I live in the middle of nowhere. I have an outside cat that uses my flower beds as a litter box. I have tried mothballs, foil, human hair, sprays from stores and garden centers. None of these work.
She has now killed all of my plants. If I cannot find something that works, she is going to have to find a new owner, because the smell is horrible. Anything would be appreciated, because other than that she is a great cat!
By Stephanie from OH
Try sprinkling cayenne pepper where you don't want the cat to go. Use a "lot", like enough to cover the ground thickly. This was the only thing that kept cats from digging in my flowers in CA. Good luck! (04/24/2009)
By Wendy
Cats are supposed to hate citrus or orange smell. You might buy an orange or citrus scented room freshener at the $1 store and try spraying that on your plants. (You can also buy a high-end room spray made from real citrus at a health food store if the dollar store spray doesn't work.) Also put lemon, grapefruit, and/or orange peels in your flowerbed! Be sure to change them with new fresh peels every few days. You'll have to spray the plants once or twice a day until you cat finds somewhere else he prefers.
You could also make him an alternative place to go potty, by pouring sandbox sand in a spot fairly close to the flower bed. I bet you cat would prefer the sand to the garden eventually. Be sure to put his scent in the sand as a "calling card". This sand can be bought at Home Depot or Walmart. Ask for sandbox sand (it has no chemicals) the sand made for patios has a weedkiller in it. (04/24/2009)
By Cyinda
I heard that planting onion among flowers discourages the cats from the area.
Sheila (04/25/2009)
By Sheila
Make a mix of equal parts of black pepper, cayenne pepper, dry hot mustard, and that pepper mix of ground peppers they use on pizza. Put in a shaker bottle and sprinkle where you don't want them. It works on dogs, too. After watering you will have to replace some about every 3-4weeks, I think. I use it around my yard and on the tops of walls and fences. It works well. (05/01/2009)
Try coffee grounds. Keeps them out of my plants. (05/01/2009)
By Dena Roberts
I went to the store and bought a few bags of bamboo skewers and placed them about 6 inches apart in rows next to the plants in the flower bed the cat had no room to get in between the skewers and gave up trying. I left them there for the first season and the next they had no interest in the flower bed. The plants will eventually grow and hide the skewers so you will still have a pretty flower bed. Good luck. (05/01/2009)
By LEONA LABINE
Do you have pine trees nearby? Gather up many pine cones and place them amongst the flowers. (05/02/2009)
Fencing. (05/02/2009)
Cats hate the smell of citrus. Please don't use moth balls. As you found they usually don't work and they are poisonous to cats. Get yourself some oranges and scatter the peels and segments too if you want around in your garden. You can also spritz the area with orange or lemon scented water.
By Lynn
Just a short post script. Make sure your cat has some place else to do its business. You might consider leaving a litter box outside if you wish to keep it as an outdoor cat. Otherwise you don't leave her much choice as to where to go. (05/02/2009)
By Lynn
This would be a horrible problem to have. I use my flower beds for my herb gardens, mixing in here and there makes pretty gardens. Also use part of the flower garden for my cherry/grape/pear tomatoes and pepper plants. They like the flower beds better at my house (more attention?? maybe).
I guess try putting the cat on a leash for a while, curtailing the straying, chicken wire across the plants? Just plain squirt bottle of water and be there when it uses the garden? Make an outside litter box available? I don't know, I have got a German Shorthair dog who opens doors, cupboards, and helps herself. I finally started putting her treats in a glass jar, as she carries Tupperware off looking for snacks. Sometimes not as gentle in opening those! (05/23/2009)
By Grandma J
I had a serious problem with the neighborhood cats using our flower bed, usually at night. This cured them all the first time they came even close. Get a motion sensor light and hard wire it to a regular plug so you can plug it into a ground-fault protected outdoor plug-in. Buy an adapter to screw in to one of the light bulb sockets to plug in an old noisy skill saw or other junk tool that screams when you turn it on. (Remove the blade first.)
Use a zip-cord to lock the trigger on and set it up in the flower bed. Set the sensitivity you want and set the switch to "test" so it doesn't stay on long. Any animal that comes in range will get the fright of their life and never come near that area again. Just set it and forget it. Works in many areas, can make a good burglar alarm around outdoor equipment, vehicles, in sheds or whatever. (02/04/2010)
By crazyed
Do not use black pepper. It is fatal to cats. (06/17/2010)
By Maryeileen
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