Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

See all MNHQ comments on this thread

Original poster

Should owners clean up after cats?

321 replies

Sillysausage2 · 14/09/2014 00:33

I'm a responsible dog owner and clean up after my dog. Unfortunately I think the scent of my dog attracts cats to my front garden, I watched 2 come and shit in my garden this afternoon! LO plays in the front garden and apparently cat shit is very dangerous, AIBU to be a bit pissed off with this?

OP posts:
SublimeCorpse · 14/09/2014 01:58

I have 4 cats and whilst I can't do it all the time, if I witness them having a poo in a neighbours garden I do clean it up.

My neighbours don't have cats, why should they have to deal with my cats crap?

If I see the buggers ripping open neighbours rubbish bags, I clear that up too.

When we had a dog, I cleared up after him so do the same with my kitties.

Am I not normal? Blush

Loopylala7 · 14/09/2014 02:15

I can see your point, but it would be impossible to police. I've heard if you stick a bottle with water on your garden they don't like it and won't poop or wee - no idea if this is true, but maybe worth a try?

Loopylala7 · 14/09/2014 02:17

SublimeCorpse you are the super considerate - well done you!

TinyDancingHoofer · 14/09/2014 02:30

Yabu, it's the same as fox/ hedgehog/ badger and deer poo. Also frogs do huge poos.

MidniteScribbler · 14/09/2014 02:35

Loopylala7, Mythbusters busted that one as well.

HeartShapedBox · 14/09/2014 02:54

seriously though. it's cat shit Confused

however · 14/09/2014 05:02

A couple of years ago, I lived in a suburb that was covered in dog shit. Seriously, no one cleaned it up. It was awful and people complained about it loudly, and often. This suburb was quite built up, with not many grassy areas, and they were covered in shit.

Then, horribly, someone started leaving out baited food for dogs, and a handful died horrible deaths.

My view was obviously, that what these awful people had done was unforgivable. I can't make that any clearer. But I also pointed out that those who had allowed their animals to thoroughly foul the small parks where people played should take a good hard look at themselves. Had they been more considerate, innocent animals would not have been poisoned. Of course whoever was leaving out the poisoned food might have been doing it for some other reason, but I don't think so.

People don't like animal shit where they live and recreate if it can be helped. Which is, you know, entirely reasonable.

tiredoldmum · 14/09/2014 06:35

I had a crazy neighbour who was offended that our cat was pooing in our yard! How dare it! She also left a threatening note in the letter box telling us not to hang our wash out on certain days because she didn't like the smell of the laundry powder I used. F her.

Sunna · 14/09/2014 06:48

I've read that they hate the small of Jeyes Fluid, maybe pour that around the areas.

VeryLittleGravitasIndeed · 14/09/2014 06:59

YANBU, but cat owners (mostly) don't seem to care where their cat poos (ref all the "oh yes how awful but how can I stop it" responses, well how about training it to poo in a litter tray?).

I'd go the super soaker route, as a deterrent. Cat poo is disgusting, it smells even worse than dog poo.

cindydog · 14/09/2014 07:13

Get a superblaster water pistol/ bicket of water and soak the fuckers when you see them do it.

RobinSparkles · 14/09/2014 07:24

Put some slices of lemon around your garden. Cats hate it and it works! They don't like anything citrus.

There are two cats in my Cul-de-sac. One is a little bastard shits everywhere, in everyone's gardens and I was sick of picking up his shit! I put some lemon down for a while and he hasn't really done it since.

The other lovely cat has been trained to use a litter tray. I love him.

beccajoh · 14/09/2014 07:31

Cats can roam up to a mile from home. It'd be hard to police unless you definitely knew who owned the cat.

beccajoh · 14/09/2014 07:35

Cats can roam up to a mile from home. It'd be hard to police unless you definitely knew who owned the cat.

velocity1 · 14/09/2014 08:52

I know our cats go next door, but they also go in the fields and other gardens, there isn't much I can do about it. I did tell our neighbour that if they annoyed him, he should spray them when he saw them, to put them off. I don't know if he has yet, but I couldn't think of anything else to suggest.

londonrach · 14/09/2014 08:58

Yanbu as from my experience most cats dont bury their poo, despite what people say. However they are a free spirit owned by no one and can poo, move into another persons house etc unless you know the present cats staff im afraid as someone already said its like bird poo. You have to clean it yourself. Suggest prickly plants, water socker and lion dung or is that for foxes... Or get a dog

Sunna · 14/09/2014 09:03

It's even worse when the furry bastards bury it - you dig it up while gardening.

mausmaus · 14/09/2014 09:10

imo yes, but I appreciate that that's difficult/impossible to do.

the least cat owners should do is keep it indoors at all times offer the cat a litter tray and an attractive bit of flower bed with soft soil, so that the cat might prefer to do their business in their own home/garden.

yes to not all cats burying their shit. most don't (it seems) which is especially unpleasant with geriatric neighours cat who constantly has the squits .

and, has someone already mentioned cat vomit? that deserves a special place in hell.

WitchWay · 14/09/2014 09:14

The big obvious dollops are territory markers. Other poos are buried. Not sure how you persuade the cat that its territory is supposed to stop at your boundary Hmm

WitchWay · 14/09/2014 09:16

Agree cat vomit is rank - one of ours bolts her food then sometimes pukes it all up, whereupon it looks exactly like cat food, but with added slime & more smell ugh!

FoxSticks · 14/09/2014 09:21

I don't want to spray anything to deter them that might hurt the dog, is there anything else that might work?

Is the implication here that you wouldn't be bothered if the cat was hurt though? YABU. There is all sorts of poo in your garden, not just cat's. Most cats can use a litter tray, they just choose not to. It makes me laugh when people get upset about these dreadful cat owners who don't train their cats. Generally speaking cats really don't go in for the whole training thing.

msrisotto · 14/09/2014 09:21

It's hard to tell cat poo apart from fox poo too so it would not really be reasonable to demand your neighbour clean anything up because not only might it not be their cat, it might not even be a cat culprit.

Buy a motion activated deterrent. You can get water squirted or sonic noise makers that humans can't hear.

Sunna · 14/09/2014 09:25

Cat owners can be stunningly arrogant. My cat shits and digs up your garden - tough you have to live with my choice to own one.

Our ex-neighbour trained her cat to only use the cat litter tray, it can't be that hard.

MrsItsNoworNotatAll · 14/09/2014 09:25

It's also shit, excuse the pun, when you're mowing the lawn and don't see the shit and run the lawn mower over itAngry

Yanbu. Cat crap is vile and having to clear it away when you don't even have pets is annoying. My previous neighbours had two cats that constantly used our garden as a toilet. The cowbag who lived knew but had the usual 'well cats shit anywhere what can I do about it attitude' fine! Don't object when I soak them if their in my garden then.

So happy I was when she moved and took her Shitty arsed cats with her.

Sadly unless you know exactly whose cats are crapping in your garden you can't do much about it.

icanmakeyouicecream · 14/09/2014 09:26

It would be impossible as they shit everywhere. I hate them, gross things. I like squirting them with the water pistol though Grin