Cat poo deterant

[Chociefish]

Any ideas on how to deter a cat from pooing in my new neighbours garden?
About a month after we moved in new neighbour came round and approached us about cat poo in her garden. We quite happily said shoo him away or squirt him with water and then he'll know he's unwelcome.
She chased him out a couple of times then one evening chased him out and turned the air blue as she ran. Fortunately the children didn't hear.
She's now taken to flinging cat poo onto my garden which I dutifully pick up and put in bag then bin it. I understand her point regarding cat poo and as an animal owner I'm probably hardened off and just deal with it. I can't find much on the Internet apart from the plant cat shoo. I should also point out that there are at least 2 other cats paddling through her garden but as she is only in 2 nights per week she perhaps hasn't noticed. That and the fact that my cat is not scared of strangers and is a bit podgy and lazy. I would desperately like to defuse this as her childish actions seem to be escalating.

If your cat is 'podgy and lazy' could you cat proof your fence on that side? The fence toppers that overhang on your side on an angle or the roller type?

I would try lemon oil mixed with water. Put it in a spray bottle and spray her garden. Most cats hate citrus.

It’s not childish to not want poo in your garden, or return it to its owner. Either keep your cat inside, get rid of it because it’s a complete nuisance to others, or get your neighbour some Jeyes fluid to spray round the boundaries of her garden - it’s the only thing that works. Your neighbours shouldn’t have to patrol their garden with a water pistol, for goodness’ sakes.

Cat proofing your garden would also be a good thing to do.

I would report her to the council for throwing cat poo in your garden! That's disgraceful behaviour, she doesn't know which cat did it. I would not do anything to try and deter the cat or anything like that, she lost the right to decent behaviour from you when she resorted to such disgusting measures.
I say report her I would throw it back and give her a mouthful the scruffy tramp!

Some good ideas here, thanks I will pass them on. Just to recap though I do understand her problem and I am doing stuff to try and help. He does poo in my own garden as I have provided easy digging for him and there are other cats here. I guess you can't please all the people all the time.

Chile powder round my vegetable plants

I have a narrow strip of ground in front of my living room window, which used to be the neighbourhood cat lavatory. It absolutely stank and you could smell the poo as you came in and out through the front door, and when the living room windows were open.

What seems to have worked is clearing it daily, using various citrus and herbal deterrents, and shoo-ing the cats away if I see them there (I clap my hands at them - no swearing, I promise ;) ). I’ve used spare citrus peel etc but also bought some granules that are a safe deterrent. I’ve also planted aromatic herbs like lavender and lemon verbena and orange thyme. The problem has reduced to once a week or so from several...er...deposits a day.

I’d have been very grateful to hear the cats’ owners were doing something from their side as well! I do appreciate you can’t completely control where a cat goes, but making an appealing place for them in your own garden with bare soil where they can scratch and dig is at least a fair attempt.

Maybe some of my ideas might help your neighbour. It’s good to hear an owner being considerate

It may only be coincidence, because it coincided with us being in the garden more, but I bought a tub of cat repellent powder (I think it has citrus type herbal ingredients). I did use up the whole tub in our front and back garden, but far fewer cats since. We were a complete thoroughfare before and I like feeding birds so wasn't mad keen on constant visits from cats.
I'm going to buy another tub and redo, but it seems to have been money well spent.

I don’t really think the neighbour is childish. It’s a strange setup where people are allowed to own animals that have the right to spoil the gardens of others. It is aggravating and expensive to have cats crapping in the garden. I paid ££££ to have my front garden and flower beds removed and the entire area paved over after spending 10 years picking up cat shit and trying every deterrent possible, unsuccessfully. Nothing you try has any chance of working by the way. You are just going to have to have a bad relationship with your neighbour.

My garden is the site of several cat territory wars. I don't have pets, so all the local cats want to claim it for themselves. So they all poo on top of the ground, and spray all along the fence. It stinks. It was better since lockdown, but I think they've all be let out again, as I discovered 7 or 8 lots this morning, dotted around, which I now need to deal with. I've tried everything; sonic scarers, chili oil, mint oil, citrus oil, holly branches etc.. Nothing works long term. They ignore the scarers, wait for oils to fade / wash away and simply poo next to the spikey stuff. So, this afternoon I shall be scooping and binning copious amounts of shit, deodorising with white vinegar, spraying with dilute peppermint oil, and expecting to do it all again tomorrow. ☹️. It makes several terraces of my garden unusable. Good luck, op, but don't expect miracles.

Thanks @Feawen. I am indeed trying to help. Unfortunately despite the fact that I am trying, neighbour has made it personal. The powder sounds good, I'll pop some on her doorstep and see if that calms her down. She does not know for sure the poo comes from our cat but as newbies she seems to have singled us out. I could cry. I hate this street, I had no idea living in suburbia was fraught with so much hassle.

I’m sorry you’re having a tough time @Chociefish, I hope your (accused) troublemaker of a cat gives you a cheering cuddle. I think with a lot of people being stuck at home at the moment (for good reason obvs) all annoyances seem bigger than usual. I hope you find some friendlier neighbours

Create a preferred toilet spot in your own garden - a decent size patch of soft earth with some screening/privacy and put your cats poo there to encourage him to use it

The powder was from sainsburys if that's any help. Can't remember brand. Was £4.50-which I initially was a bit 😮at, but since it might have worked, I think it's good value now!

And, for what it's worth, I think you're being very patient with your neighbour. As much as I think it's weird how accepted it is that cats are in, and poo in, other people's gardens, as opposed to dogs which wouldn't be tolerated, it just is the accepted standard really.

We got a rescue cat earlier this year and she's taken to pooing in our garden, we have some very fine shingle as borders which she seems to think is litter. It stinks, and our garden is huge so I'm walking round the whole day trying to find where the smell is coming from, I've covered up as many areas as I can, the next thing I'm going to do is buy some small paving stones and place them on top of the shingle areas so she can't scratch around so much. It's really getting me down so I can imagine if she wasn't even ours I'd be quite angry. I am off to look on amazon now for this cat repellent!

Have you considered getting an outdoor litter tray for your cat so it uses that instead?

I would hope that she'd use the perfectly good clean litter tray that she's got inside.

I heard lion poo works?? I'm afraid I sympathise with your neighbour- it's infuriating having to repeatedly clear up cat poo. I find it bizarre that there's little onus on owners encouraging their pets to use their own gardens.

Ok, powder orderered as gift for neighbour and on its way. Litter tray outside may work. He only uses a tray inside if he's shut in however if I place one outside it's worth a shot.

Honestly her behaviour is not okay but as a non cat loving person who has to deal with cat poo on her front garden daily I completely get it.

Literally I open my front door and all I can smell is someone else's cat poo. It's disgusting.

I don’t have a huge cat poo problem and on occasions have used most of the above methods, but also using spent coffee grounds mixed with Vick vapour rub ( the cheap version ). It does seem to work.
However, in the spring a patch of grass near my garden table absolutely stank, getting worse when the sun shone. There was no visible evidence of poo so it could have been fox spray.
Nothing took the smell away, so in desperation I sprinkled a sachet of drawer perfume powder all over that area. The new smell was a bit overwhelming but better. Since then both pongs have gone away.