A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion Plant pests and problems Gary the cat

Hello,

I was wondering if anyone had tips on keeping cats from pooping in the flower beds without having to buy anything electronic.

mothballs have worked in the past, but the neighbors new cat, gary, doesnt seem to mind them at all and burys them along with my new alyssm plants:-(

are there any plants that cats just cant stand to be around?

thanks,

sheena

I feel your pain!!! We have a lot of cats in the neighborhood that loved my rosebushes! The best thing I found was citrus! For like a week we ate a ton of cirtrus, I mean we ate lemon fish, orange porkchops, grapegruits for breakfast, etc.. I kept all of the finely chopped peelings with a little water in a bag and kept in the fridge all week... When I had a good amount I sprinkled them around and it seemed to do the trick! Don't worry about the cats either; it will not hurt them.. I got the tip from my vet. These were other suggestions given to me by other people:
Water ballons (Ok we did this on the week leading up to the citrus and it was so funny!!!!)
Sprinkle black pepper in the area (burns their bums)
Tape down foil (they don't like the texture..
OH, and I should mention keeping the ground pretty moist should help, cause they don't really like mud..

Good luck.

i've heard that spiny thorns (like rose canes) will deter them too.

thank you, these are very helpful tips.
eva, you mentioned black pepper, i wonder if an organic pepper spray might work? something that wouldnt hurt cats or plants? not to spray the cat, but to spray around the plants i mean.

Hmm... Maybe.. It is worth a try.. Let me know how it works.

Hi...

A lot of people don't know this, but you will hurt the cat if you sprinkle any kind of pepper. When they wash themselves they get it in their eyes - I've heard of cats scratching their eyes out because of the pain.

I don't really have any suggestions as far as what is OK to do, since I've never had that problem, so I hope you don't mind me chiming in...but you might want to call a vet for suggestions to make sure you don't hurt the cat without meaning to...

CM33414

OH, that is so sad!! Poor little things..

Oh, the other I was at the pet store and they had this potpourri looking/dried citrus stuff, as well as citrus sticks.. It was like $2 a bag.. I know that will hurt the kitty…

Eva,

It makes me so sad that things are being sold out there that would hurt animals...:( most people would buy having no idea...

CM

CM- I know!! It is so sad!!! I love my kitties so much and I would never want to hurt one ~even if it poops in my roses.. Grrr... I think I will stick to my citrus... Oh, and I do use the foil inside, FYI it works great to keep cats off my favorite chair..

Ladysheena- How is it going with your Gary situation going?

well i gave a good dusting of black pepper to half of the flower bed, and sprinkled the other half with orange peels...I'll let you know which one he goes back to, if he comes back at all.

so the pepper doesnt deter him..

bestromann...

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