Help! Cat Hating Creeps Next Door Have Sprayed Dangerous Chemical Advice Needed

[4theloveofcats]

I am so frantic with worry over the feral cat colony in my neighborhood. I just found out the source of a disgusting sickly sweet smell next door.

A neighbor who I know HATES cats sprayed cutter bug spray on my property line and all over their backyard.

Their grass looks soaking wet from the amount sprayed.

I tried to act calm and asked them if they used the organic version. (which is SAFE for cats)

They smirked and said no because the organic was 42 cents more, so why spend that money.
(They have money so they were just being flippant)

I have several young TNRd cats who will passing around this area. I see that the data sheet for Cutter shows it to have Pyrethrins (a class of drugs derived from the Chrysanthemum flower/plant) it is HORRIBLY toxic to cats and causes awful deaths unless there is pricey intervention.

What can I do?
Would taking a hose directing my sprinkler help things by diluting it?
Half of it is in a shady area so I know its not dry.

Help!

 

[Jcatbird]

Hey. I am going to PM you. A message should come through.

 

[msaimee]

I don't know that I have any helpful advice regarding your neighbors, but I can say that my next door neighbor has had her lawn treated with weed killers and other harmful chemicals, and I've had an exterminator spray my property many times because of multiple wasp nests. None of my cats have ever gotten sick. My guess is that unless they ingest a wet blade of grass contai long the chemicals, they will be ok. Feral cats are very smart. They know not to eat toxic plants or flowers (unlike my indoor cats, who repeatedly get into my plants and vomit). They know when something doesn't smell right, and to avoid it. I wouldn't spray their lawn. First of all, it is their property and they have a right to chemically treat their lawn. You don't want to start a major conflict with them when you are the one in a vulnerable position with your cats. Second, re moistening the chemicals on the grass does not sound like a good idea to me. Hopefully the chemicals are all dried by now. My best piece of advice is to try not to worry too much or have a knee jerk reaction to your neighbors.

 

[4theloveofcats]

I don't know that I have any helpful advice regarding your neighbors, but I can say that my next door neighbor has had her lawn treated with weed killers and other harmful chemicals, and I've had an exterminator spray my property many times because of multiple wasp nests. None of my cats have ever gotten sick. My guess is that unless they ingest a wet blade of grass contai long the chemicals, they will be ok. Feral cats are very smart. They know not to eat toxic plants or flowers (unlike my indoor cats, who repeatedly get into my plants and vomit). They know when something doesn't smell right, and to avoid it. I wouldn't spray their lawn. First of all, it is their property and they have a right to chemically treat their lawn. You don't want to start a major conflict with them when you are the one in a vulnerable position with your cats. Second, re moistening the chemicals on the grass does not sound like a good idea to me. Hopefully the chemicals are all dried by now. My best piece of advice is to try not to worry too much or have a knee jerk reaction to your neighbors.

The irony here is that we're in a county where you absolutely can not treat {or apply to} any lawns with typical chemicals and pesticides.
Thanks for reassuring advice, sadly the current "ferals" are pretty derpy. I think half of them are indoor cats that the lazy neighbors let outside.

 

[Jcatbird]

I hope you were able to get some useful information. I am hoping the kitties were not exposed. It might be best to ignore those neighbors or try a peace offering. If you can bribe them with a coffee cake to be kind to the kitties then it would be worth biting your tongue. If they are really creepy, just try to stay away and lure the kitties away from that area with kitty treats given regularly elsewhere.

 

[Talien]

The irony here is that we're in a county where you absolutely can not treat {or apply to} any lawns with typical chemicals and pesticides.

If they are doing something illegal where you live then at least you have a recourse if anything does happen to any of the Cats. What are the penalties for violating that particular ordinance?

 

[fionasmom]

Your neighbors are creeps, but my vet has told me that cats are pretty hard to poison because they sense odd smells and avoid it. At least the neighbor is not mixing something in food and putting it around for them to eat, but even then cats seems to know if something is off. I agree that spraying their lawn will start something...I also wondered how the ordinance is enforced or if it actually is.

I can sympathize with you though because this would drive me nuts.

 

[4theloveofcats]

I hope you were able to get some useful information. I am hoping the kitties were not exposed. It might be best to ignore those neighbors or try a peace offering. If you can bribe them with a coffee cake to be kind to the kitties then it would be worth biting your tongue. If they are really creepy, just try to stay away and lure the kitties away from that area with kitty treats given regularly elsewhere.

