Feral Cat Problem

[morganika]

Hey I thought I would share with you something I have found to work. I have tried many things to keep the cats out of my garden areas. The mulch is very attractive to them. I have tried garlic stakes, sprays, scary things dangling in the wind, but EUREKA it's cayenne pepper sprinkled right on the mulch. They've stopped pooping in the garden, and now poop on the lawn which is only little better, but it's the first thing I've ever done that's had any impact at all.

[SyZyGy]

morganika, dahlink,

Guten Morgen!

I hope that you have read the article in the HC yesterday**:

www.courant.com/n.e.w.s/local/hc-nebcats1127.artnov27,0,2965340.story

"Dedicating Herself To Feral Cat Solution "

By LORETTA WALDMAN
Courant Staff Writer
November 27 2005


Bis später, mein Liebling!


**To use the above link; copy and paste ALL of it to notepad, then remove the periods among the letters of n.e.w.s, before you paste it into your URL window.

[Bulldog]

City Agrees To Help Curb Feral Cats

December 29, 2005
By LORETTA WALDMAN, Courant Staff Writer NEW BRITAIN -- A regional cat-welfare group has hammered out an accord with municipal animal control officials in what may be the state's first public-private partnership dedicated to curbing feral cat overpopulation.

The city council set aside $3,000 last spring to spay and neuter cats living in the wild, but until the meeting - attended by Animal Alliance Welfare League founder Linda Karalus, acting Police Chief William Gagliardi and city animal control Officer Jimmy Russo - details on how the money would be spent had not been worked out.

Under the agreement, the city will pay for the first 60 feral cats the group brings to a Hartford-area veterinarian to be spayed or neutered, Gagliardi said. The clinic provides the procedure at a reduced rate and will send the bill for the 60 cats to the police department instead of the animal alliance.

"It's a good start," Gagliardi said. "It's a way to work proactively on this problem. Anything we can do to cut down [the feral cat population] and find these animals homes is a worthwhile effort."

Karalus welcomed the help.

"It's about time towns start sponsoring some of us nonprofit groups who are paying out of our own pockets to have these cats spayed and neutered," she said. "This will go a long way toward solving the problem."

Animal advocates estimate some 700,000 cats live in the wild in Connecticut. The problem is worst in urban areas such as New Britain, Karalus said.

Under existing state law, municipalities have discretion over how they handle feral cats. Because the problem is so big, most municipalities don't deal with it at all, advocates say. New Britain has a shelter for dogs but not for cats. Before the agreement, Russo took cats to the vet only if they were sick or injured.

Gagliardi and Karalus hope the effort can be expanded with grants and donations. Karalus has said she will use some of the $3,000 already allocated by the city to help elderly and low-income residents spay and neuter their cats.

Anyone wishing to make a contribution is asked to send it to Animal Alliance Welfare League, not the police department. The group's address is P.O. Box 1775, New Britain, CT 060501. Karalus can be reached at 860-518-6579.

[LadyJane]

morganika,
Does the cayenne pepper really work? Between the feral cats and the people who own multiple cats in the neighborhood and let them roam free, they do become a nuisance. I find muddy pawprints all over my car most every day not to mention the use of the flowerbed as a litter box.
I get worried about the cats scratching the paint. Does anyone know if the cayenne pepper will hurt the finish of the car if I sprinkle it on the roof and hood?
I don't understand why there can't be a leash law for cats or why people insist on buying them and let them roam and never take them inside?

[Dr.Ken Sokolowski]

Ladies,

Being the humane people you are, you must admit that extending your humanity to the cats who apparently plague you should be paramount.

I would worry more about whether your solutions are harmful or cruel to the cats. The public and the Courts do not look kindly on people who are cruel to animals, despite any policy of the Bush presidency (e.g. MCA 2006 and its application and implications).

I plugged "cat repellent" into Google and was rewarded by a plethora of 'hits.' Try it yourselves.

One link that I followed was:
www.critter-repellent.com/cat/cat-repellent.php

Hope you find this helpful.

[morganika]

ladyjane said:

morganika,
Does the cayenne pepper really work? Between the feral cats and the people who own multiple cats in the neighborhood and let them roam free, they do become a nuisance. I find muddy pawprints all over my car most every day not to mention the use of the flowerbed as a litter box.
I get worried about the cats scratching the paint. Does anyone know if the cayenne pepper will hurt the finish of the car if I sprinkle it on the roof and hood?
I don't understand why there can't be a leash law for cats or why people insist on buying them and let them roam and never take them inside?

No unfortunately Lady Jane NOTHING works. My yard is full of cat excrememnt, I cannot kep up with the cleaning of it as my neighbor feeds a feral colony. Lord help me, I can't wait to get out of Wethersfield.

