Have your or the neighbor's cats decided to use your garden as their personal litterbox? What are some effective methods of keeping our furry friends out safely? This is a guide about keeping cats out of the garden.
To keep cats out of the garden, make some small holes in the bottom of an old plastic milk jug. Put some mothballs inside the jug and put lid back on it. Hang it on your garden fence or close to the garden. A lot of animals don't like the smell of mothballs and you put them in the jug to keep them dry so they smell longer. This won't harm the little kitty.
By mamacrafter from TN
When we had a garden (and there were lots of feral kitties around us in that neighborhood which was near a park), we just scattered fresh orange or lemon peels throughout the areas and that seemed to do the trick. Cats do not like the smell of citrus peels, which are harmless since the kitties don't bother them at all.
Please do not ever put things like Tabasco sauce or other harmful things anywhere that a helpless little animal might be blinded or made terribly sick by eating or coming into contact with it.
Source: A lifetime of gardening, dealing with animals and looking for ways to do both safely and enjoyably.
By Julia from Boca Raton, FL
I keep cats out of my raised veggie bed, by placing bamboo skewers about 8 to 12 inches apart in a grid pattern. You want them to be close enough, so that cats are uncomfortable digging or even walking through the garden.
I buy the skewers at the dollar store. They are cheap and non-toxic. The skewers can be easily removed as the plants grow and fill in the space. One dollar package takes care of my whole garden and has been working for me for the last three years.
By Jeanette from Citrus Heights, CA
Save all your lemon and orange peel after use and place them around the garden where the cats get in. Also, if you can identify the areas where they defecate (they tend to use the same spots ), put some peels there too. I put mine near the gate and on top of the wall, also on my flower borders. They hate it! I have not seen a cat for ages.
By Jeta from Cumbria, UK
To keep cats out of your garden, lay down some chicken wire and cover with a thin layer of dirt. Cats love to dig, and they can't do it through the wire. Your plants will still come up through the wire spaces.
By Cheryl D. from Wolfville, Nova Scotia
This may not work in every situation, but it's worth a shot. Use some of the pointed wooden skewers (think kabobs), and insert them into the ground close enough together to keep the cat from being able to dig and bury. For just a couple dollars (maybe purchase the skewers at a dollar store), this method will avoid the need for chemicals, and is biodegradable and natural.
By webduck from Port Orchard, WA
I love to grow roses. I regularly trim the branches for size and shape. The thorn-covered twigs and branches are placed strategically around and in my garden. It keeps the cats and other critters from digging up my plants. Broken pecan and walnut shells work too.
By Tina from San Antonio, TX
I would lay down stones, rocks, pebbles or pine cones. Unlike sprays, they're decorative, safe, inexpensive, and durable. Cats won't bother moving these around when they can find exposed dirt elsewhere.
Another idea I heard from Petkeeping with Marc Marone, is to lay down chicken wire around plants, and cover with dirt or mulch. His intention was for digging dogs, but it could also work for cats.
By CS7 from OR
My solution would be to lay down stones or pine cones around plants. It's decorative, reusable and free, or a one-time purchase. I also believe it's safer, more effective, and cheaper than sprays. Cats won't bother pushing these around, when they can find exposed dirt elsewhere.
By Chantal from OR
Lay down a layer of chicken wire, weigh it down very well, and cover it with a thin layer of dirt. Cats like to dig and they cannot dig through chicken wire but flowers and veggies can still come up through it.
By Cheryl from Wolfville, Nova Scotia
Source: Absolute frustration with the neighborhood furrrrrs using my big pots as littler boxes.
By Eileen from Elk Grove, CA
Recently there are feral cats who are doing their "business" in my flower bed.
How do I get them out of there?
By Lorraine from Bristol, CT
By JazzyMe
04/18/2012
Plant onions and garlic around the border. They make nice flowers also when not harvested. The cat's won't like the smell. In the mean time, till the plants grow, puree a garlic and onion mush in a blender (raw), slowly add a bit of water at a time till it is thin.
Pour it into an empty hand dish detergent bottle with a flip tab (The pull up kind might get clogged with bits), then squirt a stream of the solution around your garden each morning. It will water your garden around the edges which some times get missed and keep the cats away. (Or so my mom and son say) My son's a pro.
Please help, my neighbour's cat is using my garden as a litter box. I've cleaned it once but the cat returned. If I put moth balls out will this keep the cat out or will the cat eat them?
By boolaaboo
06/19/2011
I want to deter the cats & dogs from using our yard as a toilet but not deter wild birds or harm them what to use? We have feeders out on platforms on poles in yard & bird baths.
I have a large planter in my yard and the cats use it as a potty. How can I keep them out of it?
By V Meyers from Discovery Bay, CA
If orange peels and lemon peels work, why not use orange or lemon juice in a garden sprayer and just spray the yard?
By Buddy J.
By Beth
07/28/2011
Ants would be attracted to orange juice. Plus the zest of the fruit is where the oil is and is what makes it so strong.
How can I keep cats out of garden beds?
Hardiness Zone: 5a
By Lois from Toledo, OH
By DCW816
04/11/2011
Sprinkle hot pepper on ground. Also Moth Balls work well and also spraying ammonia on the ground. I like the hot pepper myself. Good Luck and God Bless!
I recently made a new area of the garden "mine". The cats had been using this as a cat box in the past (or so I think). Any ideas to keep them away?
I have several cats in the neighborhood that come and go in my garden. Is there a natural remedy of something I can put in my garden to keep them out.
My problem is my neighbor's CATS. Don't get me wrong, I do love cats, just not in my back yard. I have an old dog but would not want to use anything that would either hurt my dog or the cats. I just want to be able to get them out of my yard and keep them out
How can I keep the neighboor's cat out of my garden?
One of the things I have done, is to put regular balloons out in the garden. The cats will pop them and then run away.
How can I keep the neighboor's cat out of my garden? Tips for keeping cats out of your garden.
How can you keep cats out of the garden?
How do you keep neighbourhood cats out of the garden? It's fenced and they keep coming over.
I was reading on my cat calendar how cats hate the smell of chamomile and the smell of marigolds and if you plant those in your garden the cats won't dig in the garden much.
New neighbors moved in next door and have a cat. I have 3 dogs. My dogs are either in my backyard (walled), or if I take them out they are on leashes.
I need a deterrent to keep a cat from pooing in my garden. I am looking for something which can survive a few days in a damp/wet climate.
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