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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

terrorised by a cat

45 replies

PookieDo · 27/04/2019 22:04

Firstly I have a cat myself so i am not a cat hater. I have a small female house cat who does go in the garden on a nice day.
I moved a few months ago and the local big Tom cat took a liking to emptying my food recycling bin (which now lives in the shed)

He fights almost nightly outside my bedroom window on the front of the street with other cats waking the street up

Tom cat has taken to visiting my garden every night by jumping down heavily from the wall onto the bins (scaring the crap out of us all). I’ve now got to move the bins into the middle of the garden of an evening to stop this racket but if it’s windy and they are empty they fall over. He will still jump on them. He clearly has a dramatic flair and he’s huge

The biggest issue is It then comes up to my patio doors and sits on the outside staring at my cat for hours who loses her little mind and gets really agitated. I have curtains and try to distract her but she viciously attacked my DD tonight who got too close to her at the wrong moment

I don’t know who it belongs to but I assume this cat may not have been castrated. How do I get it to FUCK OFF out of my garden?

OP posts:

dementedpixie · 27/04/2019 22:13

Motion activated sprinkler?

ItsAllOkay · 27/04/2019 22:18

Spray it with water?

ChiaraRimini · 27/04/2019 22:19

Water pistol.

ShaggyRug · 27/04/2019 22:21

Paint a decent smear of Jeyes Fluid on top of walls or fences or areas where your cat doesn’t go but the Tom Cat does. They hate the smell from a distance and it might put him off enough to persuade him to go elsewhere. Although you might have to keep re-applying it as it fades or gets rained off.

Minkies11 · 27/04/2019 22:22

We have a roving feral Tom who is monstrous - my cats are outside cats and he beats the shit out of them if he can. He got through the catflap once and it was carnage. My DH squirted some water on him and got him out of the door and he's not been back. I really dislike any agression towards cats but water can sometimes work. I read somewhere that urine sprayed in the garden can deter cats but don't know how practical it is!

Wolfiefan · 27/04/2019 22:23

If your cat doesn’t venture out of the garden then I think I would cat proof it to keep this cat out.

Original poster

PookieDo · 27/04/2019 22:26

I have tried chasing it off - next night it is back. Dcat just puked all over my rug and she’s very short hair rarely sick so i think it’s agitation. I have never heard her make the kind of noises she does at this cat! Dcat even likes dogs usually

Dcat doesn’t go on the walls so going to put something on the top good idea
I don’t really want a sprinkler as don’t have outside tap and to spray it I have to open patio doors, I’m worried Dcat will run out and get attacked

OP posts:

AwkwardPaws27 · 27/04/2019 22:27

Is he owned and neutered? If not, your local cats protection may be able to help trap and neuter him, which may help.
I had our local stray neutered (he kept coming in the house!) and he hated me so much afterwards he latched onto a neighbour and moved in with them instead
To deter him from the bins, try cleaning them with something strongly citrus scented or putting some dried orange peel in them (cats hate citrus).
Alternatively a water pistol is good but you may need to persistently do it for a while before he gets the message!
For your cat, some zylkene capsules or a feliway plug in might help calm her. My boy cat yowls loudly when other cats come in the garden, so I feel your pain!

ItsAllOkay · 27/04/2019 22:29

Can you get those cat calming plug-ins to help calm your poor cat, while you tip a bucket of water over dissuade Tom cat?

Wolfiefan · 27/04/2019 22:29

Not Jeyes fluid. Toxic stuff.
If you don’t want this cat in your garden then I would be looking to do something to the fencing to stop it being able to get in.

Minkies11 · 27/04/2019 22:29

Would any of your neighbours know who owns it? If it's a stray?

ContinuityError · 27/04/2019 22:31

I’d also try a Feliway diffuser and Zylkene tablets for your cat to help her de-stress.

Beamur · 27/04/2019 22:31

Lion poo (Google 'silent roar')
Get a male friend to pee in your garden and all the other tips in this thread.

