neighbor suddenly dislikes my cats

We have had Tom and Lucky for about over a year now and they are both indoor/outdoor cats. We only let them out when we are home and try to keep an eye on them best we can. My neighbor has never seemed to have any sort of problem with them until this last month she has been spraying them with her hose when they come in her yard (lest they catch one of "her" birds, which we have told her serveral times that birds are plenty safe in those trees which you would plenty well know if you had ever seen one of our grace-less ones dangling from the branches) and has made remarks to my husband how they poop in her yard and "tear stuff up." What they are tearing up I do not know. She has never said anything to me about any of this and it is only lately that she has seemed to have these issues with my cats. I don't know what bug has crawled its way up her rear but I am getting a little sick of it. We have dogs (like pitt bulls and such) that visit our yard on a regular basis and we don't freak out about poo in our yard. I am trying to think of a civil way to approach her on this but well, I admit there is very little of me left that is civil. I know they use the other neighbors yard as a litter box (I think all the cats here do) but have never ever seen them go in her yard. I would like to ask her exactly what she would like me to do about it. I don't really care if she sprays them since it is her yard and if she doesn't want them over there I can respect that (but I know the real reason is she is worried about those stinking birds) but water doesn't really bother them so it is a pretty useless tactic. We are planning on moving anyways (I am not impressed with this neighborhood) so if she can just keep her panties out her @($# for a while she won't even have to deal with it for much longer. Got any advice?

Sorry to advice. I would keep my kitties inside. It could move up from spraying, and she would be within her right to call animal control for them being on her property. Morally right, no but legally. I would also be more worried about the stray dogs running around..

Hmm. Why should her kitties not have the life that they are used to and be cooped up inside?!? I say go and talk to this old bag (albeit gently) and say that she never seemed to have a problem with them in the past, and that you are thinking about moving anyways. Maybe you could get some of those alarmy things that she could have in her garden that could deter your cats from going in there. Or call a meeting with all your little ones and tell them in no uncertain terms what a witch she is!!

Before you go next door and start creating havoc (!!) you do need to remember that not everyone in the world loves cats as much as we all do - and having cats in your yard that do not belong to you could be considered justifiably annoying. Perhaps the things she is accusing them of are not true, but it is in your interest as a good neighbour to try to work things out with her calmly and maturely. In Australia it is illegal for cats to be out at night so that could be a start - perhaps compromise with her and say you will keep them in at night. As a responsible pet owner you also have a responsibility to the neighbourhood where you live not to let your cats become menaces.

Having said that, I'm absolutely sure they're not menaces, but they do belong to you and ultimately what they do and where they go are your responsibility. Legally she has every right to say she does not want them on her property although it may seem unreasonable to you. And as Katie (ScamperFarms) pointed out earlier, this could escalate to more than just water spraying if you two don't sort it out amicably sooner rather than later.

I know you are defensive over your kitties and we all would be, but just imagine if animals that you did not like or were not welcome were helping themselves to your backyard - you probably wouldn't be happy about it either, so you need to try to see both points of view. Not always easy but ultimately the best way to handle things if you want to keep it all civilised!

Good luck

Originally Posted by foxyfantastica

Hmm. Why should her kitties not have the life that they are used to and be cooped up inside?!? I say go and talk to this old bag (albeit gently) and say that she never seemed to have a problem with them in the past, and that you are thinking about moving anyways. Maybe you could get some of those alarmy things that she could have in her garden that could deter your cats from going in there. Or call a meeting with all your little ones and tell them in no uncertain terms what a witch she is!!

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Because the cats would be much safer inside. Keep the cats inside, and you won't have any problems with neighbors.

Not forgetting that their at risk of being run over if theres cars around in the area

Sorry, I have to side with the folks recommending keeping your cats indoors. It's for their own well being.
As for your grumpy neighbor, she has every right to demand that your cats not intrude on her property. She probably enjoys the birds coming to her yard. With cats around, the birds will stay away out of instinct.
I live out in the country and my neighbors are far away, so I don't have many problems with other folks' pets, but I can tell you I wouldn't appreciate daily/nightly visists to my yard by other cats/dogs/etc. I already have a possum knocking my trash can over every night!

