How to keep cats out of flowerbed

TooManyDogs

I'm looking for ideas on how to keep cats digging in my flower beds. There's a load of cats around my area, some belonging to neighbours and some are feral, some of them are coming into the garden at night and digging up my flower beds. I spent alot of time and effort on them, both making them raised beds, planning and planting as well as training my own dogs not to get up into them. I know you've to have a sense of humour when you have a garden but my sense of humour doesn't extend to cats, they're driving me nuts!!!

PLEASE don't reply to say 'that's just what cats do' and I don't want this to become a dog v's cat thread, I'm looking for practical ways to stop them digging up my flowers. I've tried pepper but you have to replace that everytime it rains so a little impractical in Ireland! The hubby is going mental at this stage, and being a cat hater is talking methods I don't approve of so I need something else to try

sensibleken

put a dog in there

TooManyDogs

sensibleken wrote: »

put a dog in there

You'd think that'd work wouldnt you?!!! I have 6

I don't leave them outside at night though. If it was summer then I would just to get rid of the cats but it's too cold now, would feel really bad

ISDW

My Mum has tried just about everything, and nothing has ever worked I'm afraid - egg shells, orange peel, everything anyone ever told her worked.

However, someone has recommended putting bottles of water in your flowe beds, just laying them down flat I think, apparently it works, although I really don't know how (it could also be that its too cold now for the neighbours cats to be out much). Maybe google that, and see exactly what the theory is, and if people say that it does work.

anniehoo

It wont look very nice but what about placing tinfoil around the most vunerable areas (they hate the sound it makes), or installing a motion sensor sprinkler. Itd be a brave cat who'd still try to dig while getting drenched Or place a chicken wire mesh over the area that you could remove when you need to garden.

sipstrassi

One of my own two cats is a divil for this. They can't get out of my garden so it's just we who suffer him. Have loads of lovely plant pots but also have loads of discreet cat litter locations, some with the same soil and compost as the plant pots but guess where he prefers. :rolleyes:

Am not advocating it but my grandmother used to say broken glass in the flower beds!:eek:

BrianJD

Not sure if this will work but to sto our dog damaging our plants we put her poo at the base of it. It worked so maybe it may work on cats as well.

I don't know where you could find a cat poo shop tho:pac:

spoonface

BrianJD wrote: »

Not sure if this will work but to sto our dog damaging our plants we put her poo at the base of it. It worked so maybe it may work on cats as well.

I don't know where you could find a cat poo shop tho:pac:

Also you can buy urine of bigger, scarier animals to ward off the cats:

http://www.predatorpee.com/

tk123

Dabbing vicks around the place worked for us (eg along the bottom of the gate that they were walking thru lol) and also those get off my lawn gel things. Since getting the dog we've had no cat poo in the garden thou

TooManyDogs

spoonface wrote: »

Also you can buy urine of bigger, scarier animals to ward off the cats:

http://www.predatorpee.com/

Very interested in this option, I'm going to america for christmas so might order so pee to bring home with me!

mymo

The bottled water doesn't work, nor do any of the other tips I've tried(and so have neighbours), my two can't get out of the garden but will use the flower beds rather than the areas provided. My neighbours had awful problems with cats, there's loads round here.
The only thing he found that worked was the sprinkler hooked up to kitchen tap, he sat in the kitchen for most of the day(for a week, while off sick), watching for cats and turning on the tap:D, it worked, still has the odd cat come in but its been 3 months and going well.
That said if its at night may be more difficult, can you get motion sensors for sprinklers?

TooManyDogs

We never used to have problems but now we have rabbits and that seems to be drawing the cats in. The rabbits are very secure and don't care about the cats so not worried about that but we've built a big rabbit run in the middle of a raised flower bed so reckon that's why the cats are digging. Now they've started on a different bed though, guess they need a toilet break in between trying to stalk get the rabbits :rolleyes:

anniehoo

mymo wrote: »

That said if its at night may be more difficult, can you get motion sensors for sprinklers?

There seems to be actual motion sprinklers specifically for this problem see here

ISDW

A friend of mine used to work in a wildlife park, and would bring lion dung home with her to put in the garden and stop the cats, she said that worked. Do you know anyone that works at Dublin zoo?:D

She did used to moan about the drive home though, with the smell of the stuff in her car:eek:

TooManyDogs

I can imagine! Now that's a good friend

dan_d

To be honest - we live in a house in an estate where we are surrounded completely by cats! Initially our garden seemed to be the local public toilet, and let me tell you, most of them didn't bother digging, or confining it to the flowerbeds......gross.
We've got 2 cats now. They are keeping all the other cats out of our garden, but are using the garden themselves....you get the picture. Anyway, I was thinking maybe try spreading that chipped bark stuff on the beds? One of the neighbours has it in theirs, and they have 3 cats...yet they don't seem to have the problems we do! Does anyone know if this works, because we'll do it if it does!
The other thing I've noticed is spreading ornamental gravel on the soil does a good job on keeping cats out of pot plants - if you've got small beds, maybe that would work.Probably need heavier layers of it outside though, could work out expensively.

TooManyDogs

dan_d wrote: »

The other thing I've noticed is spreading ornamental gravel on the soil does a good job on keeping cats out of pot plants

I do have gravel down, that's why its driving me particularily nuts because it was expensive getting all the gravel down and now it's scattered all over the place and mixed with the soil. The motion sensor might very well be the answer.

lrushe

Some people have had a lot of luck with garlic.

doctor evil

Do you know which are owned cats and which are strays/ferals?

If you contact a vets you may be able to borrow a humane trap to catch them. Sardines/tuna would be good as bait, then drop them off at the vets to be either rehomed (vet may have connections) or pts. If they are strays they may not be in the best health so it may be kinder since we are going to have another bitterly cold winter.

anniehoo

dan_d wrote: »

that chipped bark stuff on the beds?

Chipped bark definitely wont work. In my estate theres a little childrens play area with chipped bark on the ground. Found my cat digging away to his hearts content numerous times,loving it. Im mortified. I let him out, but have no clue how to stop him. I see him from the window but sure by the time i get down to him hes stopped and/or well gone.Its an estate playground and not my garden though so if parents start complaining all the cat owners in the area better be on their guard.

doctor evil

Anniehoo have you tried providing your cat with a litter tray he can either use inside or in your garden?

anniehoo

doctor evil wrote: »

Anniehoo have you tried providing your cat with a litter tray he can either use inside or in your garden?

Ah yeh of course, he has 2 litter trays in the apartment which he uses all the time. No prob there. I only got him in March and didnt let him out for a long while to get him used to the place. When i started he always came running back to the main door to be let in to pee. Then he met a "friend" and went awol for 3 days when he was 10mths (cat teenager) Obviously figured he didnt need to come in anymore and outside was fair game. I dont have a garden as live in an apartment.

TooManyDogs

doctor evil wrote: »

Do you know which are owned cats and which are strays/ferals?

If you contact a vets you may be able to borrow a humane trap to catch them. Sardines/tuna would be good as bait, then drop them off at the vets to be either rehomed (vet may have connections) or pts. If they are strays they may not be in the best health so it may be kinder since we are going to have another bitterly cold winter.

Some are owned and some are feral, 2 neighbours own some and feed the ferals so there's about 20 cats in total! I'm not sure it'd be fair to collect the ferals and get them pts, the neighbours love them and feed them twice a day, they've even put out 2 kennels for them and they all pile in.

kaiser sauze

The bottle trick works, but you need many of them.

It works by reflecting the light into cats' eyes in a way that disorientates them.