Thanks for the advice. Sadly, they're over 8- and beyond help.
They seem like tidy and proper people on the outside. But I've been around them long enough to know how gross they are down deep. The wife once gloated about killing kittens that she found in her garage area (this was years ago).
This woman also hates deer, bees, dogs and flowers. I don't know why they don't live in a sterile and soulless apartment building.
Instead they keep living in this neighborhood which backs up to watershed and forest.
If you hate living things, this wrong place to live in.

Anyway, after I posted this I looked outside and one of the ferals was rolling around smack dab in the middle of the freshly sprayed area.
Idjit!

I saw him this morning, he looks okay. So hope everything is fine.

I am anonymously dropping a mailer that states how darn illegal it is to use any pesticides here.
It's a pretty big deal here and made the news so it's not like a small rule. We feed into the Chesapeake, so I can understand why it's an important issue.

Thanks for everyone's input.

 

[Talien]

Thanks for the advice. Sadly, they're over 8- and beyond help.
They seem like tidy and proper people on the outside. But I've been around them long enough to know how gross they are down deep. The wife once gloated about killing kittens that she found in her garage area (this was years ago).
This woman also hates deer, bees, dogs and flowers. I don't know why they don't live in a sterile and soulless apartment building.
Instead they keep living in this neighborhood which backs up to watershed and forest.
If you hate living things, this wrong place to live in.

Anyway, after I posted this I looked outside and one of the ferals was rolling around smack dab in the middle of the freshly sprayed area.
Idjit!

I saw him this morning, he looks okay. So hope everything is fine.

I am anonymously dropping a mailer that states how darn illegal it is to use any pesticides here.
It's a pretty big deal here and made the news so it's not like a small rule. We feed into the Chesapeake, so I can understand why it's an important issue.

Thanks for everyone's input.

That area drains straight into a major waterway? Yeah that's definitely a big deal, you should report them to the relevant authorities ASAP because that goes beyond just those Cats. If they'll do it once chances are they'll do it again.

 

[fionasmom]

The Chesapeake? They are evil and stupid. Not only do I think that they will do it again, but they have done it before and who knows what else.

 

[kommunity kats]

That area drains straight into a major waterway? Yeah that's definitely a big deal, you should report them to the relevant authorities ASAP because that goes beyond just those Cats. If they'll do it once chances are they'll do it again.

I agree! I would send not only a report of what they told you, but also samples of the dried grass that they sprayed so they can analize it if they want to! . . .

Hopefully these people just have a twisted sense of humor & purposely told you things that they felt would upset you, just to get under your skin . . . having made them up. In other words . . . maybe they DID use organic, but wanted to get a rise out of you, so said they did not. . . . Maybe they never found kittens in their garage, but told you they killed them in hopes that you'd go out of your way to keep the cats out of their yard. . . . Many people do not appreciate cats coming in their yards, breaking things, leaving their poop, etc.

 

[Jcatbird]

I agree that these people may be trying to get you upset. I also ,still, suggest you stay away from the situation and lead the cats away if possible. We all desire to report things like this but they may realize it was you if you do it. They told you. If you do anything the reality is that you must be careful. Proof is required because you live in a place where the law states, innocent until proven guilty. Courts must have concrete evidence. I have run into situations that were similar. Cameras and video are so commonplace these days, that is the preferred form of proof that I encountered with law enforcement. I totally sympathize and understand. Been there. I’m glad the kitty that rolled in the grass appears okay. Keep us posted please.

 

[4theloveofcats]

That area drains straight into a major waterway? Yeah that's definitely a big deal, you should report them to the relevant authorities ASAP because that goes beyond just those Cats. If they'll do it once chances are they'll do it again.

Excellent point. Just contacted friend of a friend who is a bigwig at Bay protection group.
They carelessly left the can of pesticides on our property line, so I have nice picture of it for proof.

I agree that these people may be trying to get you upset. I also ,still, suggest you stay away from the situation and lead the cats away if possible. We all desire to report things like this but they may realize it was you if you do it. They told you. If you do anything the reality is that you must be careful. Proof is required because you live in a place where the law states, innocent until proven guilty. Courts must have concrete evidence. I have run into situations that were similar. Cameras and video are so commonplace these days, that is the preferred form of proof that I encountered with law enforcement. I totally sympathize and understand. Been there. I’m glad the kitty that rolled in the grass appears okay. Keep us posted please.

