We did have a water pistol, that was quite fun. Cats have fairly good memories so do tend to stay away once they've been scared a few times, however we found the lure of easy songbird prey was too much for them and they'd eventually return. They're formidable hunters, my mum had a cat years ago that used to catch birds mid flight to and from the bird table, it used to jump up and clasp them. It sounds unbelievable were it not for the fact I saw it happen on two occasions!
The only deterrent i've found that works long term is our dog who detests cats straying into his territory.
Having recently become a cat person I'm not sure that anything would work except running out yelling and that's not particularly practicable 24/7/365. Two of mine would run a mile if you looked at them funny but the third, from a different litter (and county), would laugh at you and pull your clothes line down when you weren't looking. I did hose next door's cat who was becoming a too frquent visitor and though I felt really bad, I haven't seen him since. Water seems to work...mostly (but more than once I have seen one of mine swimming in the pond). 😳
I like cats but I'd be very happy if I never saw one outside ever again. We are plagued by them in our area. My brother lives four doors down and his garden is more open than ours and he has a resident cat that is in there most of the time. It's a lovely little thing that is so friendly but it means he doesn't get birds and I've even seen it eating frogs and any other wildlife in there, like crunchy crickets, and it eats better than we do at home. Our back garden is pretty cat proof with wire fences blocked with mature hedges and where we do have wooden fences, they have trellis on the top so the cats can't get in. We did this because we have plenty of birds nesting in the garden and a couple of years ago they still got hit by the cats until we added the trellis. We have access for hedgehogs in several places as I made tunnels which I don't think a cat is willing to go through. It's been good so far but we still get them in the front garden where I've recently had to chicken wire the bottom of my climbing hydrangea as there were some blackbirds nesting at head height and the cats tried to get them. Luckily it worked and they recently fledged but if the garden is open its near impossible to put the little darlings off.
So - are all these people who recommend a dog [sigh...] leaving them outside 24 hours a day then? Brilliant solution. Not.
Anyway - there's enough yapping bl**dy dogs round here without adding to that problem.
Persistent feline offenders are deterred by nothing here. No matter how often they get a dose of water up their holes, they'll still come back and try again at another time. That's the problem. I bought three movement sensors which were recommended on this forum as being excellent. Nope - worked for a little while and I was hopeful, but no -doesn't keep them away for any decent length of time. I'm fed up regularly forking out money to deal with other people's pets because they can't be ar**d being responsible for them. Everyone else's problem but never theirs.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
So - are all these people who recommend a dog [sigh...] leaving them outside 24 hours a day then? Brilliant solution. Not.
Anyway - there's enough yapping bl**dy dogs round here without adding to that problem.
Persistent feline offenders are deterred by nothing here. No matter how often they get a dose of water up their holes, they'll still come back and try again at another time. That's the problem. I bought three movement sensors which were recommended on this forum as being excellent. Nope - worked for a little while and I was hopeful, but no -doesn't keep them away for any decent length of time. I'm fed up regularly forking out money to deal with other people's pets because they can't be ar**d being responsible for them. Everyone else's problem but never theirs.
A much louder sigh came from me when I saw the cat deterrent sensors being lauded again. Fools and their money...
Quite a lot of dogs are completely fine with cats, ours wags her tail whenever she sees them and she does the same with hedgehogs (just sits there looking at them, tail vigorously wagging).
I've often been tempted to pick up the body parts and faeces I find and return them to the cats address.
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The only deterrent i've found that works long term is our dog who detests cats straying into his territory.
Two of mine would run a mile if you looked at them funny but the third, from a different litter (and county), would laugh at you and pull your clothes line down when you weren't looking.
I did hose next door's cat who was becoming a too frquent visitor and though I felt really bad, I haven't seen him since. Water seems to work...mostly (but more than once I have seen one of mine swimming in the pond). 😳
Our back garden is pretty cat proof with wire fences blocked with mature hedges and where we do have wooden fences, they have trellis on the top so the cats can't get in. We did this because we have plenty of birds nesting in the garden and a couple of years ago they still got hit by the cats until we added the trellis. We have access for hedgehogs in several places as I made tunnels which I don't think a cat is willing to go through. It's been good so far but we still get them in the front garden where I've recently had to chicken wire the bottom of my climbing hydrangea as there were some blackbirds nesting at head height and the cats tried to get them. Luckily it worked and they recently fledged but if the garden is open its near impossible to put the little darlings off.
Brilliant solution. Not.
Anyway - there's enough yapping bl**dy dogs round here without adding to that problem.
Persistent feline offenders are deterred by nothing here. No matter how often they get a dose of water up their holes, they'll still come back and try again at another time. That's the problem. I bought three movement sensors which were recommended on this forum as being excellent. Nope - worked for a little while and I was hopeful, but no -doesn't keep them away for any decent length of time.
I'm fed up regularly forking out money to deal with other people's pets because they can't be ar**d being responsible for them. Everyone else's problem but never theirs.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I've often been tempted to pick up the body parts and faeces I find and return them to the cats address.
Why? They have transformed by garden entirely