There’s nothing worse than watching all of your favorite feline friends come by your yard to visit, only to stop in your garden and use it for a bathroom break!
Unfortunately, this happens a lot more often than most of us ever realize – and it can be a bit of a nightmare problem to stop once it starts, too.
Unless of course you’re armed with the kind of inside information that we highlight below.
With these details under your belt you are going to be able to easily navigate this problem, stopping it dead in its tracks right away but also preventing it from ever happening again in the future.
All without ever hurting those fuzzy little cats along the way!
Sound too good to be true?
Read on to find out more.
Table of Contents
Remove ALL Cat Poop First
The very first thing you need to do when trying to prevent cats from using your garden as a bathroom is to get rid of any of the cat poop already on your garden grounds.
Remember that cats are super sensitive to smell. Like crazy sensitive.
If they pick up the smell of cat poop (even faintly) they are biologically hardwired to want to use the bathroom themselves in the exact same spot.
Those that have a real nightmare of a time trying to prevent cats from using their garden as a litter box find out more often than not that their efforts are thwarted simply because they didn’t clean up the old poop first.
Square that away right out of the gate and you’ll be good to go.
Consider a Small Fence to Deter Feline Friends from Visiting
A small fence (even one made from relatively flimsy chicken wire) may be more than enough to stop cats from busting into your garden space and using it as a litter box.
Cat repellent fences are generally pretty affordable and super easy to install, too. They look like they have little bits of barbed wire on them but are 100% plastic, will not harm cats, and generally just sort of spook them away from the perimeter of your garden altogether.
A more traditional fence designed to keep other animals (like pests and deer) can work just as well, too.
Thorny Trees and Flowers Can Act as a Natural Defense, Too
Plenty of thorny trees, plants, and flowers around the perimeter of your garden – and inside of your garden space as well – can also work well to discourage cats from coming into your garden space.
Small cactuses, rose trees, and other thorny plants or bushes all work very well for this purpose.
The idea here is to prick and poke cats that would otherwise test your natural defenses, immediately dissuading them from slipping through the gaps, climbing into your garden, and using it as a toilet.
Empty Bottles, Aluminum Foil, and Old CDs are the Best “Scarecrows” for Cats
You would be amazed at the amount of people that have kept cats (and other animals) out of their garden spaces with nothing more than empty bottles, a bit of aluminum foil, and older CDs.
All of these things reflect light (old mirrors are another good go to as well) in such a way that can help but spook cats a little bit.
Empty bottles that have a little bit of red liquid added to them can shake things up a little bit as well, though plain water often diffuses and disperses enough light through the bottle itself to cause cats to take a different approach around rather than through your garden.
CDs can be gently hung from trellises or posts. The light that reflects off of them will act as a perfect scarecrow for cats – though it might attract things like raccoons (and then you have a whole different set of problems on your hands).
Cat Repellent Sprays Can Be Used
There are an almost unlimited amount of cat repellent sprays available on the market today, sprays that are effective without ever risking the health or well-being of the cats that come in contact with them.
Vinegar on its own is plenty good enough to repel most feline friends, thanks in large part its overpowering sour smell that cats aren’t ever going to be able to avoid.
Spritz and spray vinegar anywhere and everywhere cats have pooped in the past and you’ll not only eliminate residual smell that might attract cats, but you’ll also covered up with an even more powerful and potent aroma that they absolutely hate.
Lime and lemon peels, mothballs, and other commercial sprays work well, too.
Setup a Litterbox Away From Your Garden
Lots of folks like to use negative reinforcement in their garden spaces to steer cats and kittens away while also using positive reinforcement of a separate litter box somewhere away from the garden as a “one-two punch”.
This double whammy is wonderfully effective as it not only keeps cats out of your space in the garden, but it also gives them a place to anchor to and a place to go to the bathroom that won’t bother anyone.
You may have to change the litter every now and again, but doing that outdoors (where you don’t have to worry about the smell as much) is night and day.
Motion Activated Sprinklers Might Be Worth a Try, Too
Finally, some people (particularly those at their wits and not being able to stop cats from getting into the garden and leaving poop behind) end up upgrading to motion activated sprinklers.
The big benefit here is that not only are you going to be able to spritz cats with a bit of water that kicks in automatically as soon as motion is detected, but you’re also going to be able to water your plants in the garden sporadically at the same time.
You knock out two birds with one stone with this approach and there’s nothing wrong with that!
Keep these tips and tricks in mind the next time you’re dealing with feline friends that are leaving you unwanted presence in your garden space and you won’t have anything to worry about.