Pussy(cat) problems

[COYS]

Some background: a neighbour has a couple of domestic cats that aren't allowed indoors. Their food & water is left in a shady corner of the garden a couple of times a day, a fact that the local feral population quickly latched onto as well as the odd rodent. Now, after deciding food on tap is better than scrapping for it we have a whole gang of strays roaming the area & they seem to particularly like our garden for crapping in & our furniture for lazing around on. Aside from it being totally unsanitary (fleas, ticks, worms etc) we have already had to replace three sunbed mattresses that were clawed to shreds & the fly screens (twice) which they scratch at for titbits from whoever happens to be in. The cost is now running at several hundred euros & counting but the neighbour, who moves out over summer & leaves the cats behind seems indifferent to the issue.
So, without wanting to upset the animal lovers or harm the manky moggies, & having tried generic 'cat away' sprays can anyone suggest an effective or proven deterrent?

[bessie]

Albus oil on used tea bags.

[Ecosse]

I'm afraid it can be very difficult to deter cats - there are only two that I know of: get a cat of your own, or a dog. It took a while for our two cats to chase the feral cat problem away from our property, when we moved here, but then our cats are utterly pathetic at holding their own. I would recommend a malevolent Tom, if you choose this route.

Sorry, just thought of a third, if you're not keen on getting a pet - get yourself one of those huge 'soaker' waterpistols... the ones that shoot water several metres under pressure... and zap them. You need to make sure they don't see you firing the thing, or they'll associate it with you, rather than the property, but according to Gardener's Question time a few years back, it's very effective!

Good luck!

[Joanna]

How about this:
http://shopping.rspb.org.uk/catwatch-cat-deterrent.html

I remember some friends had something like this which worked. The only downside as far as I remember was that one of them said she could hear the high pitched whine. Her OH couldn't hear anything so might be worth a try.

[COYS]

Thanks all.
Have tried the sonar thingy's but it wasn't really effective. The water pistol is however, but as we aren't there full time as soon as we leave the problem persists & is why we can't yet have a dog etc.
I've never heard of Bessie's method & I'm going to try dotting them around the garden but fear it would stain badly on soft furnishings. Along similar lines, we have mint, garlic chives, rosemary etc in the garden on local advice. The moggies just nonchalantly weave through them to squat where they please.
Short of convincing our neighbour to adopt a more responsible approach to feeding it's starting to look like a long term issue & having only returned recently from several weeks of intensive refurb & preparation, I wait in expectation of yet more damage or a guest complaint soon..

[CSE]

Spray white vinegar. Not much, but every other day.
It stops our own cats going where they are not permitted in the house.

[COYS]

I'll add the white vinegar to the list. Of course, convincing our maintenance team to keep it up in our absence is an uphill battle.

[Mouse]

I know how difficult it is....I fee fearls but luckily I feed them a distance away in summer and being ferals they stay away from people.

I know it seems counterproductive but can you feed them further away from where your property is? If they're fed regularly then they shouldn't come scratching for food and if it's put far away they should relocate there.

Of course having a dog or cats yourself does help. But that's not always practical.

I dId have a problem with an older feral who liked lounging on my rattan sofas but I used to leave the cushions up or covered and explain to guests that if they didn't want hairs to do the same. I never had a complaint. But I know it's likely.

It is tricky. If I think of anything else I will post.

Mousie
x

[Ecosse]

When you squirt them with the water pistol, do they see you and/or the water pistol, or does an unpleasant squirt of water seemingly come out of nowhere? If it's the former, the ferals will come back when you're not around, because they'll have sussed it's you doing the drenching. If it's the latter, they *should* become scared that any time they set foot on your property, they'll be hit by the demon squirt from kitty hell and stay away even when you're not there.

This worked in a slightly different context for one of my cats... she liked to jump up on the counters when I wasn't at home. One time she didn't realise I was in, jumped up and freaked out when I appeared seemingly out of nowhere. She never jumped up on the counters again... and the butter was forever cat lick-free.