You could always buy her some of that lion dung product, it's supposed to put cats off from visiting gardens! Is she sure that it's your cats that are digging things up? Sounds more like a dog thing to me. As for poop, if she has seen your cats doing it, then by all means she has a right to moan, but from your descriptions it could be any number of animals who are responsible. If you were to keep your cats in for a week, and she were still moaning about it, at least you could say to her that it couldn't have been your cats. I sympathise, arguing with neighbours is miserable and often escalates. I hope things improve for you soon.

Sue

There's a cat that belongs to someone a few houses over that goes into my parent's backyard, and I can see how for some people it's annoying-- their terrier goes CRAZY inside and its very loud and irritating. My neighbor has two shelter cats that are indoor/outdoor and one scratches the hell out of my fence, and she does nothing about it. Anyway, the point of all this is that even though the reasons may seem silly to you, to her they're valid.
I'll assume you keep the cats indoor/outdoor for a reason....perhaps try letting them outdoors less though, and they'll be less likely to stray as far?

I'm sorry - i know that this is a divide between Cat lovers, but i feel that its more natural for a cat to be able to live in and out as they please. Sure there are risks but you should see the palavar if i try and keep mine in! He sulks and scratches and tears everything. But its in their nature to explore and hunt, and while i think you should be careful of your neighbours (i am, and i have a very good relationship with them, even the one who hates cats will acknowledge Theo, but this was achieved through talking to them about him and they were fine) Sorry, i may have been a little too jokey about it earlier, its obviously a huge problem for you. And by the way if my neighbour came to me and there was a problem i would try and get round it in the best possible way - i think the lion dung is a brilliant idea - at least then she gets free fertiliser for her garden as well!!

I love cats as much as anybody, but I had a neighbour with an indoor/outdoor cat that constantly came into my yard, dug around my roses and used the bathroom in my garden. I did not appreciate it at all.

I had an indoor only cat that certainly didn't use her garden for a bathroom and I didn't like her cat running loose on my property.

I also don't want to be handling her cat's feces when I'm doing MY gardening so I can understand how your neighbour feels.

If you must have your cat outdoors why not put a harness of him/her and a lead. That's what we do with Bijou and Mika and they are only outside under supervision, i.e., we don't just tie them up and leave them.

No offense, but I would be pretty grossed out if my neighbor's cat pooped all over my yard. Most subdivisions neighborhoods, etc have rules regarding to picking up dog poop outside of your yard, so why should cats be the exception? Around where I live most neighborhood rules that cats are suppose to be on a leash when going outside.

If you would like to keep your cats part outdoors, try placing them on a leash. Then they're still in your yard, but they have the wonderful outdoor world to keep enjoying.
Also should you decide to talk to your neighbor, I would not mention about you moving (unless you already have the sign up). Reason i say this is that if she doesn't care for your cats now, how will telling her that you're moving help anything? She may care even less because she knows that you won't be her neighbor soon. Quite possibly she could get nasty and call animal control a couple of days before your move.

I would just try your best to keep them out of her yard.

I have to agree with everyone else here! It is HER yard, why should she have to put up with YOUR cats?

Originally Posted by foxyfantastica

I'm sorry - i know that this is a divide between Cat lovers, but i feel that its more natural for a cat to be able to live in and out as they please. Sure there are risks but you should see the palavar if i try and keep mine in! He sulks and scratches and tears everything. But its in their nature to explore and hunt, and while i think you should be careful of your neighbours (i am, and i have a very good relationship with them, even the one who hates cats will acknowledge Theo, but this was achieved through talking to them about him and they were fine) Sorry, i may have been a little too jokey about it earlier, its obviously a huge problem for you. And by the way if my neighbour came to me and there was a problem i would try and get round it in the best possible way - i think the lion dung is a brilliant idea - at least then she gets free fertiliser for her garden as well!!

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Sorry. The days when cats could live in and out as he pleases are long gone. There are dogs, cars, poisons and mean people who love to hurt animals out there.
Keeping cats inside is the safest for them.

I don't know why she SHOULD have to put up with my cats, all I know is that she thought the cats were just fine up until the last two weeks. I had never heard a peep from her about them up until then. And like I said earlier, I have never seen them poop in her yard. They have a huge sandbox in OUR yard that they use as a litter box. They do poop in the OTHER neighbors flower bed but only because it has long since turned into a big dirt bed from neglect. Anyways I was hoping for some advice on how to deal with the neighbor and how to deter my cats from her yard. But no, I am not keeping them locked up and thank you foxyfantastica for understanding that.

oh, and thank you sue for the lion dung suggestion. I may try that. Anyways, I just have a feeling this has more to do with her thinking that wild birds actually belong to her.

