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[side_show]

Hi all, since Achewood draws in the cat lovers, a little advice please:

Anyone ever dealt with stray cats?  

How can they be kept from my yard?  

As previously noted elsewhere, our new house is super-awesome-cool, but the only problem is the sheer amount of strays in our neighbourhood.  I'm talking in the first 2 days of living here we counted approximatly a dozen cats that passed through and/or hung out in our yard - all without collars, some with sores on their bodies, another extremely lame.  Our first night in the house I was awoken by a cat dying or mating, or possibly both, and there's one possibly feral cat that seems to just live in our backyard most of the time.  Since then I've seen even more cats that we didn't see on the first night.  None of them have collars.  None.  None of them have been at all people friendly.

I told my SO that I feel like it's the Truman show and there are just cats on a constant loop that passes our back window.

Yesterday, a few houses down I drove past three kittens that I'd never seen before, feeding out of a neighbour's ripped open garbage bags.

My big fear is that one of our three in-door-only cats will get out and catch a horrible disease, or that, god forebid, one of the strays gets in.   At this point the only real problem has been the noise and some muddy paw prints all over my car, but I imagine that when we start landscaping that I might as well be putting up a giant litter box in the middle of the yard.

The Humane Society tells me I should rent a humane trap and catch the strays to drop off to them, but this is both a hassel (the cat drop off is a 45 minute drive from my house, and not a fun drive at that) and a death sentence for the cats.  Still the Humane Society notes that these strays are only going to continue breeding and/or spreading disease and making the problem worse.  I also worry that I would probably be catching some pet cats, even if they don't have colars, and making my new neighbours hate me.

I love cats, but a dozen potential disease carriers is a different story.  I'm so pissed off that people allowed this to happen - it's rude to the neigbours and cruel to the cats.

I really don't want this many cats on my property.

What the hell should I do people?

[wombat]

I forget where you live.  Are there any independent cat rescue organizations in your area?  In some places there are groups that catch, spay, and release stray cats.  It supposedly keeps the numbers down and while you'd still have stray cats they'd be healthier.  

Also, there may be no-kill rescue groups you could take the cats to.  But for every cat you turn in there'll just be another one, if no population control measures are applied.   Also, if they are really feral, trapping them is probably not trivial.

Personally I feel that for cats in the conditions you describe, euthanasia is a more humane alternative.  But it should NOT be your job to take on the risks of trapping them.  Aside from the humane society, is there a town animal control department?

[pmcd9]

A bb gun will drive them away.

~Paul

[side_show]

Thanks wombat - your probably one of the best folks on the board to give advice here.

Sadly every no-kill shelter in the city 1) does not accept strays and 2) is currently not accepting cats.

The Winnipeg Human Socity is currently threatening to no longer take in any more cats due to the fact that the number of cats being taken in and euthanised this summer has more than doubled since this time last year.  The head of the Winnipeg Human Socity is trying to pressure local gov't to pass a new law that would require all cat owners to get licences for their animals.  I don't know how/if this would really help things, it is actually against the law to allow your cat to run loose here, and also illegal to not have your pet spayed/neutered, but these laws are not really enforced

The humane society here does require that, if you want strays off your property that you trap them and take them in - it's basically not something they do, they don't even offer traps -they send you the the dept. of animal services for rental.    

The Winnipeg Department of Animal Services website tells me that if I have a problem with stray cats there is "a $50.00 deposit for a cat trap. For trap set-up and removal there is a $37.45 charge. "   So, lets se $37.45 x 12 cats, plus cage rental... Wow, almost $500...  One of my friends, who lives in a different area, rented the trap, but dealt with the set up and delivering the cats to the humane society on his own, but he says that the amount of time and the stress of dealing with the cats was not worth all the effort, especially since the trap is $50/per week and other cats have since appeared.  

I'm thinking, really, that what I need to do is find a really functional deterrant.  

Does anyone have a couple gallons of wolf-pee to spare?

[miles]

Does anyone have a couple gallons of wolf-pee to spare?