[morganika]

footdoc said:

Ladies,

Being the humane people you are, you must admit that extending your humanity to the cats who apparently plague you should be paramount.

I would worry more about whether your solutions are harmful or cruel to the cats. The public and the Courts do not look kindly on people who are cruel to animals, despite any policy of the Bush presidency (e.g. MCA 2006 and its application and implications).

I plugged "cat repellent" into Google and was rewarded by a plethora of 'hits.' Try it yourselves.

One link that I followed was:
www.critter-repellent.com/cat/cat-repellent.php

Hope you find this helpful.

WHAT WOULD BE HELPFUL WOULD BE PEOPLE REFRAINING FROM SMART REMARKS. If the problem was in YOUR yard I assure you that you may feel differently.

[SyZyGy]

Since you don't like SMART REMARKS, try this.
Morgan,
Your all-capped screech at FootDr suggests that you did not take the time to follow the link. I did. The cat repellent offered supposedly is a mix of urine from fox and coyote, both cat predators, just like you. If you don't want to buy the product, then how about just peeing a circle around your property to keep the cats out, at least until you LEAVE TOWN!

[Dr.Ken Sokolowski]

morganika said:

WHAT WOULD BE HELPFUL WOULD BE PEOPLE REFRAINING FROM SMART REMARKS. If the problem was in YOUR yard I assure you that you may feel differently.

Morganika, my suggestion was well intended. Sorry you did not find it helpful.

[morganika]

footdoc said:

morganika said:

WHAT WOULD BE HELPFUL WOULD BE PEOPLE REFRAINING FROM SMART REMARKS. If the problem was in YOUR yard I assure you that you may feel differently.

Morganika, my suggestion was well intended. Sorry you did not find it helpful.

How could it have been helpful, all you did was point a finger at people you suspect are "cruel to animals" because they do not enjoy being overrun by disease ridden defecating machines!

[morganika]

xntryk said:

Since you don't like SMART REMARKS, try this.
Morgan,
Your all-capped screech at FootDr suggests that you did not take the time to follow the link. I did. The cat repellent offered supposedly is a mix of urine from fox and coyote, both cat predators, just like you. If you don't want to buy the product, then how about just peeing a circle around your property to keep the cats out, at least until you LEAVE TOWN!

Asswipe, I have almost an acre of property. I cannot possible sprinkle enough of that junk around my yard to make it work. Try talking about something you actually know about.

[hodiddly]

It must be awfully cold in the depths of Hell this morning - I am in agreement with syzygy!!! - I also followed the good Dr.'s link & found much useful information. It is a shame when someone who is so well meaning is treated with such disrespect.

[standish]

Love your neighbor. Even the voices of reason seem somewhat strident at the moment. Someone else's great love can be a great, big problem if it's in your vegetable garden and you're eating the results. I didn't infer that Morganika intended harm to cats... only to rid her property of them (though her most recent missives suggest an increasing frustration that could drive her over the edge). I agree with others who suggest that the good doctor's original reference was meant to be helpful. There could have been a judgemental overtone interpreted from his reference to cruelty, but, I don't believe he meant that Morganika was being so... only that a key criterion should be the effect of the method on the animal. Let's act like Wethersfield residents and restore good order to the dialog. Maybe Morganika will then decide to stay, in spite of local government and taxes.

[LadyJane]

I asked my friends and they also claimed that the repellants you buy are not effective and expensive. From what I gather the problem with fox and coyote urine is the cats have no interaction with these animals and are, therefore, not afraid of them. A friend of mine who has a large dog said that even though the dog will chase the cat out of the yard when it's outside, the cats still return when the dog is not around.

I don't see how cayenne pepper would be considered animal cruely - that is a harsh accusation if that is what you are inferring- I looked it up on the internet and it is suggested for use with cats and dogs. In a way it is a form of cruelty to let your cat stay outside in freezing weather.
Why is it not alright for a dog to wander freely and fine for a cat. When it comes down to it, as a rule, the cats do more in the way of property damage than the dogs. Owners should be responsible for the animals they keep, cat or dog, and there should be a law in place to mandate these pets be kept on leash or in the house; just like there is with dogs. thus,By enacting a leash law ,like there is with dogs, would give the police and warden some legal basis to deal with the violators.

[morganika]

Thank you Miss Lady! It is so true, I have spent so much money over the past years buying ineffective remedies that do not work. I have a large area to cover and it is soooo fustrating and expensive.

I too think it is cruel for people to let their pets wander. I had a cat for 15 years, who sadly passed away this summer. I would never have let her roam, the only time she went outside she was in her pet carrier going somewhere!

The authorities in this town are too busy with their personal agendas to consider helping the ordinary tax payer with their woes.