AIBU to shoot the shitters

[Gwenci]

We have a small patch of garden right in front of our front door. It's a dirt area with a few plants in it. Currently quite sparse on the plant front (waiting for the ones we've planted to fecking grow!)

There are about 7 cats that live in the two houses either side of us. Every fucking one of them thinks this area is a giant litter tray.

Every fucking morning I'm sifting two or three giant cat turds out of my garden. (And with a baby and a toddler it's not like I don't already deal with more than my fair share of shit in a day.)

I've tried repellent pellets and one of those high pitched noise emitting thingies. Neither works.

Can I now start shooting at them with my DD's water pistol?

I'm at my shits end!!

I have two cats and it doesn't stop the neighbours' ones shitting in our garden, coming into the kitchen to eat our cats' food and occasionally coming up to sleep on our beds, the cheeky little feckers.

Our friends have 2 cats. They can come and go from the house as they please, through the back door cat flap.

HOWEVER they are then trapped in the garden, as our friends have installed a system of rollers at the top of all the fences & walls so they can't climb or jump out (and other cats can't jump in either).

Yes, it probably cost a fortune, but it just goes to show that you CAN do something to stop your cat roaming outside your own garden.

BoSelectaBigBiff you can, but the law is very clear that you don't need to.

Try grating a smelly perfumed soap over the area. It won't affect your plants but cats hate it.

yes to smelly soap (one thing those christmas gift sets are good for)

Do whatever it takes. It's so annoying. I choose not to have cats and therefore do not want to clean other people's cat shit from the garden. I have a super soaker by back door. Fill it with freezing cold water. Works a treat :)

Get a COCKERAL! I used to have issues with the local cats, now if they come in the garden they get attacked, I have a rule that I will save each cat only once from Boris and Bernard, then I take the, back to their owner (if I know who it is) and explain what happened and that I won't be rescuing poor fluffy again.
I've not have one whiff of cat poo since.

Soak a used tea bag with some olbas oil and leave it in the border. Replace every few weeks. It's the only thing that stops the ndn's cat pooing in my front garden. I had tried every other suggestion going before finding this gem of advice!

If soap works I wonder if cheap cologne would?
Clove oil works but its pretty expensive and doesnt last long.
I accidentally discovered TCP keeps them away, but you also have to live with the smell.

Put a load of sticks or canes in the ground. The best solution for us and our neighbourhood litter tray/garden.

When a neighbourhood dog started pissing up against the wall of our bay window, I bleached the area then liberally applied tea tree oil. Seemed to work. Cats hate it too so you could try cotton wool pads soaked in tea tree.

It would be great if it worked for all the dogs that shit in the grass by the play area in the park, but I can't afford that much tea tree oil.

I was the one who suggested sprinkling chilli powder. Those of you who are suggesting that it gets in cats' eyes are just plain wrong. The cats (and dogs) keep away from the lawn or flowerbed because of the strong smell of the chilli powder. They'd have to rub their eyes on it for it to irritate them.

Fozzley

If a cat stepped in some chilli powder which had been sprinkled in a garden, and then washed itself using its paws (as cats do), the chilli
powder would get in its eyes.

HTH

IME, they keep away because of the smell. They don't get as far as walking anywhere near the area where the chilli is.

I hate effing cats too. There was an injured pidgeon last week in the garden so we tried to keep it hidden from any cats. Lo and behold all we found later that evening was a load of feathers and blood. Evil bastards.

Don't bother with the sticks - cats have pointy little arses and will back in to do their business.

The Jeyes fluid idea definitely works, though you have to be sure that whatever your apply it to (tea bag is good) is under something that is cat proofed as it is toxic if they ingest it - under heavy flowerpots weighed down with bricks would do it. Cats cannot stand the smell though and will stay away. Keeping it safely away from the kitties also has the bonus of avoiding reapplication after rain.

I also recommend chasing them around the garden then following them home right up to their cat flaps. You might need to be very pregnant with bunny slippers for this to work though. ☺️😬☺️

Meh, it's good fertiliser for plants. However yeah, a water gun is a great idea, or the hose.

I’m a cat owner a big mad cat person and totally condone you shooting them with a water pistol! Not doing them any harm and (hopefully, but cats - absolute look you right in the eye bastards) will get the message.
People can’t control their cats out of their garden. It’s unreasonable to think they can and unreasonable to think cats aren’t going to roam. Totally reasonable to water pistol them shitting in your garden. My mother’s cats are elderly now and go in her grass and it’s the bane of her life because uuuurgh.

@LunafortJest I don’t think it is though otherwise I’d be dunking the litter tray on everything dying on my balcony