ContinuityError · 27/04/2019 22:32

Beaten to it by AwkwardPaws

Morticiaismymumgoal · 27/04/2019 22:34

Water gun, you can get one in the pound shop at this time of year. Spray him whenever you can see/ hear him. It won't hurt him but he'll hopefully think twice if you can squirt him through windows etc when he's there.

TheSpottedZebra · 27/04/2019 22:40

I would put something in front of the bottom of the window so she can't see him - Eg a cardboard screen. And scare him off when you see him - make yourself look big, and stomp at him, shouting.

Have you a male partner? Could he piss around the perimeter? Not a typo. The male hormones deter them, apparently. If not, have you a really really understanding friend?!

Original poster

PookieDo · 27/04/2019 22:43

Ok won’t use anything toxic. It has no food in my garden it can access but that’s why it started coming. Now it’s seen Dcat and enjoying scaring her. It is very clever it can get into the foodwaste bins and does the whole street the night before bin day!

I think it belongs to someone it’s a lovely looking cat possibly part pedigree with a British blue look about it - will ask around.

I have Feliway for her already but she’s not on tablets (think this could be traumatic for us both she hates them)

I have brick walls which are not so easy to adapt as wooden fences. Also I am HA and not sure about what I can do to the walls. There is an external wall leading to my wall and that’s how it’s coming over.

Citrus products on the wall maybe?

OP posts:

Original poster

PookieDo · 27/04/2019 22:46

Re the piss - I am dog sitting a male dog and that dog has pissed all over the garden hasn’t put cat off. Cat not put off by dog barking at it either (dog scared of the cat I think)

The patio door section is 3 feet across so I would basically have to board them all up with cardboard or something!

OP posts:

user1498581287 · 27/04/2019 22:51

Please don't put Jeyes fluid , down on, a wall, as someone advised above!!!!!!
That's horrible advise-if a cat did walk on it, it could poisen them and make them really ill. Cats end up basically eating anything that their paws go through, because they lick their feet, whilst grooming and cleaning themselves. They are also badly affected by some things that are people are affected by, like essential oils can be really bad-it's to do with cats not processing toxins in the same way we do-because their liver works differently.

please don't put any horrible stuff down, regardless of what people advise-( sorry, I'm sure you wouldn't !) I just wanted to jump on horrifying Jeyes Fluid suggestion !!

Spraying with ordinary water is good, I think. You can buy little squirty bottles for spraying plants, with. I've, in the past just chucked a cup of water , in the direction of bigger cats, that were bothering our cat -they do get the message eventually.I was slightly aiming to nearly miss sometimes, I didn't want to soak them, but it worked, though.

They don't like water-even if it just splashes near them they don't like it. Also ,if you can manage it , making a hissing noise at them can work a bit, because it's what they do at each other when they fight.

user1498581287 · 27/04/2019 22:52

Sorry, cross posted with jeyes fluid convesation! :)

Original poster

PookieDo · 27/04/2019 22:55

I don’t think this cat is water adverse it’s pouring with rain!

Would vinegar be mean? Just I use white vinegar in the house sometimes and my cat does not like this at all. Also silver foil?

OP posts:

ContinuityError · 27/04/2019 22:57

Zylkene capsules - just open them up and sprinkle into in wet food.

Original poster

PookieDo · 27/04/2019 22:58

Error - patio windows are 3 meters!

OP posts:

Newmumma83 · 27/04/2019 22:59

I feel your pain, our garden is cat central we have about 8 different cats come through... they all spray in the garden and stare in our patio doors ... we have two cats ... at first the boy cat would jump straight out to defend .. now he try’s to avoid as too many poor guy.. the girl cat makes some horrid sounds I usually go out to shoo the other cats away. My poor male cat came back with a claw in his head after one of the males tried to come in the house and then started a fight with my poor boy.

Upside I have two cats and they do love each other to bits and back each other up.

And touch wood no one has been too badly hurt bar an abscess and a little blood on the male cat ( and the claw I picked out of his head ) very glad I am not a cat 🐈

rickandmorts · 27/04/2019 23:05

Is your garden dog proof? Can you lock your cat away so she's safe then when the offending cat comes along let the dog out to chase it? Since we got terriers neighbouring cats don't dare come in the garden now after they got chased out a few times 😂

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