[Moliere]

One tip I remember from way back, when using the water pistol add some perfume or eau de cologne which has gone "off" - or possibly just some scent you don't like. Unlike water, the smell lingers quite a long time and really pisses them off.
Just make sure it's well diluted, because they'll try to lick it off.

Mols

(4 resident moggies and 9 or 10 visitors )

[COYS]

Thanks for all the input.
Mouse, I thought about your suggestion but we do have a big problem with feral cats across the locality & I don't want to attract even more. The local councils used to have a health vaccine & neuter program but after the recent financial meltdown this is way, way down the list of priorities.
Apart from the damage & smell, & despite all the written advice, visitors will still interact with them & with kids especially this worries me - a scratch to the face, infection etc would not enhance anybody's holiday & I certainly don't want fleas or ticks on my furniture, towels etc so I'm sure nobody else has it on their wish list either.
I suppose I will have to be a bit more stealth like with the water pistol & the added scent is worth a try.
I didn't envisage spending each visit wandering through the bushes in my speedos with a 2ft neon super soaker like a camp Terminator, but needs must!

[Mouse]

COYS which island are you on? Thee is a charity called care4cats Greece (I think) that organises a lot of neutring sweeps. I was volunter for the ibiza charity and the women who run it also runs a huge charity in Greece.
Anyway have a look around as there may be one that comes and TNR in your region so they'll help keep on top of the numbers.

It's a real shame....as if people didn't dump the poor things they wouldn't exist. Makes me so angry. But neutering is essential to keeping numbers low so it's a shame that it was abandoned. I wish our councils would just attempt to help....hee they just want to hinder.

Good luck, that perfume idea from Mols sounds a really good idea. Let me know if it works.

Mx

[lester1meg]

We have a continual problem with our guests feeding the feral cats which makes the farmer next door angry as he needs them to hunt in his barns. No matter how many notices we put up about feeding the cats, people will do it. This has now made the cats so bold that they will now try and jump up through the windows and into the house.
One of the last guests was badly scratched by one of the cats when she picked it up, which resulted in a lot of medical expense for her.
But again they had been interacting with the cats and completely ignoring all our advice not to encourage them in any way. When ever I catch guests putting out cat food and challenge them they say things like 'The poor kitties are so hungry.' My line is 'You are feeding them now, but what happens when no one is here feeding them and they have forgotten how to hunt?'
If I could I'd deduct a cat feeding penalty from their deposits!

[COYS]

We have a continual problem with our guests feeding the feral cats which makes the farmer next door angry as he needs them to hunt in his barns. No matter how many notices we put up about feeding the cats, people will do it. This has now made the cats so bold that they will now try and jump up through the windows and into the house.
One of the last guests was badly scratched by one of the cats when she picked it up, which resulted in a lot of medical expense for her.
But again they had been interacting with the cats and completely ignoring all our advice not to encourage them in any way. When ever I catch guests putting out cat food and challenge them they say things like 'The poor kitties are so hungry.' My line is 'You are feeding them now, but what happens when no one is here feeding them and they have forgotten how to hunt?'
If I could I'd deduct a cat feeding penalty from their deposits!

Gulp! That is precisely my concern & can only be a matter of time as they are already savvy enough to claw at the insect screens knowing the doors/windows are open. To the face of a child they could cause some serious harm & in today's litigious society we could end up deep in the mire despite not ever having a cat.

Mouse. Yes, there is (or was) a visiting charity as you mentioned but I've not heard of a program for a long while & as we are outside of the 'urban zones' would likely be excluded anyway. There is a voluntary group but its more of an enthusiasts set up & as much as I wouldn't wish any harm, I couldn't in all honesty call myself an enthusiast.

[Lets Go To Puglia]

Contech Scarecrow available from Amazon.co.uk work well. We have cats but we don't want them on the lawn when we have guests here. The Scarecrow has a motion sensor and sprays water over a goodly area. Keeps the cats off the lawn and the lawn gets watered frequently - bonus.