cats using garden as litter box

I have a problem I have not been able to figure out, though I've tried all the usual answers. First of all, I like cats and have no desire to harm these but I need a solution. I have a nicely landscaped front yard garden with many perenniels and roses. My neighbor has 5 cats, one un-neutered adult male, an un-spayed partially-blind female stray (read: no shots), another stray male that attacks all other cats, and two kittens ...one of each sex. She intends to spay the female kitten to keep it from having kittens but that is all. The males spray my lawn furniture, car, garbagecans, and front door. They all dig in my garden and use it as a litter box. The area by my front door reeks. I have small children that sometimes play in the garden and yard and I don't want them coming in contact with cat poop and urine, particularly as none of these cats (except one) have had shots. I have tried red pepper, Reppers cat repellent granules, sticking plasic forks in the ground (tines up), dog hair, and the hose. I don't want to use moth balls because of my children. The neighbor doesn't believe in having cats fixed and does not let them in her house. I even took my big dog on a leash out into the front yard hoping he would scare the kittens and make them avoid my yard but they just hissed at him and came back as soon as he was gone. I am out of ideas....HELP!!!

There are motion detectors you can put on your hose....whenever an animal goes by it is squirted. Also, you can buy bobcat urine....this is supposed to keep cats (and other animals) away. It is sterilized, thus it is safe to spray in your yard.

There is some kind of spray at Wal-Mart. Its for keeping animals out of areas. If there is no store like Wal-mart in your area. Try feed stores.It works because a lady that I know used it at her Bed & Breakfast to keep her goat from pooping on the side walk. And when all else fails. Check out the Vet supply books Like Foster & Smith. I saw it at Wal-Mart

I really sympathize with you, and I despise irresponsible pet owners.
Perhaps this might work , you can buy some pet repellent from a vetenary clinic, the other thing cats hate, is citrus watered in to the garden , alternatively grow some mint near her yard ,and one more thing you could try, fill some clear plastic bottles with water and place in your garden , the glare from the sun on the water will keep the kitties away.
Best of luck

Tish

Can you let your dog run free in your yard? This would be the best solution, even if you have to invest in fencing. There's often disputes in my neighbourhood about cats making free with everyone else's gardens, which they will do, it is the nature of cats. The people with dogs on the loose in their yards have no trouble.
Hard to believe the irresponsible attitude of your neighbours re desexing. Our council here (Toowoomba) has recently introduced compulsory cat registration. It's not meant to limit the number of cats/household but the registration fee for desexed cats is miniscule compared with that for entires. Tell you what, it's a sure-fire way to get people to neuter.

my neighbor uses a spray bottle they run

On another board I belong to they are having this same discussion. The person asking is a cat lover and she wants to just take the cats in (there are 3 males) and have them neutered without the neighbor's knowledge. In the meantime, here are some suggestions other members have come up with:


blood meal fertilizer
* cocoa hulls
* toothpicks
* plastic forks
* coffee grounds (highly recommended)
* black pepper
* aluminum foil
* cinnamon
* bramble cuttings
* heavy bark mulch
* chicken wire
* gutter covers
* rose bush cuttings
* hawthorn cuttings
* crushed rock
* donate catnip into your neighbor's yards
* citrus peels
* cedar compost
* river rocks over the exposed soil
* garlic
* stone mulch
* carpet tack strips
* squirt gun with water
* six-inch bamboo skewers (pointy side up)
* short twigs throughout the planted area about 6" apart
* thorny berry, lilac, hawthorn, clippings
* holly leaves
* Rue
* Essential Oils of Orange, Lemon, Lime, Citrus, lemon grass, citronella, mustard
* pinecones
* lavender
* keep your area damp, they like dry soil
* Carefresh - "recycled" wood pulp
* loud sudden noises
* spray on your leaves (not the cat): fill a spray bottle with 1/2 t chili powder, 1/2 t cayenne pepper, 1 t dishsoap and water
* motion sensor sprinklers (highly recommended)
Motion Sensor Sprinkler
* water bottle on "light stream" do not spray a direct stream into their eyes, this can cause serious damage and is cruel.
*** chili powder, red crushed pepper, cayenne pepper (not recommended), it gets on the cat's paws then they wash themselves and they get it in their eyes, beware cats have literally scratched their eyes out because of this
*** moth balls (not recommended), avoid these in your garden because they are highly toxic unless you hang them above the ground
* jam jars or clear plastic bottles half full of water left at intervals in the flower beds. Put lid on and place in the middle of the lawn. If you have a big lawn then put a few about. Leave out and see if it works! Cats are suppose to be scared away by the bottle, but how you ask? It works best at night and if there a breeze. Take a light say from a street lamp, car or one of your windows. This light travels through the bottle and the water which is then reflected away like laser beams in different directions giving off little flashes. The cat sees these flashes and Zap! He's away. There you have it so go out and try it out on your lawn.
*** Consider what will be safe and won't prevent even you from doing garden work if you bend down on your knees, etc.