cat crap
pierre_de_gaye
Posts: 182
Hi all,
We have been successful in keeping our front lawn 'crap-free' for months, until the past few days, where there was not only what we believe to be fox crap, but also two bits of cat crap - one on the front lawn, the other round the side passageway, which certainly was a surprise as we've barely ever had any round there. We had a gap blocked by our builders to prevent cats using it as a walk-through and this was a god-send in terms of keeping them out our back garden. However, our side gate is of the iron railing type, which cats can squeeze through with ease. We are soon to replace this (and our broken fencing panels) with solid wood, which we hope will help. From our experience, cats round here are lazy and don't particularly like to jump / scale obstacles if they can help it.
Our method revolved around 2 ultra-sonic scarers, which we have been very persistent with.
Our theory is that a fox obviously visited on the one-off, and a neighbour's cat obviously took exception to it (presumably it could sense the smell even after we'd cleared it up) and decided to 'compete' with it. And that it decided randomly to mark territory round our side passageway also.
I've read on here about electric fences and the like, which sound tempting, but I'm guessing they aren't aesthetically-pleasing. We are therefore considering planting a hedge instead to leave our front garden less 'open' to them. Would lavender be a good choice, as I have read that they don't particularly like the smell of it? We have an old berberis hedge on the other side, and if I'm honest, this has done very little to deter them so far (it is gappy in places also). It didn't even reach as far as it needed to, so we planted 3 new ones a few years ago which are now a lot bigger, but not quite big enough to stop them cutting through. Perhaps after another growing season.
It is the lawn that is our main issue, I only wish we could be completely free of it. We were surprised though to have a sudden onset of crap, seeing as we were without any for months.
I was thinking to go and ask for coffee ground waste from the local coffee shop after reading about someone's success with that on a thread on cat deterrents on here. How much would I need to apply though, and does it lose its impact after the rain? How often to re-apply? I like the idea of it being good for the soil also.
PdG
Last edited: 24 September 2017 14:59:33
Posts
Get some Citronella oil, dilute it a bit and spray around where cats may want to come in. They do not like it. Machine guns are good but noisy therefore my little jack Russell, also noisy when required, loves cats around 12 inches from his nose at about 30mph. We dont have any problems that way.
I agree with Shepshed, citronella oil is brilliant for keeping cats away. I pour it onto a porous substance, I have used wood and even bits of barbeque charcoal. That way the smell lasts longer. I then place these on areas where I know our cat might crap. She avoids the areas like the plague.
We have that problem, cats used to bury it. Get your self a cat, that will stop them
Pierre - I suggest you take a look at the other almighty thread about this. The only thing that worksis water scarecrows.
Suggesting people get another animal (dog or cat) is ludicrous incidentally. Why would we get an animal and lift their sh*t, to avoid lifting another's sh*t instead?
More money for Hosta though....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I always thought that cats don't do it in their own garden.
Another £1.
Pierre "However, our side gate is of the iron railing type, which cats can squeeze through with ease."
How about electrifying that gate? 220 Volts should do the trick.
I've read every page of the 'almighty' thread for the record....
I've used the scarecrow in the past. Worked well but not aesthetically pleasing.
Again we've been free of it for months, which is why I find the odd bit now and again all the more annoying.
We use hyper-resonance frequency scarers (far cheaper than RSPB and I'm guessing more innovative technology) and have the option of deploying a third (seems excessive but we will not write it off) on the small front garden if we need to.
To the person / people who suggest 'get your own cat' - never heard anything so stupid in my life. What about where the OWN cat goes - ? If that isn't a vicious cycle, what is? I don't want an animal in my house - end of story.
Fritterer - will the citronella oil work on lawns? We want something that the rain won't just wash off.
Put some chicken wire over it,