My sister was in a similar situation, and speaking somewhat from experience, I would keep my cats indoors if I were you.
You may not like this idea, but it's for the safety of your cats.

My sisters neighbours didn't have a problem with her indoor/outdoor cats either, but then all of a sudden they started hating it. The woman said that the cats pooped in her yard, dug up her flowers which is the reason she doesn't have any(that was a lie, she just never watered the flowers so they died)....My sister tried talking to her about it, nicely, but after that talk it just became worse. The family threatened to poison the cats. Then they started throwing rocks at them. In the meantime one of my sisters cats got sick and died. ...They would lay off the whole thing for about two weeks, and then one day while my sister and her bf were at work, the neighbour cought Oliver(sisters other cat) put him in his car and drove away. 4 other neighbours saw this, tried talking to the man, but couldn't do anything about it.(the man was violent and what not). When my sister got home and heard what happened called the police but they didn't do anything....anyways to cut the story short...Oliver returned 2 months later. We have no idea where the cat has been but he was skin and bones. After that he was only allowed on a leash outside in the backyard....

I am not saying that something like this will happen to you as well, but there are crazy people out there, and you never know what they might do. So if you want to move anyways, then keep your cats inside perhaps. I know it's hard but it's better to be safe than sorry.

As I said before, if you want to let the kitties out, try the leash idea. It's the safest and the best of both worlds for the kitties. Bijou and Mika are certainly not deprived cats in any way and this way we all feel happier and safer.

Your neighbour has a right to not want your cats in her yard and she also has the right to want to feed wild birds if she likes birds, so it's more of a matter of respecting each other's rights than whether your cats should be allowed in her yard. You each have rights but it would be nice to accommodate both of you to a mutual satisfaction.

We had a neighbor that got like that all of a sudden. Mostly it was related to her mental state. She insisted that it was our cats and no one elses cats - or deer, dogs, racoons, opposum, etc that did the deed in her yard. We had to start limiting their time outside to just about none - and then only with strict supervision. Toward the end of our stay in that house - they had accidently set two fires in 1 month. Thank goodness my job moved me!

I know how hard it is to "eat crow", but maybe you could bake some treat & take it over with your neighbor with an apology about your cats' behavior. Some goodwill can go a LONG way in making it safer for your cats. I've put out outside litter boxes for my cats when I was near neighbors, and they usu. use that most. If she sees the litter boxes outside, she may be less likely to accuse your cats.
As for the birdfeeders, my cats know not to hunt the birdfeeders in our yard. I warn my cats verbally, and then lean a broom against the tree with the feeders - I've never struck them with the broom, they just instinctively know to leave the birds alone. You could also try complimenting your neighbor on her efforts to help the birds, agree that chirping birds are so wonderful to have around, express sentiment about some of the other dangers that threaten birds today, such as poisonings by pesticides & loss of habitat.
I know that sounds like "brown-nosing" to some people, but like I said before, a little good-will can go a long way.
I am really concerned that you have those dangerous, loose dogs in your area. Any hope of a fence to help keep them from your cats? Or maybe an "invisible fence"?

That's exactly what we have been doing Talon. They get less time outside now and we try to keep a better eye on them. Honestly I have never seen them doing bad things in her yard. The only thing I can think of is they snagged two birds from her yard and that is only because those birds bounced themselves off her window. I let my cats have those birds simply because they were too hurt to recover and I didn't want them to suffer. I mean they had busted themselves right open, it was gross. (but no eating, I wouldn't want some bird giving my cat worms) Tom did catch a young robin once and I shooed him off it and it flew right off, no harm done. This woman has had pet cats in the past I believe so I don't see her doing them any harm, she just isn't that type. What makes me wonder is why all of a sudden and why does she think they are damaging her yard, because honestly I keep a pretty good eye on them and I have never seen them poop in her yard. They don't even poop in our garden or flower bed (they save that for my son's sandbox). Also our dog once chewed up the styrofoam cover for our hot tub and got styrofoam EVERYWHERE including her yard and I was apologizing for it and she said it was okay, it's what dogs do. Well, chasing birds is what cats do. Why be understanding for one animals "bad" behavior and intolerant of anothers?