Keeping Cats Out of Gardens

[ATFC Seagull]

Dear wisdom of NSC - how do you keep people's cats out of your garden?

Personally I hate cats, and I'm also mildly allergic to them (if I am really up close I start sneezing). As a result, I don't own one and don't want one. However, apparently all my neighbours do, and therefore they are allowed free range of my garden - and most recently have decided to use my very hard-worked slate/pot-plant area as a litter tray. I find this quite bizarre, as I'm pretty sure ANY other pet wouldn't be allowed to do this. For instance, I'd like a dog, but if I let it run around everyone else's garden I'm pretty sure they'd have something to say.

I know garden centres sell various stuff, but I can imagine a lot of it is a load of rubbish and doesn't work. Anyone got any tips? Personally I'd like to just throw them back over the fence till they learn, but I can understand that isn't really very PC (joke, before someone massively overreacts).

 

[Hillian1]

Orange peel works.

Awaits the normal, Shoot them bollocks.

 

[ozseagull]

Get a dog

 

[Fungus]

Water pistol.

 

[glasfryn]

there is a very good product called ROAR
it dried lions poo and by putting it on the garden gives the message that there are bigger cats around ....believe me it works
just out of interest cats are classed in law as semi-wild animals thereby allowed to wander just about anywhere, dogs are classed as controllable pets
otherwise a water pistol and much clapping might also work
good luck

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

Whippet and a slug gun have kept my yard clear of them for a while now. Native birds have started to return to the garden too which is great.

 

[seagully]

Boot them over the fence. Works for me

 

[glasfryn]

Boot them over the fence. Works for me

<..........................................................,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,theres always one

 

[ATFC Seagull]

Cheers for the replies so far - will give the orange peels a try.

Regarding shooting them with water pistols - is this actually considered ok? As much as personally I feel quite passionately that my neighbours' pets have no right to be in my garden, letting alone pollute it, I don't want to fall out with everyone over it. I can imagine doing it and suddenly hearing "oi, what you doing to my cat?" from an overlooking window!

 

[seagully]

<..........................................................,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,theres always one

Haha! In seriousness I've heard the lion poo works well.

 

[glasfryn]

Cheers for the replies so far - will give the orange peels a try.

Regarding shooting them with water pistols - is this actually considered ok? As much as personally I feel quite passionately that my neighbours' pets have no right to be in my garden, letting alone pollute it, I don't want to fall out with everyone over it. I can imagine doing it and suddenly hearing "oi, what you doing to my cat?" from an overlooking window!

small water pistol is definitely OK, I would doubt you would hit them anyway but it gives them the message .

 

[viscentaye]

Cheers for the replies so far - will give the orange peels a try.

Regarding shooting them with water pistols - is this actually considered ok? As much as personally I feel quite passionately that my neighbours' pets have no right to be in my garden, letting alone pollute it, I don't want to fall out with everyone over it. I can imagine doing it and suddenly hearing "oi, what you doing to my cat?" from an overlooking window!

My brother once picked up the offending Douglas with a trowel and flicked it over the fence into their garden......

 

[ATFC Seagull]

there is a very good product called ROAR
it dried lions poo and by putting it on the garden gives the message that there are bigger cats around ....believe me it works
just out of interest cats are classed in law as semi-wild animals thereby allowed to wander just about anywhere, dogs are classed as controllable pets
otherwise a water pistol and much clapping might also work
good luck

I'm sure better men than me have tried to argue this case and failed, but I find that bizarre. People claim the rights that go with ownership of a cat, so with my mind so should come the responsibilities (which should surely include not imposing your desire on others). If, for example, I decided to pick one up and take it somewhere miles away in my car then let it go, I couldn't claim it was "semi-wild" - I would have to deal with an irate "owner".

 

[Mowgli37]

Do you have a shotgun licence?

 

[glasfryn]

I'm sure better men than me have tried to argue this case and failed, but I find that bizarre. People claim the rights that go with ownership of a cat, so with my mind so should come the responsibilities (which should surely include not imposing your desire on others). If, for example, I decided to pick one up and take it somewhere miles away in my car then let it go, I couldn't claim it was "semi-wild" - I would have to deal with an irate "owner".

this is where the law falls down
the only way you can claim ownership of a cat is if it is microchipped otherwise it is literally anyones
I have campaigned for decades to have the law changed and have every pet whatever it is to be microchipped, this may then end a lot of the trouble like this.
it might be worth speaking to your neigbour it won't stop this happening, but if he is like me he/she will come round and clear up the mess.

 

[pishhead]

A tethered rottweiler.

 

[glasfryn]

Do you have a shotgun licence?

and theres another

 

[Everest]

Build a 20ft high metal wall, connect it to the mains

 

[Guy Fawkes]

I'm sure better men than me have tried to argue this case and failed, but I find that bizarre. People claim the rights that go with ownership of a cat, so with my mind so should come the responsibilities (which should surely include not imposing your desire on others). If, for example, I decided to pick one up and take it somewhere miles away in my car then let it go, I couldn't claim it was "semi-wild" - I would have to deal with an irate "owner".

We recently had a cat appear in the garden which was looking very thin and lost. We found the owner and they lived about 23 miles away and the cat had been missing for 5 weeks. Therefore cats are semi wild as they are able to survive in cases like this, could a dog?

 

[WATFORD zero]

When he was younger, my son used to use the water pistol method for squirrels on my bird feeders, discourages them, doesn't do them any harm and hours of endless fun