Need Advice: Cats Have Taken Over Our Yard!

whateve

whateve

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May 10, 2010
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#1
There are several cats that seem to have moved into our backyard. I don't know if they are strays or owned by the neighbors. There are a lot of cats in our neighborhood.

They've invaded my cat's territory. He is shy and won't defend himself. He spends his days inside but he goes out at night. We live in California so the weather is mild. He has a little bed on our porch. This morning when I let him in one of these other cats was in his bed! It makes me so mad to think he didn't get to sleep in his own bed.

What can I do?
 
#2
Poor guy!

I used to have trouble with stray cats going to the bathroom in my garden until I adopted a dog. I live in California too and have heard some people around my area have had luck using coyote urine around their backyard to get rid of gophers, so I'd assume it would work with cats. I don't know if either of those are an option without stressing your guy out too much.
 
#3
Why not ask around and see if the cats belong to anyone in the neighborhood? If they are feral contact the Feral Cat Coalition and they will trap spay/neuter them so that they won't reproduce.
Or you could take the poor things in . That is how I came by all 6 of mine.
 
#4
poopsie2 said:
Why not ask around and see if the cats belong to anyone in the neighborhood? If they are feral contact the Feral Cat Coalition and they will trap spay/neuter them so that they won't reproduce.
Or you could take the poor things in . That is how I came by all 6 of mine.
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Oh, DH would freak if I took them in! He isn't a cat lover.
 
#5
Poth said:
Poor guy!

I used to have trouble with stray cats going to the bathroom in my garden until I adopted a dog. I live in California too and have heard some people around my area have had luck using coyote urine around their backyard to get rid of gophers, so I'd assume it would work with cats. I don't know if either of those are an option without stressing your guy out too much.
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My dog died a couple of years ago. He kept some of the cats away during the day, but at night, he slept in the house. We have a storage shed in the backyard. Sometimes a cat would sit on top of the shed, driving our dog crazy because he couldn't reach them.

I'll look into the coyote urine. Thanks for the suggestion. I might be able to put it in the back of my yard where I think these cats come in. My cat mainly stays near the house or in the side yard.
 
#7
I have read that just gallon jugs full of water (not sure what kind) have kept cats away. Maybe look on a gardening forum for what they do? My backyard neighbor used to trap cats because he HATED them and didn't want them pooping in his garden. Caught my cat twice growing up.
 
#8
buzzytoes said:
I have read that just gallon jugs full of water (not sure what kind) have kept cats away. Maybe look on a gardening forum for what they do? My backyard neighbor used to trap cats because he HATED them and didn't want them pooping in his garden. Caught my cat twice growing up.
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Thanks!
Hmm, that's interesting. I found some references to it but no one knows why it works. That makes me want to try it.

I found one forum where you put foil inside the jugs with the water and the reflections scare away the cats. I don't know how well that will work at night.

That's terrible that your neighbor caught your cat. We had a neighbor threaten to shoot our dog if he found it on his property. We lived in the country at the time and didn't keep our dog tied up. Once we got him fixed, he stayed on our land.

It would be a lot easier if I didn't have to worry about scaring away my own kitty!
 
#9
If they are feral or homeless, please have compassion and feed them until you can get the Local SPCA or other folks out there to catch them. That will also make it easier to catch them......have ended up with my three cats because they were hungry strays, but I totally understand your DH not caring for cats...
 
#10
I used to have a cat wander into my fenced-in back yard just about every day. It looked like a Russian Blue. I don't think it was a stray because it was so fat its face didn't look normal.
He probably chose my yard to chill out and relax because I'm the only person in my neighborhood who doesn't have a dog.
I didn't bother him because I figured the more wandering he did, the more exercise he got!
Now all I have are rabbits!
 
#11
DiamondGirl1 said:
If they are feral or homeless, please have compassion and feed them until you can get the Local SPCA or other folks out there to catch them. That will also make it easier to catch them......have ended up with my three cats because they were hungry strays, but I totally understand your DH not caring for cats...
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I doubt they are strays because they look pretty fat. But people in our area don't always take the best care of their pets. The SPCA around here has a neuter and release program so I don't think there is any way they will ever get put up for adoption. And I don't want to end up taking away someone's pet.
dooneybaby said:
I used to have a cat wander into my fenced-in back yard just about every day. It looked like a Russian Blue. I don't think it was a stray because it was so fat its face didn't look normal.
He probably chose my yard to chill out and relax because I'm the only person in my neighborhood who doesn't have a dog.
I didn't bother him because I figured the more wandering he did, the more exercise he got!
Now all I have are rabbits!
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I'm sure that one of the reasons they are here is because I don't have a dog.

I miss my bunny. He didn't like my cat but he loved my dog.
 
#12
Good news! Today my little guy was back in his bed and the other cats were nowhere to be found! Maybe the rain we've been having has kept them away.
 
#13
whateve said:
Good news! Today my little guy was back in his bed and the other cats were nowhere to be found! Maybe the rain we've been having has kept them away.
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I'm glad your kitty has his bed back. This is off topic but I hope you don't mind a suggestion. Cats like to go out at night but that's also when the coyotes are most likely to be hunting for a tasty cat to eat.
I hope your kitty doesn't fall prey to them.
 
#14
sdkitty said:
I'm glad your kitty has his bed back. This is off topic but I hope you don't mind a suggestion. Cats like to go out at night but that's also when the coyotes are most likely to be hunting for a tasty cat to eat.
I hope your kitty doesn't fall prey to them.
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Thanks for the suggestion. There aren't any coyotes around here. I'm not sure if that is because the area is suburban or because the ranchers and farmers nearby have gotten rid of them. We had coyotes when we lived in the country about 100 miles to the south.

My cat is neutered and never leaves our yard even though he was a feral rescue.
 
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