Keep your filthy disgusting cats at home!

[SelkieQualia]

My 3yo son just ran across my front lawn and jumped in the car. On the way, he's trodden in cat poo ( there's a regular offender, and no, it's not fox ). There's now cat poo all across the back seat of my car. I'm first trimester, and horrified at the prospect of toxoplasma, even though I know the risk is low.

This is on the background of my aracuana chicks being stolen by cats from my own back yard. I don't care how lazy you think your cat is - research has shown that even the most placid cat will kill 2-3 animals per night if allowed to roam.

Keep them locked up ffs! If you can't keep them inside, make a run. If you can't do that, keep rabbits instead.

God, you're going to get roasted. But... although I've always been quite fond of cats, getting an allotment recently has given me a different perspective.

The feckers from around the neighbourhood seem to delight in digging up whatever I plant. They poo in among my salad leaves. And yesterday was the final straw. One caught a baby rat and took it to the other side of the fence from where I was working.

I get it, they're predators. But it tortured the thing for nearly half an hour. The screaming was horrible. And the cat kept looking over and locking eyes with me as it did it. I'd considered getting a cat before, but this has put me right off!

You basically said that the OP should seek medical help because these worries must mean she has mental health issues.

No I didn’t.

You are not a doctor, telling people that their legitimate concerns are unfounded is a shitty thing to do.

I said she should MAYBE speak to her GP as she sounded very anxious. And that someone I know was preoccupied with toxo and thought about cats coats being dirty from licking their bums and THEY had OCD. I didn’t say OP had it. I said thinking like that isn’t a ‘normal’ way to think. It’s not.

OPs further posts are quite concerning. But whatever, let’s all pretend it’s normal to think cats are filthy and disgusting and owners are bad for letting them outside when the law says they can.

shesgonebatshitagain

Equally, I have been in enough houses where you can smell the presence of cats before you even see them. Most people don't have the space you have so litter trays tend to be in the corner of the kitchen and believe me when moggy is taking a dump you most definitely smell it.

I like both cats and dogs but I have to agree with some of the comments here that observe that cat owners have a massive blind spot when it comes to accepting criticism as to how their pets behave. My neighbour has cats, they roam, often into my house where they climb through open windows on a hot day. I have found them curled up on my bed, I have caught them using the side of my new sofa as a scratching post, they have shat in my flower beds and left half dead birds on the doorstep. It took a concerted campaign of using ultra sound deterrents and water pistols to stop them from using my property as a playground. Even had the neighbour complain one time when I soaked her cat with the hose when it was teeing itself up to take a shit. She just took the line that I hated cats because I objected to them in my home. Her excuse of "they are cats, what am I supposed to do" was just feeble.

I assume it was because you suggested OP had mental health issues for not enjoying stepping in cat shit, esp when pregnant

See my last post.

This thread is ridiculous. You can't compare cats and dogs because they're vastly different animals with different behaviours.

Dogs do not have a need to roam. They are pack animals who feel like part of the family and follow their alpha. Cats are a different species with different needs, and some of them do have a need to roam. They're also small and pose no danger to people. Dogs do. Thousands of people get bit every year and need medical attention. That is why dogs cannot be allowed to roam, not because of poop.

I've stepped on dog poop hundreds of times. Never on cat poop.

And sure, some cats can happily be kept indoors but not all can. I have 2 cats and 1 is strictly an indoor cat because I don't want to risk her getting run over but the other just cannot live indoors. He wants to roam so badly that he jumps out of our second storey windows and has learnt to open them also - it's just his personality. He is neutered before anyone says he needs to be. I know exactly where he poops, but if he was using anyone's garden as a toilet, I'd hope the neighbours would come and talk to me about it, and I'd buy appropriate items to keep cats out of gardens for them.

Rescues will often not allow cats to go to households that will keep them indoors only. It depends on the cat.

Have you talked to your neighbours, OP?

And about the chickens, you know that this was your fault, not the cat who was doing something entirely natural. It is unfortunate, but wouldn't have happened had the chicks been safely contained.

The cat next door gets chased by our tiny chihuahua if he comes in our garden.Hed win our dog in a fight but as he knows there's a dog there he leaves well alone.Would getting a dog at some point be an option?

Do you live in the UK? If not, does your shelter/pounds have a high kill rate? That is someone's beloved pet you are carting off to a shelter with no guarantee they will be able to find it/get it back.

My cats wouldn't wear a collar, they would get their legs caught in them, get them caught on branches etc. They were dangerous for them.

You choose to have chicks in an area where there are cats. It is your responsibility to keep them safe. If a cat got in and stole chicks, then it is clearly not secure enough.

Free roaming cats doesn't mean that their owners aren't looking after them properly. It is a pain when they leave a mess, and I am sorry that you were inconvenienced, but you are being very unreasonable.

@BadTattoosAndSmellLikeBooze

You basically said that the OP should seek medical help because these worries must mean she has mental health issues.

No I didn’t.

You are not a doctor, telling people that their legitimate concerns are unfounded is a shitty thing to do.

I said she should MAYBE speak to her GP as she sounded very anxious. And that someone I know was preoccupied with toxo and thought about cats coats being dirty from licking their bums and THEY had OCD. I didn’t say OP had it. I said thinking like that isn’t a ‘normal’ way to think. It’s not.

OPs further posts are quite concerning. But whatever, let’s all pretend it’s normal to think cats are filthy and disgusting and owners are bad for letting them outside when the law says they can.

