We have a couple stray cats around here that holler, moan, and cry all night long. How can I keep them out of my driveway and yard? I have a small dog and he goes crazy when they start all their noise. Thanks for the help.
We used to have an awful time keeping stray cats out of my garden, and doing their business there, so I sprinkled ceyenne pepper in all my garden areas. To keep them from yowling and fighting around my house, we bought a Water Blaster, one of those SUPER SQUIRTGUNS. It only took a few times getting a shower to keep them away. But with a dog you wouldn't want to use the ceyenne pepper. And getting up out of bed at all hours to squirt cats is probably not too enticing to you, so I think the sprinkler with a motion censor is a great idea.
The Humane Society in my city has a "trap, spay/neuter, and release" program. They loan you a live trap (you put down a deposit, which you get back when you return the trap). You catch the cat and take it to them. They "fix" it free of charge. They also give them a rabies/parvo, etc. shot, so they stay healthy. Then you pick it up and release it back where you found it. I have done this several times. I have a few strays around my yard, no yowling, no babies, and, best of all, NO MICE! Phone your local shelter and see if they have a similar program.
Call the local feral cat place, you should be able to get a trap for free or a small rental fee (it's worth it to have them stop). In the meantime, you can mix up a bottle of citrus oil and water spray outside. Set up some citronella candles on the border, cats don't like the citrus scent at all.
While these responses are good, they don't address the underlying issue, which is the fact that the cats are yowling because they are unneutered/unspayed. Your best option is to contact your local feral cat initiative. Just google them. They will often come out, trap the cats humanely, and have them spayed or neutered. You will not only end of noise, improve your community by reducing any cat overpopulation, but also bring your dog some peace of mind!
There are hose end lawn sprinklers that come with motion detectors on them and when movement is detected, they turn on and drench the offending invader. This would work for cats, possums and other night creatures. Just GOOGLE it and I am sure you can find a source. It was first invented for deer, but will work for all 'critters'. If the spray doesn't hit them, the sudden noise will cause them to find other quieter places to prowl.
We usually throw an empty soda can or soda bottle at them. We are so bad at throwing them at them that they never touch them. Or you could fill a spray bottle with water and a few drops of citrus essential oils and spray them when you see them. Personally I don't mind a couple of ferel cats outside, they tend to keep the rodent population down and snake population down.
Believe it or not... moth balls or crystals. That is what they use in the mountains to keep out unwanted animals. I tried it and it worked. Just have to live with the smell of the moth balls, but the kitties stay out.
Trapping them and taking them to the animal shelter does not guarantee they wont be euthanized. If the cat is wild they DON'T 'fix' them and try to find them homes, they kill them. So if you are prepared to live with that, go ahead with that idea. Otherwise, there are products you can purchase at farm stores called 'feline away' and other products for unwanted animals in your garden and yard. You sprinkle it in your yard once a month or so and it deters the unwanted animals from wanting to visit your yard. After a while they wont bother at all and you wont have to use anything at all.
Also, cats don't like the smell of rue plants. You can plant them around your home to keep cats away as well.
If you're sure these cats are strays & don't belong to a neighbor you can call your local Humane Society, (the pound) they usually have (free to borrow) safe traps that you can use to catch these strays then take them to the humane society where they may be able to find homes for them after they've been "fixed". Sometimes they'll come & pick them up. These traps don't hurt the animal. I know this because an old neighbor of mine caught 3 stray cats this way & also 2 nasty raccoons.
This is because we used to live 2 houses away from a cat hoarder who had over a dozen cats, so when her house burned down they stayed in the neighborhood after she moved away. We kept one of the friendlier cats as a "porch cat" & named her "cute-face" & fed her daily. The other cats weren't as friendly so my neighbor trapped them & took them to a no-kill shelter. There's lots of people out there looking for an outdoor mouser, & let me tell you that when I lived at that house near all the cats, we never had a mouse or a rat, even if we failed to go to the dump as often as we should have! It's important to cover the cage as soon as the animal is caught to save them stress & help keep them calm. The traps come in 3 or 4 sizes, you need the right size.
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Request: Keeping Cats Out of Yard (06/08/2009)
Every day when I wake up, my backyard is filled with fresh cat poop! It's a nightmare. My daughter is highly allergic to cats, there are flies everywhere and the yard smells unbearable.
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Request: Keeping Cats Out of Yard
Archived on 06/08/2009
Every day when I wake up, my backyard is filled with fresh cat poop. It's a nightmare. My daughter is highly allergic to cats, there are flies everywhere and the yard smells unbearable. They lay on my flower beds and smash the flowers. I'm out picking up poop everyday (and I don't have a pet for that reason). I have to cover up my garden every night before sunset or they'll destroy that too. I'm at my wits end.
Are you sure it's cat poop? Cat's don't usually leave their feces uncovered. That's why they like sand boxes, because it's easy to cover their poop with the sand. Cat's do like to "mark their territory" by spraying urine on doors, etc, but I've never known a cat to leave it's feces uncovered. You could try spraying ammonia or vinegar around your yard. I've read somewhere that cats hate those odors. (05/04/2009)
Cats don't like the smell of citronella. What I did was buy a large bag of citronella tea lights. They last for a long time and worked great for me especially in the garden below my window where the cat odour was. (05/07/2009)
Mothballs are toxic to cats. They will cause liver damage that kills the pet. If someone finds out, they can take you to small claims court for animal cruelty, and yes, you will end up with a record. It is a felony in most states. Think before using this one.
Several abandoned cats live next to us now, and I have two of my own. Cats always cover their feces, possums don't. I have a few possums that come around at night, scrounge for food, and leave their feces everywhere, all uncovered. They are quiet, come and go quickly, and can make a mess. It took me a while to realize the problem. (05/08/2009)
I agree that it doesn't really sound like cats, unless they are really disturbed. I did have a farm cat that didn't cover. I believe that she was not properly taught by her own mother or perhaps had some sort of psychological issues, as we had multiple cats at the time, several of whom were her kittens. She was the only one who left piles on the lawn. You are sure it is cats? I have had over 20 cats on my farm, and other than this one with the bathroom problem, they didn't bother anything veggies, flowers, gardens, nothing was damaged in any way. I had many rock gardens and flowerbeds and vegetable gardens. The only thing my present cats have harmed was the catnip I planted for them; they loved it to oblivion. But they don't hurt anything else.
You can buy cat repellents at pet and hardware stores. I had some that was some sort of green granules that you sprinkled on the lawn. I had to reapply after a rain. I have tried mothballs in the past, and the smell of those is worse than the cat smell. Since it is so toxic, I wouldn't use it at all. The smell is truly horrible, and of course is not healthy for people either.
I have my own cats now and so they keep other cats out of the yard. Perhaps you should get a dog?
I did have stray cats that sprayed the front of the house, and I had very good results by splashing lemon scented Mr. Clean around on the front. It covered up and washed away the urine stains, and seemed to keep the stray cats away as well. (05/18/2009)