I think they're in their own little critter and nature hating world. Hanlon's Razor and all that. They hate critters, I'm so innocuous seeming on the surface that they have no clue how I loathe their presence.
After 8 years living here I am finally moving far away in September (not too worried about the ferals being fed because they are all plump and getting food from many sources besides lil ole me) so I don't really care too much if those neighbors know I got them in trouble!
And since they're old (but wily, cagey and sharp as tacks) I imagine they'll be pretend to be just be clueless seniors.

 

[Jcatbird]

Excellent point. Just contacted friend of a friend who is a bigwig at Bay protection group.
They carelessly left the can of pesticides on our property line, so I have nice picture of it for proof.




I think they're in their own little critter and nature hating world. Hanlon's Razor and all that. They hate critters, I'm so innocuous seeming on the surface that they have no clue how I loathe their presence.
After 8 years living here I am finally moving far away in September (not too worried about the ferals being fed because they are all plump and getting food from many sources besides lil ole me) so I don't really care too much if those neighbors know I got them in trouble!
And since they're old (but wily, cagey and sharp as tacks) I imagine they'll be pretend to be just be clueless seniors.

You have proof? Excellent! Sometimes it can also be ,” who you know.” I went through the thing of reporting. It was worth it to me. I would do it again! If you are moving, even better. I fought for almost two years to stop cat abuse and it was quite an enlightening experience. I made many calls and finally joined forces with my county to accomplish the goal. I applaud efforts to stop any form of abuse. Including environmental. Keep documentation of dates violations and photos. Maybe their innocent act won’t work. People like that make it tough for everyone else. I’m very glad to hear that the cats have others around who care. A united front is a position of strength.

 

[KittyCatCove]

I have a similar situation going on right now. My neighbor (not cat haters) has an exterminator come every month to spray outside to prevent oriental cockroaches(aka~water bugs) from coming into their house. These critters are very common in large cities in the Northeast and only come out in the warm/hot weather months. I have to be very careful because the roaches can come into contact with the poison, then come in my house. Of course my cats see/find them, they play with them and sometimes even eat them. I'm always on the lookout for these bugs during the day and at night before I go to bed. I wake up sometimes and look around with the flashlight... talk about paranoid!

 

[msaimee]

There are some things we just can't control when it comes to what our outdoor cats are exposed to. They come into contact with all sorts of pesticides, weed killer chemicals, flowers and plants that are toxic to them, industrial salt used on the roads in snowy weather, not to mention thorns and thistles, bugs that sting and bite, ticks and parasites, other cats and wildlife. And yet they are clever and savvy enough to survive. I try not to worry and stress over what I cannot control and instead focus on what I can do--giving monthly Frontline Plus, providing warm outdoor shelters, providing good food, getting veterinary care when needed, and having a good relationship (or at least an understanding with) the neighbors on my block. There's only do much worrying we can do.

 

[fionasmom]

Depending on the exterminator company, they may be using pet safe products which kill only the insects.

 

[4theloveofcats]

I have a similar situation going on right now. My neighbor (not cat haters) has an exterminator come every month to spray outside to prevent oriental cockroaches(aka~water bugs) from coming into their house. These critters are very common in large cities in the Northeast and only come out in the warm/hot weather months. I have to be very careful because the roaches can come into contact with the poison, then come in my house. Of course my cats see/find them, they play with them and sometimes even eat them. I'm always on the lookout for these bugs during the day and at night before I go to bed. I wake up sometimes and look around with the flashlight... talk about paranoid!

Have you tried lemon peel and lemon juice
at entry points?

 

[kommunity kats]

I would put Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth around the perimeter of the house to keep crawling insects outside: Using Diatomaceous Earth for Non-Toxic, Natural Pest Control

 

[KittyCatCove]

Have you tried lemon peel and lemon juice
at entry points?

Hard to do. The basement is finished and I would have to tear down the wall to find the entry points. Doesn't matter how clean you are (and I am super clean), these little buggers find their way in anyway. Heavy rain tends to bring more inside and we've had a ton of rain so far this spring.