cat defecation problem

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a neglected neighborhood cat has selected a dirt area beside my front porch as its litter box.

i have already cleaned up the area and spread some stuff i bought at petsmart which claims to detract this behavior.

what can i do to stop it?

it was also suggested i spray household cleaner '409' or 'simple green' to make the cat go away. is that a good idea?

― sweatypalms (sweatypalms), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 00:44 (nineteen years ago)

oops, i did not mention that the stuff i bought at petsmart does not appear to be working.

― sweatypalms (sweatypalms), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 00:45 (nineteen years ago)

Get one ScareCrow. Or, fill in the area with 2" dia. rock.

― jaq (jaq), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 00:52 (nineteen years ago)

the scarecrow is quite costly considering that this is not my cat

― sweatypalms (sweatypalms), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 00:54 (nineteen years ago)

Just think of the fun with neighborhood kids at Hallowe'en.

You have to make the area as unattractive as possible to the animal. Contaminating the soil with chemicals will probably not have the intended effect. Medium-sized rock, a pan of water, covering that nice scratchable dirt with heavy plastic or something sticky will probably work as long as the occluding material is left on the dirt.

― jaq (jaq), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 00:58 (nineteen years ago)

IMX the scare devices tend to work on some cats but not others.

You could try putting twigs or bark chips on the dirt patch - cats prefer plain earth for littering. Other ideas are mothballs or orange peel (also, our cats absolutely loathe the citronella candle we have, so citronella oil might work too)

― S1.Carter (S1.C@rter), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 00:59 (nineteen years ago)

we planted cacti in our flowerbed and then covered the soil with rocks. no more neighborhood kitty box.

― Ms Misery (MsMisery), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 01:06 (nineteen years ago)

Poor kitties, hating a candle.

― Abbott (Abbott), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 01:06 (nineteen years ago)

Only the citronella ones that we use to keep insects away in the summer, though!

― S1.Carter (S1.C@rter), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 01:09 (nineteen years ago)

Do you give them moist canned food afterward so they are transported from the lowest of lows to the highest of highs? I always had to use canned food to apologize for vacuuming.

― Abbott (Abbott), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 01:14 (nineteen years ago)

you know they were pretending to hate the vacuum in order to score wet food.

― Ms Misery (MsMisery), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 01:16 (nineteen years ago)

Curse that corps of conniving kitties! Says the Penguin.

― Abbott (Abbott), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 01:17 (nineteen years ago)

totally off topic: looking at that ScareCrow thing I'm left wondering why the hell herons would be a problem. We've been joking that it's their penchant for improvised street theater and prop comedy, but this is probably not the case.

on topic: the SF SPCA suggests:
Push disposable wooden chopsticks or 10-inch plant stakes into
flower beds every eight inches. Prevents digging or
scratching.

Cats dislike the smell of citrus: try putting orange and
lemon peels out; spray the area with citrus-scented sprays;
or sprinkle with orange-scented pet bedding like Citrafresh.
Spray cat repellent (available at pet supply stores) around the
perimeter of your yard and along the top of the fences.

Scatter coffee grounds or pipe tobacco in the area.

Try growing the herb rueï¿½cats dislike the smell. You may also be
able to buy it dried in health food stores.

Soak strips of old towels or rags with old perfume and hang them
near target plants.

― patita (patita), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 01:18 (nineteen years ago)

Herons eat your expensive pretty fishes from your pond, with relish.

― jaq (jaq), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 01:24 (nineteen years ago)

Next time he does it, rub your nose in it (or something).

― StanM (StanM), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 02:14 (nineteen years ago)

This is what BB guns were made for.

― The PEW Research Center for Panty-Twisting (Rock Hardy), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 02:32 (nineteen years ago)

rueï¿½
this is from another planet, right? cats totally hate space

― impermanent rrrobyn (rrrobyn), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 02:39 (nineteen years ago)

At one of my landscaping jobs the household cats use the rose bed as a litter box. If I fish ALL the turds out and sprinkle Shotgun repellent every week it seems to work. L'il fuckers.
Another thing they're fond of doing is leaving partial rodent corpses and/or artful arrangements of purplish intestines in the flowerbeds. Mmm.

― Beth Parker (Beth Parker), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 02:56 (nineteen years ago)

I would also recommend calling the ASPCA or local animal authorities to come look for the poor cat and take it in. They might not do much but if it is in your neighborhood this regularly, they might be able to catch and spay/neuter it.

― Allyzay heard you got beat up in a club. (Allyzay Eisenschefter), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 05:24 (nineteen years ago)

IMX the scare devices tend to work on some cats but not others

that is not true of this one:

http://www.conceptresearch.co.uk/cats_1.htm

― MarkH (MarkH), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 10:14 (nineteen years ago)

Drop anvil &/or grand piano on area as needed.

― M.V. (M.V.), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 15:32 (nineteen years ago)

Lock thread!

― Beth Parker (Beth Parker), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 16:04 (nineteen years ago)

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