Cats messing up my garden

[MTtrout]

So I have this cat (or cats) using my raised beds as it own liter boxes. The problem is I’ve never seen it, so it must be coming in at night. Im done with digging up copious amount of their crap when prepping the beds in the spring. I spend all weekend planting seeds only to find out that the bastard has payed me a visit and tuned up patches of my freshly seeded garden. I’ve spend a lot of money on lumber, soil, and building deer proof fences so not too keen on the cat situation. I’ve just dealt with it in the years past and ready to take action.

I know I’m not the only one with this issue. Has anyone had any actual success with non-lethal methods for deterring cats from their garden? Lots of methods on the internet but guessing most are not effective. I live in an area where I don’t think it’s a feral cat so before I trap someone’s pet and remove the situation for good, I’d like to hear if there’s other option to try first.

Thanks

 

[GSPHUNTER]

Shoot em

 

[Rich M]

Nonlethal means havahart trap and can of tuna.

Lethal means no more cat crap in your garden. Set a game camera out and get some pics. See who the culprit is and what time you need to be up.

We feed the strays until i step in cat poo. Then they can starve til i cave again, repeat. I live in the city. Otherwise I’d flat out shoot any cat without a collar. Just easier that way.

I dont have pets i dont care for and feed the stray cats and birds. The folks who toss kittens out the car windows and drive away are the bad guys.

 

[johnsd16]

Cage traps and scuba lessons at the nearest local bridge. Seriously though, cage trap, and take to the local shelter. Catch the same cat two or three times after that and it's time to say goodbye. We had the same problem with our kids sandbox. Kid playing and digs into fresh cat crap with bare hands. My tolerance for that is zero. Some say put a lid on your sandbox, or in your case fence the cats out. Those things are on my (your) property, it's the cat owners job to keep their cat out, not the other way around. Way too many cats out there.

 

[Fordguy]

I saw some electrified tape the other day that was made specifically as a small animal deterrent. I'd put a camera on it so I could see the cat get shocked.

 

[Jbxl20]

I do wildlife control and hate dealing with cats that constantly get in traps. Cats are smart and When the they are in the cage traps, a”gentle”shake of the cage is usually enough for the cats to not want to come back.

-Cat scat mats, Plastic spike mats
-Coyote urine- re-applied every few days
-Best way is to make a light chicken wire fence that can be removed easily or have a door to get into the garden, because the cats are probably not the only thing that wants in your garden.

 

[xsn10s]

I thought I saw some motion activated sprinklers for deer. Cats hate water so they probably wouldn't come back after a couple of times getting wet.
Found some on amazon.

 

[Jbxl20]

I saw some electrified tape the other day that was made specifically as a small animal deterrent. I'd put a camera on it so I could see the cat get shocked.

Bird-Shock® Flex-Track® – Bird Barrier

birdbarrier.com

Saw a demo on this stuff at a wildlife convention. They also make a shock rope that can be strung through trees to deter birds, squirrels, etc.

 

[Billy Goat]

 

[MTtrout]

So I have a small gap (6 inches) under one of the doors that I didn’t bother with because deer couldn’t get through it. Will work on that. Just was sure how much effort cats put into climbing. The bottom 5 foot is that 1x3 inch fencing with wire strands above that.

I like the idea of trapping (gentle shake) and head to the pound with them, if collared-one free pass I guess. If no collar, then different story. I have little kids that work the garden too so cat must go.

 

[FLATHEAD]

I've had a couple show up at my place recently.
Seems they like the fresh dirt of my backstop I'm
building for my shooting range.
They've also found good hunting, chasing the rabbits,
squirrels, and hanging around the bird feeder.
The pellet rifle is coming in handy.
Dont know if I've hit anything as they're out there
at 50 yards or so. They definitely becoming more skittish
from the pellets whizzing by.

 

[Gutshot007]

They're not bad eatin ya know. The cat, not the turds.

 

[*zap*]

conibears will solve the problem if you can figure out how/where to set them. 220's or 110's should work.

corpses become fertilizer or chinese take out.... save $ win/win.

 

[Dmann]

I thought I saw some motion activated sprinklers for deer. Cats hate water so they probably wouldn't come back after a couple of times getting wet.
Found some on amazon.

This should do the trick.

 

[Marble]

Ii have caught them in my fishing net and in a trap. I just drive them 4 miles away across a river and let them go.

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

 

[GARLICSALT]

Just like grandma use to do, sprinkle black pepper in your garden.

 

[flatlanderhuffandpuff]

If you can get one in a have a heart and just spray it with a hose a few times you'll probably get your message across.

You want to be careful with killing a pet. a local guy shot one that kept bothering something on his property and they arrested the guy. Also, there might be a little girl who has to wonder why snowball didn't come home.

 

[Btaylor]

If you can get one in a have a heart and just spray it with a hose a few times you'll probably get your message across.

You want to be careful with killing a pet. a local guy shot one that kept bothering something on his property and they arrested the guy. Also, there might be a little girl who has to wonder why snowball didn't come home.

Dont turn snowball out to run free around the neighborhood and you wont have to wonder if it's coming home.

 

[Pacific_Fork]

I’ve had good luck trapping in the have a heart using any kind of fish as bait. Just don’t do what I did and move them 5 miles away because they come right back, I should have shot it instead. Outdoor cats are the worst, their feces carry nasty disease and parasites. Fun things for the gardens where you eat from.

 

[ben h]

The best cat deterent I've ever seen is a Drahthaar. Those things are hell on any furry animals; great bird dogs too. One encounter with one and it will either be dead, or will never come back.

A few years ago my friend had his dogs over at his girlfriends house and they caught her cat and played tug of war with it. I never would have guessed a house cat could get 5' long. He did the right thing and didn't tell her and threw it in my garbage.