The neighborhood cats love my mulch and keep pooping in it.  The smell is getting to me and when I'm digging around in the dirt I'm always running into poop.  

Anyone know of any humane (I don't want the neighbors to get angry at me ) ways to keep the cats from pooping in my yard?

David

Dear BigWaveDave,

Go to the pet shop or even wal mart and ask for ultra sound Hooter(buzzer).this should be kept on 24hr for 1 or 2 weeks and see the difference all 4 legged animals like dogs,cats,Rodents & even bat hate this frequency.this apparatus looks like a radio/transistor just plug it and direct the speaker towards your garden, we india keep this gadget in our garage to keep of rodents which damage our cars fuel lines & spark plug cables.

this works and you will not hear anything from this apparatus but only a neon red light will glow to show that it is operational.

And the best method for me is my 3 boxer dogs chasing the cats out of my garden.they have killed one or 2 cats in their life time.and my neighbour did not complain because he is my mom's brother(Uncle).

the later method works wonders.no need for any apparatus at  all.i was told that rotwilers stand 1st in this competition.i.e

killing anything that comes in its owners territory.

And folks don't get me wrong iam a vegetarien.and i love all animals.but this is what dogs are capable off.But your garden is safe from other creatures !

try the 1st method first,if it does not work,you know what to do then ?

Kris's gadget sound pretty cool.  We had a cat that kept pooping in the neighors flower bed and they didn't like it, so we got them a product that you sprinkle around and it worked.  They cats don't like the smell.  It jus smells like citronella to us.  I think we ordered it online or got it at Home Depot or Pet Smart.  Do a search and you'll find this granular product.  Must reapply after heavy rain/watering but once you scare the cats away they learn to stay away.

Dave, I just read a short article about someone who had success using Blood Meal repelling cats.  They said they don't like the smell and it's a real good organic fertilizer.  Hmmmm I alway thought that blood meal attracted animals.........

Last year there were about 6 strays in my yard because my damn neighbor liked to leave food out for them.  The poop drove me nuts, but after one of them clawed my Wodyetia to shreds I decided to do something.  I purchased a trap for about $50, and left it out every night.  Almost every night I caught a cat (or a skunk), and then I called the local animal shelter the next day.  They would come by the same day and take the cat to the shelter for no charge.  After a couple weeks there were no more cats.

Thanks for the info guys.  I have a yellow lab, and I think shes getting too old to be chasing after cats.  I think I'll look for the stuff you mettioned first Matt.  Thats funny because I thought animals loved blood meal also.  I left out a small bag out and my dog ate the whole thing.  I can't use blood meal for planting in the back yard anymore because she digs up the plants and eats the soil.  I might need to get a trap in the future, because I was having problems with some rodent, racoon, skunk, opossum I'm not sure, but it was digging all over my yard and dangerously close to some of my palms.  I think they were after those big fat white grubs.  Oddly enough, I have also had a problem with crows digging for grubs during the day.

Winchester, Marlin, Remington and Sturm Ruger make excellent cat prevention devices....

just KIDDING..

Orange rinds work great.  You could also line the area with something they hate to walk on like chicken wire.  Once they start using another area you'll be OK to remove it (or stop placing the orange rinds).  If they're neighbors' cats, you'll have some mad neighbors if you use traps.

(Kathy @ Jul. 28 2006,12:00)

QUOTE

If they're neighbors' cats, you'll have some mad neighbors if you use traps.

If they're his neighbors cats, shouldn't his neighbors be worried about making him mad by letting their cats roam free in his yard?

I agree that if you trap them you need to notify neighbors else the pound may well put them under leaving you with irrate neighbors!

I would put a circle of 1/4 inch hardware cloth just under the mulch. You can not see it but the cats hit it when they dig. Seemed to work. With all the suggestions I would be interested in what works for you!!

San Antonio, Texas

ps. Killing cats is cruelty to animals and even in the wild west state of Texas will result in a big fine and lots of unfavorable PR on the local evening news!

The thing that works for me is to use large bark nuggets as a mulch. They are full of splinters and last for a couple of years... cats hate it to crap in it.... even my cat.... he'll find a bare spot to go.

If a cat can't find a place to crap in your yard... then they'll go use the neighbors yard !

Jeff

PS... Also there is a motion detection sprinkler out on the market. You hook it up to the hose and when something comes within 10ft... the water comes on for about 10 seconds. Cats are smart and don't like water.

Also helps to detract punk kids from wandering through your yard!

I've always found the best approach to keep cats from being a pain is to have a cat.  Cats are very territorial, so you won't get other cats in your garden and cats don't tend to use their own territory as a toilet.

That said I have had occasional problems with our cats.  One cats sleeping on the polytunnel roof, causing seems to break.  Cats knocking terracotta pots over, causing broken pots.  Occasional playing with low leaves, causing some browning.

A guy at work is always complaining about a neighbour's cat and he has tried most things unsuccessfully.  His most recent plan was an electric fence, but that hasn't worked either.

I think a 20' wall is the only truly effective solution, but you could try scattering catnip seeds in your neighbour's gardens.

Get yourself one of those racoon traps with cat food as bait catch them and take them crappers to animal control.

