not poo) that the cats don't use it so much. I think the open ground is the cats best friend.


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## seaco (12 Jul 2006)

I think you should take up photography, decide to take some lovely shots of this cat, I guarantee you'll never see it again... :wink:


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## -David- (12 Jul 2006)

I am not a fan of cats, but they do keep our 2acre garden free of rabbits (which I do shoot and eat). SWMBI does the gory bits which she enjoys, (worryingly so). 

Any suggestions on magpies, collared doves, badgers, moles, trespassing sheep and squirrels gratefully accepted.

David


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## dedee (13 Jul 2006)

Badgers - don't get me started. Or course it's illegal to go anywhere near them or their set so you would not find me getting at all upset by the damage they do :wink: :wink: Nor would I dream of making their life just a tad more difficult.

By all means protect the blighters in the wild but in an urban (ok suburban) environment they can be a bloody nuisance. :evil: 

Andy


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## -David- (13 Jul 2006)

They have trashed areas of our grass by using their snouts to grub up the larvae of May bugs apparently. To the uninitiated this leave deep holes and a bit of a mess. Thankfully, this activity only happens around May - errr - which makes sense if they are after May bugs. Lets hope they do not develop a liking for June,July,August bugs etc!!

David


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## dedee (13 Jul 2006)

-David-":2xoeup8d said:


> Lets hope they do not develop a liking for June,July,August bugs etc!! David



They have ceratinly found something to their liking in June & July in my lawn :evil: and in my veg plot. For some totally unexplained reason  they have now stopped piling earth up the side of my shed though. 

Andy


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## -David- (13 Jul 2006)

> For some totally unexplained reason they have now stopped piling earth up the side of my shed though.



That is probably because they have just completed building a nice new set underneath your shed!! :shock: 

Hope you have not got a cast table saw in there?  

David


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## Richard in Smithville (16 Jul 2006)

I apologize if someone posted this already, but I just saw it on the LV site.http://www.leevalley.com/garden/page.aspx?c=1&p=10302&cat=2,51555&ap=1






It's not as nasty as it looks. Check the link.


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## Midnight (16 Jul 2006)

my grandad swore by a remedy he perfected to deter a neighbours dog from harassing his chickens... shotgun... cartridge loaded with dried split peas... a backside fulla that an the prob's over....guaranteed


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