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The mystery pooper, part 2

RubyLeafRubyLeaf Posts: 260
in Problem solving
A while ago I posed a topic asking what nuisance would be pooping on my lawn. When I tried to get a pic of the poop the mystery visitor didn't leave any for a while. Come summer this year it happened again, and boy did it reek.. Fast forward to a week or so ago and the pooping has returned. My grass isn't short, but not overgrown, but this pooper seems to love dumping here almost every night. My theory is its a tom cat which I read leaves its poop on grass, in plain view to mark its territory. When I had a male cat it never did this, so I'm a little confused. Whoever this pooper is will cover the lawn (only a tiny one) within a week. I kept a diary for a week:

Mon 15th to Wednesday 16th = No poop
Thursday 17th, checked at 1:30pm and then 10pm = No poop
Friday 18th, checked at 1:30pm = Four pieces of poop
Saturday 19th, checked at 11am = Two pieces of poop
Sunday 20th, checked at 1pm = One piece of poop
Monday 21stm checked at 12pm = Two pieces of poop.

This time I DID manage to get some pics. For size comparison I put a dried up marker beside the poop. Personally I think its a cat, and I have a strong suspicion of who it is. A pest of a cat that frequents my back garden. One of its favourite things to do is try its damnedest to lay on my frost fleece, which pulls or rips it in the process. It also loved to hide in my shrubs to ambush birds which I hastily put thorny rose branches there to stop it.rose br


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  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    Yes ... cat ... probably a male marking his territory. 😖 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • RubyLeafRubyLeaf Posts: 260
    Dovefromabove said:
    Yes ... cat ... probably a male marking his territory. 😖 
    I am growing a ton of lavender and thyme to put in the garden (scents I understand they hate), but those will only be effective in summer. I need a permanent solution. :(
  • tui34tui34 Posts: 3,493
    Spray area with a mixture of oil/essence of citronella and water.  Neem oil and water too is smelly.  Good luck.

    A good hoeing is worth two waterings.

  • tui34tui34 Posts: 3,493
    .....and give it the old "one, two"  !!
    A good hoeing is worth two waterings.

  • RubyLeafRubyLeaf Posts: 260
    tuikowhai34 said:
    Spray area with a mixture of oil/essence of citronella and water.  Neem oil and water too is smelly.  Good luck.

    Ooo nice. I'll give it a try. My only concern is our rainy weather washing it away.
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    Pump action water pistol ... the sort children use in swimming pool ‘fights’.  He needs to know that it’s your territory and that he’s not welcome. It won’t do him any harm, but tom cats aren’t polite or tentative in their interactions with each other, and he needs to know you mean business. 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • WibbleWibble Posts: 89
    We had a tom cat frequent our garden a few years ago -  it bothered  our  own cats and the stench and yowling was hideous. A application of, er... human male urine at his marking areas seemed to do the trick. Hadn't held out much hope, but there was no further evidence of tom.

    I cannot fathom why anybody would keep an un-neutered tom. Am fairly sure it was a pet, not a stray/feral.

  • bertrand-mabelbertrand-mabel Posts: 2,697
    CAT!!! We have the same problem on our lawn and in the orchard when the grass is cut.
    Why can't they go elsewhere?
    Now we are always looking downwards just to check we aren't going to put our foot into a very smelly mess.
  • RubyLeafRubyLeaf Posts: 260
    Dovefromabove said:
    Pump action water pistol ... the sort children use in swimming pool ‘fights’.  He needs to know that it’s your territory and that he’s not welcome. It won’t do him any harm, but tom cats aren’t polite or tentative in their interactions with each other, and he needs to know you mean business. 

    You reckon he'd remember? He certainly isn't deterred by me chasing him off. Plus the issue is I've never caught him pooping in the front. Would scaring him off with a water pistol in the back garden do the trick?

    Wibble said:
    We had a tom cat frequent our garden a few years ago -  it bothered  our  own cats and the stench and yowling was hideous. A application of, er... human male urine at his marking areas seemed to do the trick. Hadn't held out much hope, but there was no further evidence of tom.

    I cannot fathom why anybody would keep an un-neutered tom. Am fairly sure it was a pet, not a stray/feral.

    Does it have to be human male urine? xD 
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    The neighbour's cat remembered when he leapt over the ferns and landed in the new wildlife pond we’d just made ... he was soaked, I shouted at him and you’ve never seen a cat look so embarrassed. He obviously thought I’d somehow soaked him. I’ve not seen him in the back garden since and that was a few years ago now. 
    You may have to assert your ownership a few times, but he’ll get the idea. 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





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