PROBLEM SOLVED

Don`t let your neighbors see you cover trap with a towel

<

PROBLEM SOLVED  

Don`t let your neighbors see you cover trap with a towel ...Dave>>

Guess it depends on if you value your palms more than your relationship with your neighbors!!  I trap cats but then take them to the owner and tell them where I trapped them. Sometimes the neighbors then control their cats and sometimes they do not care. I have no desire to kill cats as its not their fault but rather the owners. If I do not know who owns the cat and it has no tags it goes to the pound. Taking a cat to the pound with a tag will result in the pound contacting my neighbor and telling them someone brought in their cat!!  Neighbors would fiqure this out quickly and they would be pissed that I did not have the courtesy to tell them the situation.

Of course if you do not care about your relationship with your neighbors

nor the lives of the cats...trap them. towel them and take em in!!

I suggest trying everything else suggested first.

Jack

San Antonio,TX

ps. I have no cats just two beagles...that are afraid of cats having been clawed by them in the past!

Dave, this is a story I can relate to. In the state of California, if you have a dog that barks incessantly and the owner could care less or tells you to go pound sand, your only recourse is to file a barking dog complaint.  Best case scenario, after following through many steps, which includes several more forms, months of waiting to give the owner the appropriate time to fix the problem, neighbor corroboration, video and or audio tape corroboration, photo's, and approx 4-6 months of total time, you MIGHT have a case that the County will help you bring against barking dog offender.  It's about the most ridiculous process one could endure. On the other hand, if your neighbor decides to run his lawnmower in the middle of the night, party loudly all night, or in general disturb the peace, you can have a police officer come over and pretty much get an immediate stop to the problem, or offender risks being sited/going to jail.  

Are the needs of animals above that of people?

As for cats, California has what is called 'free roam' for cats, which is also asinine, namely for the reasons already stated from others, but also from the feral cat problem that results from 'free roam'.  I suggest using a humane box trap, which you can purchase from the OC Animal Shelter. The OC Animal Shelter will come pick-up cats or dogs caught in traps, not undomesticated animals.  Likey though, you will not catch the smarter/more wiley cats, but you may catch many(you wouldn't believe how many over the years), feral cats, possums, racoons, rats... Good luck Dave.

The most effecient way is to go to an ethnic market and buy a few bags of the $1/bag ground chili powder. Not the chili powder for chili but ground jalapeno, serrano etc. The cats get it on their paws and when they lick said paws.....problem solved, very humane.

Hey Dave, I was browsing in the Charley's Greenhouse and Garden catalog and they have both the Ultrasonic gadget and the sprinkler gadget that Kris and Jeff suggested.  They run from 50 to 70 bucks.

Charley's

Oh, gawd, do I get nostaligic.  

Animals.  Pooping in yards.  Arriving in Cali all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed from the East (U.S.).

I have cats and find that they'll just poop if they like the stuff.  Repellents don't work well in open-aired areas, and noises, it's astounding what they'll get used to.

That said, try the stuff, and prove me wrong.

I found the one thing that works is to toss some food out there, and when the cats eat it, they won't poop there.  A bit of fish or chicken here and there.

Hope something works.

I've got a cat, and he poops, and I just dodge it . . . .

And TRY not to hit it (AAAACK!!!!) with the weed-whacker!  

dave

I reckon Corey got this right some posts ago - get a cat!

Ive had them for years and they are great.

My cat gets the odd rabbit as well as mice and can stand off a dog.

Those Ancient Egyptians were not stoopid when they made Bastet and Sekhmet Gods over there as the cats kept the granaries rodent free.

They are very clean and dont poop all over the place which is probably caused by visiting Toms.

they often self feed (mice etc) but still require a high protein diet.

They appreciate kindness and a stroke now and then.

Regards

Bilbo

(Jon )

I also have a cat problem!!! The have decided that my old man palm is their favorite scratching post. They terrorize him almost daily. I have put pepper around on the ground but has not helped much. Could I put pepper directly on the hair of the palm without injury to the palm? They are strays but have rid my property of all my seedling eaters (rabbits squirls) so I hate to totally rid of them. JUST LEAVE THE OLD MAN ALONE!!!

I've used rubber bb's in a bb gun, it works great and is fun to boot.

Having written of the benefits of having cats, one of ours sat on my Dypsis heteromorpha seedling today, I hope it survives.

I have to defend cats here too. The problem are pet owners, not cats. I have three and they are at home most of the time. I supervise them when they are outside. They are not allowed to scale the fence and mess other people's property.

My neighbor's cat, on the other hand, lives outside and poops everywhere including our garden. I am reluctant to complain because she might get rid of him and I don't want to have any guilt about all this. Some people don't want to change kittly litter boxes and they are more attached to their sofa than their cat so they never let the animal inside.

In New Jersey, we rented a house where the owner had three dogs. The urine stench in his yard was so horrible that we couldn't go there. When the summer came, the fumes from the pee spread to our second floor apartment. I will not mention the holes the dogs dug all over the place. You needed a flashlight to go to the yard at night if you didn't want your ankle to be twisted in one of those. We didn't complain because the property owner was a great guy so we put up with the c%$p, literally. So you see, it is not only cats. It is the inconsiderate, irresponsible pet owner that I blame.

After living with those dogs for 6 years, I became a cat person.

Anna

It's uncommon of cats to defecate on TOP of a surface, they usually like exposed soil so the can bury their...stuff. If you live in Florida and unless you actually seen a cat in action, I can almost guarantee the culprit is a Racoon or Possum; their waste looks similar (except when they gorge themselves on Sabal seeds). I found the best ways to control all the above (including Armadillos) is to keep your foilage and topsoil wet at night using a cheap oscillating sprinkler and/or apply ground Black Pepper in your beds.