Does anyone out there want two stuffed cats? Or how about a nice cat stew? They are adorable but I am so damned frustrated right now I could happily skin the two of them. They have decided that one of my flowerbeds is their bed and another is their bathroom. Those products that are supposed to keep cats away from flowerbeds or wherever else you want to use it to keep cats away do not work. The cats sniff the stuff like it was catnip and then go on and do whatever they had in mind before they came across the fascinating smell.
And yes I have heard that “responsible cat owners keep their cats indoors.” Don’t even start. They like being outside. It’s natural for cats to be outside. I had one cat that lived 15 years as an indoor-outdoor cat and now have one that is over 10 years old that has always spent most of the time outside because she’s paranoid-neurotic-psychotic or something like that and tends to freak out easily when she’s inside the house. Except in the winter. It’s amazing how well-behaved cats can be when it’s freezing outside.
Anyway… I wish this came in giant rolls and was reasonably priced. I sort of have my doubts that it would work. Cats pretty much do whatever they want to do. They always find a way around whatever we humans do. And around here if it wasn’t my cats it would be strays, which we have to run off once in a while.
When I win the Powerball jackpot I’m going to install motion activated sprinklers in all my flower beds even though I am sure they would soon find a way around that too.
May 27th, 2009 - 3:05 pm
A couple suggestions:
if you, or someone in your household, has loads of time on your hands, you could watch the flowerbeds with a can full of pennies in your hand and shake it whenever the cat approaches. Apparently cats are very averse to that sound. Or spray them with water.
you could also try hanging up strips of aluminum foil or getting some of those foil-colored (sparkly) pinwheels at a store and sticking them in the ground, the shininess and movement might scare the cats off (or it might not; I think my mom had SOME success with it for keeping rabbits out of a garden).
Lemon or orange peels? Supposedly cats hate the smell of citrus.
May 27th, 2009 - 8:12 pm
Fillyjonk, citrus repellants work better with dogs, IIRC.
Lynn, I think you have the right idea with the cat-scat mats, but how about just normal plastic garden netting, tented up over the bed? Should be cheaper and comes on a roll.
May 27th, 2009 - 8:27 pm
I’ve actually been thinking about putting down chicken wire on the ground between the plants, an idea I saw on Gardening By the Yard. It seems like such a bother but I might try it in the “bathroom” flower bed.
May 28th, 2009 - 4:26 am
You could borrow Zoe and put her in the flowerbed. She’d keep the cats away. Only problem is, she is far better at digging than either of the cats or even both of them put together.
Don’t need a motion activated sprinkler… just a normal one. Have the valve for it far enough away that the cats can’t see you, and turn it on if they get into the flowerbed.
Lastly… a motion activated sprinkler wouldn’t be horribly expensive to set up. Motion detector… valve… relay… maybe $50?
May 28th, 2009 - 6:20 am
I’ve checked the price in a couple of catalogs. I haven’t looked to see if they have them at Wal-mart or Atwoods. They cost about $70 and I’d need at least two of them and I’d have to have garden hoses running across the yard all the time unless we installed underground water lines. That would be the expensive part.
May 28th, 2009 - 7:38 am
I wonder if one of those motion-detected “burglar alarms” that feature an audio tape of a large dog barking would be cheaper? (and if it would work, or if the cats would soon learn, “Hey, there’s no ACTUAL dog”)