Lol. Woman has cat shit on the back seat of her car, doesn’t want to touch it because 1) it’s disgusting and 2) she’s pregnant and there is a risk there and is told she she could speak to her GP as this isn’t a normal way to think.

Premium MN. 10/10.

OP get over yourself! Cats are not as domesticated as dogs and still have the independence and instinct to be outside (in a lot of cases) and therefore should not be locked up to suit modern lifestyle. Foxes, badgers, and birds defecate all over the place and there is nothing you can do about it. Cats are no different just because there is an 'owner' doesn't mean that animal should be confined to suit you. It is just part of life, its not a new occurrence seeing as cats have lived with humans in this fashion for thousands of years.

Humans are the worst thing to happen on this earth. Animals follow their natural instincts and behaviours. Shut up and get a life.

Just for clarity. Do the cat owners who allow their cats to roam freely feel that people who have house cats are in some way cruel? I seem to get that impression.

Our neighbour has a cat and he tries to come into our house constantly to the extent I can’t have windows open. He is riddled with fleas poor thing. I hope he isn’t shitting in our garden! Got some good tips to try from this thread. I remember my mum when I was little losing her head one morning, opening the back door and lobbing potatoes down the garden at a cat. Not her finest moment.

cat’s are free to roam - you don’t have to keep them locked up and shouldn’t! Foxes are wild and you have no problem with them

How do you know it wasn’t dog poop? Cats tend to cover theirs up!

You need to get over yourself tbh

Cats actually don’t roam that far and studies have proven they do not need an outdoor life to have a happy life most reputable animal charities/websites recommend it as long as (it’s not been out before) and the cat has access to all areas of the house and has sufficient toys/cat trees ect. outdoor cats live a terribly short life either through getting run down, cat aids, fights, poisoned, becoming stuck ect. If you have a property that allows you to cater for your cat indoors they should not be going outdoors m, it’s is not cruel or necessary

Somuchroom personally I think there needs to be a really good reason to keep cats indoors for life, which could be as simple as the cat having no interest in being outside. I have 1 cat who suffered brain damage at birth, she is easily spooked by anything at all, she is terrified of strangers and even her own tail, she is not allowed to go outside, but we also have cat trees, tunnels, toys, laser toys, mouseys, boxes to keep her life enriched.

@ChardonnaysPetDragon

What about children who play loudly in gardens? Should they be locked up too?

Why?

Do they kill birds and shit in other people's gardens? Because if they did, then yes please, lock them up.

Because they can be annoying. Some people don't want cat poo in their garden, others don't want to hear kids screaming while they are chilling in their own gardens.

I agree I HATE cats. Shitting all over my garden where the children play. Dog owners get vilified for not picking up poo but cats can crap all all over my private garden? I have the sensors and spray water/shout if I see any cats. Hate them.

Lol. Woman has cat shit on the back seat of her car, doesn’t want to touch it because 1) it’s disgusting and 2) she’s pregnant and there is a risk there and is told she she could speak to her GP as this isn’t a normal way to think.

Premium MN. 10/10.

No. OP titled her thread ‘Keep your filthy disgusting cats at home!’ Then talked about toxo when she was aware the poo was there so hardly a risk. Then talked about cats coats being dirty because they licked their bums then licked their coats. I said I know someone who spoke and thought like this and they had anxiety and OCD. Not that OP did. OPs reaction is completely over the top and is very much how a person with OCD about germs thinks. If OP doesn’t need to see he’d GP, great. But her reaction is way out of proportion to what has happened. If you want to pretend it’s normal, go ahead.

I live in a built up city and the cats Still liberally Distribute their shit. Urban living doesn’t confer immunity from cat shit
I have never seen a cat roam free in a built up city. They would last ten seconds before being run over by a car. You either don't live in a built up area, or it's not cat shit that you're seeing.

@Baaaahhhhh

Get a cat OP. It will keep other cats away.

Also RSPB confirms no evidence to suggest cats decimate bird populations. In our garden it's the Covids that do the most damage.

Actually, I think that's a huge part of why this upsets me - I'm in Australia, where the effects of cats on birds and wildlife are very different - cats are a huge driver of extinction in Australia.

Agree OP, people who can't be bothered to clean up after their pets are disgusting.

Mine is in at night. And he doesn't hunt or kill anything

I think there are a lot of cat loving MN's but I hate cats. The bird population is slaughter due to cats killing anything that they can. Vile things. I have one that comes into my garden and I throw things at it. It digs up my seed bed to leave its crap so feel quite justified in lobbing a lump of soil at it. Water works well too - some washing up liquid mixed in and mega blast the little shite

Foxes, badgers, and birds defecate all over the place and there is nothing you can do about it. Cats are no different just because there is an 'owner' doesn't mean that animal should be confined to suit you.

Erm, you seem to be failing to recognise the distinction between a wild animal and a domesticed pet. The former is feral, the latter had been bred to live alongside humans and adopt some basic behaviours that wild animals do not possess. You also seem to think that everyone in the vacinity of a cat that you have elected to take on as a pet should just 'put up with' any adverse events as a result of that decision. It kind of smacks of arrogance and selfishness. I accept that roaming cats and what they get up to is hard to police but the near total refusal by owners to accept that maybe, just maybe their pets actions are not welcome by some members of the community is part of the problem.

I

Yeah and humans don’t cause extinction of heaps of species? We are the ones who destroyed the planet not fucking cats

Actually I think lemon juice concentrate might be a better thing to squirt at cats.