Next door's -thug- cat

[Grumpyoldpersonwithcats]

Has started coming in our house and stealing cat food.
Our cats dislike him. (understatement...)
Once he's in it's a problem removing him because he growls, hisses and then attacks us (launches at our legs etc).
He spends an inordinate amount of time in our garden or staring in through the French windows. Any suggestion how to gently discourage him? I have no intention of having outside doors shut for the whole summer.
Enclosed a picture of him sitting on our outside table.

[werekitty]

Water pistol... And microchip cat flap to stop him getting inside

[wigglypiggly]

Hes a big chunky lad. Water pistol and hiss back at him. Do you know who he belongs to.

[Grumpyoldpersonwithcats]

He belongs to our neighbours (with whom we get on very well).
He is a big handsome chap (reputedly half Bengal)
Catflap idea won't work - we are sitting in the living room with the French doors wide open. The brazen beast just walks in.
How he sneaked past us twice in the last few days to get to the kitchen without us spotting him is beyond me!
Will try hissing .

[TeenagersandFurbabies]

Water pistol filled with ice cold water. Most cats don't like being sprayed with ice cold water. He'll soon learn to stay away.

[Minkies11]

Have a broom handy....not to whack him with but might help shooing him out. He's the spit of my ndn late Tom who was forever sneaking into our house. Our two cats loved him and would often find all of them asleep in a tangle on the sofa or on our bed
He would eat all the bloody food though.....

[TheSultanofPingu]

I honestly don't think there's much you can do. If the French doors are open and he wants to come in, he'll be in. Maybe move the food somewhere he can't access?

[madcatladyforever]

Send him round to my house. My cat beat up next doors dog and now he legs it whenever he sees her.

[wigglypiggly]

You have to look him in the face when you hiss but he might just ignore you try not leaving any.food out, he doesn't look malnourished.

[Fluffycloudland77]

Bengals have a stealth mode.

Water is the answer. Is he neutered?.

[wigglypiggly]

I thought Bengals like water.

[Beamur]

He is handsome and just oozing with confidence!
Water pistol. Very few cats will continue bothering you if they're being sprayed with water. Tough cat if he's going for you too!

[Fluffycloudland77]

I use water on my Bengal when he fights with next doors cat. Some days I only have to open the window and he’s back over the fence looking sheepish.

[Grumpyoldpersonwithcats]

You have to look him in the face when you hiss but he might just ignore you
Being ignored I can live with - I'm more concerned that he'll rip my face off.
And yes he is neutered.

[ALannisterInDebt]

That photo says it all....he owns the table, your backyard and of course your home. As soon as you accept this fact and start bowing down to him the easier it'll be on everyone

[HuggedTheRedwoods]

He certainly looks like he's in charge on your table! As you get on well with them, would your neighbours consider putting a collar with a bell on him for a few weeks at least to help you try to hear him sneaking in?

[Coronapop]

I caught my intruder indoors, wrapped him up completely in an old towel so he could hardly move and dunked him in a sink of cold water. He did not return.

[Grumpyoldpersonwithcats]

ALannisterInDebt
You have a point but my four cats have different ideas...
Sybil sees him off when she sees him and at half twelve last night Basil and him were kicking seven bells out of each other.

[Grumpyoldpersonwithcats]

Good news. DW just hissed at him on the patio and he legged it. We'll see how long that works.

[Grumpyoldpersonwithcats]

And Basil is now doing (half hearted) sentry duty by the French windows.

[wigglypiggly]

Keep up with the hissing. Basil is a real beauty.

[MrsBertBibby]

Sentry duty. Aye right!

[MsMightyTitanAndHerTroubadours]

can you borrow a large dog? We have a local thug, and every couple of years he makes it his business to incorporate our end of the street his territory, our large GSD saw him off once, when idiotcat (mine) and Timmy thugcat were having a standoff that he swiped the poor dog across the nose as he went by, this did mean that Timmy was very impressed by idiotcat's daring

[Minkies11]

Basil is very impressive!
Sometimes a hiss and stamped foot in cat thugs direction can get the message across although he does sound quite stealthy!

[Grumpyoldpersonwithcats]

MsMightyTitanAndHerTroubadours
Next door also have 3 dogs which their cat seems to manage with an iron paw, so I don't think the cat would care.

[Grumpyoldpersonwithcats]

Update - hissing no longer works - dropped DS2 at bus stop this morning - on my return was met by neighbour's cat on porch. I ended up going round the back to let myself in .