explain the behaviour...

[japam]

last weekend i was in the garden, cutting the grass and putting some deterrent near the shed to stop next door neighbours cats, using that area as a toilet, a colony of 5, as soon one of the cats saw me on the porch, she raced over to the end of garden, where i would
put deterrent [garlic water] and sat there, kneeding.

Days later i put some clothes on the clothes line, and this said cat, attempted to scratch the blanket on the line. A practice in which it has never done before on any clothes i have put on the washing line.

Is this action a result of the deterrent moving the cat from the accustomed spot, or simply trying to scent mark.

 

[Micaela227]

Cats are very territorial! If those cats decided your garden is part of their territory, it would be very hard or even impossible to stop them to wander in.
They pee in certain places to mark them and let other cats know that certain place "belongs" to them. As for the scratching, they may be upset because they interpreted the new smell as other cat's pee? Or maybe the blanket was moving in the wind and they were just playing?
If they aren't your cats, maybe talk with your neighbors so they can install a litter box, or maybe more depending in how many cats they have.

 

[di and bob]

Kneading is a sign of contentment, she wanted to be closer to you. The blanket may have been too tempting and she wanted to claim it as her own. It may have been long enough to be within her reach. It sounds to me like she likes you and is trying to get your attention. If the garlic deterred her, she may be a bit confused and cats hate change, so she is trying to understand what happened. I'm so happy you are trying to understand what is going on, rather than trying harsher means to deal with a neighbor's insensitivity to your problem. I hope these cats are neutered so they don't overpopulate and become more of a problem. they do have their good side, keeping the rodent population down, I would much rather have cats then rodents who destroy a lot more. When you gain a cat's love you gain a loyal, loving friend.

 

[Whenallhellbreakslose]

I have seen crazy outdoor kitties in which I couldn't make sense out of. I do have to tell you that garlic is toxic to cats. Maybe you should switch to something circus-like. Cats hate citrus smells, citrus has been used successfully as a deterrent.

This cat's behavior could be territorial or it could be the cat is playing. Someone already mentioned that cats don't like change and this might be the cat's reaction to change. I can only say, that I have seen plenty of odd behavior in outdoor cats. Some things I had to sum it up to the cat just having odd or quirky habits. I had a couple indoor cats who had equally weird habits that I couldn't make sense out of.

Hope this helps. I understand you want to keep your garden cat free. Thank you for coming here with your question and trying to understand this cat's behavior. Feel free to ask more questions. This is a wonderful forum with good people who care for cats. All are welcome here.