Yeah, sure thing.  I try to keep a few gallons on hand for parties.

Actually, if you lived closer to Southern California, apparently my SO is running her own little stray cat shelter.  It's necessary to keep her at least 200 yards away from the humane society, else she'll leave with at least one poor cat that she needed to rescue.  Second thought, it's a good thing you live nowhere near her.  Because I've moving down in 5 months and I'm allergic to cats.  We still have to work that out.

[wombat]

It must be hella difficult to collect wolf pee.  I'm afraid all I have access to at the moment is frog excrement.

The only deterrent that I'm sure would work is a dog, and keeping the dog outside all or most of the time to chase cats would be cruelty to the dog.  It's appalling that no one is willing to take any responsibility for the situation.  What a great idea - reduce your euthanasia rates by not taking in animals.  That really solves the root problem, huh?

I believe it's possible to build a cat proof fence.  If you are made of money. I'm sorry I don't have any better advice.  The only other thing I can offer at this point is my complete, total appalledness at the state of your local agencies.

[arkabee]

i new someone who suggested a spray bottle with ammonia in it, when cats where climbing on the screens terrorizing my lady's cat.

i would assume that there is a good chance of permenantly damaging the cats with ammonia, and i was shocked to hear it suggested, but the gentleman suggesting was nonplussed and did not suggest it out of spite or malice.

i've also heard lemon juice.

not sure if spraying them, when they are feral and mean, is in your best interest though.

i feel your worries, though, about the strays infecting your cats.  cat HIV is supposed to be horrid herebouts.

something that i think i heard a long time ago, but is most likely utter BS, is to empty your litterboxes in the areas the strays are roaming, perchance to drive them away.  not sure if it would have the opposite intent, though.

[jough]

Just get some of the biggest rat traps you can find and put some cat food on them.  It oughta be strong enough to snap their little necks.

[wombat]

Does anyone know if those ultrasonic devices actually work, though?  

I wonder if it would be worth it to contact a local pest control company.  If you buy a device off the web and it does nothing you might be stuck.  But if you could find someone local who'd give some kind of guarantee on their work it might be worth a try.

I'll try to remember to see if anyone at work knows anything, although they tend to be the kind who take in strays rather than chasing them off.

[slink]

I always went for the glass of water. Well, the water at least, to be thrown liberally over said annoying cats. Or running out hissing at them, though that is slightly harder to pull off with dignity if you have neighbours (well, OK, the dignity thing just isn't an issue when in the sticks).
Both however mean witnessing the little fuckers (I love cats, I'm more a cat person than a dog person, but like people, cats I don't want around I hate, and will throw water at).

[wombat]

Ha - probably a lawn sprinkler would in fact be the cheapest and most effective cat deterrent there is - automatic glass-of-water-throwing.  Unfortunately you'd have to leave it running pretty much 24 hours a day, and the environmental impact on all sorts of levels would be a disaster.  Unless you've always wanted a bog in your backyard...

[pmcd9]

Why has the bb gun suggestion been given such short shrift?  It's the perfect solution.  It won't kill the cats or cause them permanent harm, but it'll damn sure drive them away from your yard.

~Paul

[V-Adore]

Have you considered a hose or squirt gun? I know it sounds jokey, but my father has had good luck with dissuading dogs this way. It's more forceful than a spray bottle while still being totally non-harmful.

[AlohaDawg]

I don't think it's cruel to cull the population of feral cats. They are apt to have a shitty life anyhow, and tend to be self perpetuating. If you can humanely minimize their numbers, you and your neighborhood are better off. If you are prone to loving them and just making them someone else's problem, you're part of the problem, and that someone else could be shooting them or whatever.

I've taken strays to get spayed/neutered. At least then they won't make 100 more before being hit by a car or starving to death.

Every pet should be registered and every owner should be held extremely accountable for the well being of that pet. But we should have a low tolerance for strays - they just carry misery and disease around.

[Choop]

That's coming from a former CDC employee, people! Listen up!