Thinking will have to rehome our cats

[MeAndMyGirl]

Our anti social bonkers neighbours have 5 aggressive cats that stalk our home trying to attack our cats. Their cats attacked our daughter when she was small so they agreed to keep them in during day so she was safe. Now they are leaving their cats out all the time. We cannot let our cats out for their own safety and have to supervise daughter in garden. Hace tried soaking them with water etc but nothing works. Does anyone have any ideas as dont want to rehome our cats but it is not fair on them being cooped up when used to being outside for some of the day?

[thecatneuterer]

I know you can buy cat proof fencing and cat runs/enclosures type things. Probably quite expensive though ...

[florencearbuthnot]

I had bastard neighbours who poisoned my other cats.
tried to keep the little ones in but felt it was not fair on them.
I found 'Trixie' netting on the zooplus .com website ,was dubious how strong it was and if it would do the job,but it has been up 2 years now and is still ok. Was cheap as well and they give you loads.
I also used trellis as well and alf and tilly can go out and I dont worry.
Hope that will help.
Why should you lose your cats because of shitty neighbours ?.

[MeAndMyGirl]

Yeah i want a solution. Did u manage to cat proof your whole garden? I am an animal lover but these cats are vile and nasty - just like their owner

[MeAndMyGirl]

Yeah i want a solution. Did u manage to cat proof your whole garden? I am an animal lover but these cats are vile and nasty - just like their owner

[catameringue]

I have a cat proof fence. Cost quite a bit of money but keeps my monkeys in. I've observed several attempts at them climbing the fence and they've never gotten near to getting out.
Though I'm not sure how it would work for you, in that you almost want it the other way around of keeping others out. Though if you trapped one of these neighbouring felines you coukd frighten it a little more into not returning.

[florencearbuthnot]

yes i managed it, looks a bit of a bugger in places but worth it for peace of mind

[MeAndMyGirl]

Thanks for the advice. They are not normal cats. There are lots of cats about our neighbourhood and you expect the occassional cat tiff. But this is sheer aggression. If they were dogs acting like this, they would be put down. My garden is going to be difficult to keep them out but am going to try. We cant sit in our garden due to our neighbours anyways. Am so down about it all as our home feels like a prison

[Migsy1]

There may be a reason for them behaving like this, for example if they are not being looked after properly. Try to find out about how they are being treated and call the RSPCA if necessary.

[cozietoesie]

When you say they're 'not normal' do you mean they don't look normal or they don't behave normally? I'm just wondering whether, if your neighbours are a bit .......... whether they could be raising, say, F1 or F2 hybrids of one of the lesser big cats, And have a pack of unneutered ones around. Cats shouldn't attack a child.

[MeAndMyGirl]

They look like normal cats but are much bigger. I don't think they have been neutered or properly socialised. I did not know about f1 & f2 but googled & they dont look like them. I have spoken to police, sspca and council and no-one interested as cats have legal right to roam so the onus of responsibility not on owner.

[cozietoesie]

They attacked your child - that puts them in the frame for intervention in my book because I've not known a standard cat that would aggress on a young child in that way. (Not without being cornered or feeling itself threatened in some way.)

The reason I mentioned F1 and F2s is that keeping them requires DEFRA oversight as far as I know (happy to stand corrected on that one) and the SSPCA/other bodies would be interested if you thought that that was what they were.

Did you actually tell the police that your child was attacked? (You're in Scotland, I take it ?)

[MeAndMyGirl]

The police know now about the cat attack but i did not report it at the time. So do the council hence the cat rota before. I dont know about f2/1 cats. - is it worth calling sspca to ask?

[cozietoesie]

They should - try to take some pictures of them in your garden so that you can send them if asked.

If your neighbour is seriously ................ it might be worth contacting your local councillor to alert them to an issue. If they're difficult, it would be unusual if they weren't already known to the authorities for various other incidents and while councillors often get a bad rep, they really hold the power in Scottish councils: having a councillor aware of/interested in your case can make a lot of difference with the officials and how they react.

You should be able to find the councillor's details and email address on the council website for your area. A quick email is all that's needed and provides a useful document trail.