My Neighbor’s Cats Are A Nuisance

by Anonymous

I like cats. I have had cats as pets growing up. They are sublime beautiful creatures. However, they have their place.

My favorite cat growing up was a Calico Coon Cat. Her name was Annabel. She was an awesome hunter. She would eat her kills completely but always would dissect the organ sac and leave it for me perfectly surgically cut out. It was a little gross, but I knew she did it as an offering of respect. I could call her name out loud from my porch and watch her glide across the snow filled corn fields from half a mile away. When she got home to the kitchen her reward was raw chicken liver.

I don’t know where or how you think cats fit into the natural order of things. But they do not belong in a crowded suburban environments pissing and shitting over my front porch. The scent of male cat piss on my doorstep is nauseating. I do not own a cat at the moment. The scent of their piss, and the hair they leave behind all over my boat in my car port is unacceptable.

I do currently own a Rhodesian Ridgeback that is trained to leave cats alone. I clean up after my dog. Somehow, cats are exempt. They are allowed to go and do as they please. Yet my dog, legally, is required to be leashed and cleaned up after. I can tell you that given the choice between eating cat shit or dog shit, I would choose dog shit, and it would not be a close contest. A double standard exists that legally I am required to obey.

My neighbors keep about a half dozen strays and think they are doing everyone a great humanitarian service. These cats scream all night long and use my yard as a toilet. Please explain to me why I should tolerate these animals trespassing all over my fenced yard, pissing on my doorstep, digging up my garden and spreading disease to my well groomed fenced and leashed dog. I spend about $600 annually de-worming my dog as a consequence of her eating contaminated cat feces from my yard.

Frankly, the cats are more of nuisance than the few rats that get into the bird seed. Killing cats is illegal, rats are fair game.

What do you say?


Hi… thanks for contributing. You raise an issue that is quite often the subject of upset, argument and debate.

Despite the fact that I love cats I personally fully understand your sentiments and predicament. Although I don’t agree with everything that you say.

Firstly, let’s be fair. Cats don’t spread disease as you say. There are few zoonotic diseases (transmittable from animal to human) and in any case humans spread diseases to other humans far more freely. You don’t criticise dogs for spreading disease either.

You hint that you would like to kill your neighbor’s cats to solve the problem. This is unfair too as the problem is caused by people not the cat.

Address the problem with your neighbor and the local authorities and/or courts not the innocent victim of irresponsible human behavior, the cat. They are victims. People are the perpetrators of the wrong in this instance.

And it is not only your neighbor who is in the wrong here. There is a wider problem. There is a cat overpopulation problem in the USA and there is a feral cat problem. These are long term human problems that have gone unaddressed for decades.

You can’t fix the wider problems. All you can do is to talk to the person who is helping the stray cats. He or she is nice to help needy animals. She is a caring person. But she cannot cause a nuisance at the same time. I am talking about a nuisance in a legal context. “Nuisance” is a legal term. It is a tort, a civil wrong and a person can sue another for nuisance.

I am not suggesting that you sue him/her but it should be made clear to her that she should think of the neighbors as well as the cats.

Unfortunately as long as the wider problems mentioned above continue you will have difficulty in solving the local problems.

The cats should (must) not be harmed. Please deal with the matter through human channels as it is and always has been our problem.

In my opinion the neighbor should ideally build a cat enclosure and care for the cats in that way and adopt them out or take them to a shelter. Unfortunately the majority of shelter cats are killed rather than rehomed, which reminds us of the cat overpopulation crisis.

Thanks for asking. My answer is very much animal based but people who care about animals have to avoid alienating other people as it damages the argument for helping stray and feral cats and it is simply bad manners.

Michael Avatar

Comments for
My Neighbor’s Cats Are A Nuisance

Click here to add your own comments

May 19, 2011 GO AWAY ANONYMOUS
by: Gail (Boston, USA)

We definitely don’t need your kind around here.


May 17, 2011 To Michael
by: Anonymous

being banned from your website would truly break my heart Michael. I can tell from your comment about law enforcement officers where your head is at since I’ve spent the better part of a lifetime running into your type. Of course, as I said once before on your well maintained blog, should you ever run into an unfortunate situation, like being mugged for one of a hundred examples, I’d be willing to bet you’d really be glad to see that man horribly unpleasant man with a badge show up to help you. No need to respond as I’m sure you with your level of intelligence that you can come up with some really clever comeback. I’m just gonna save you the trouble of a few keystrokes and take my crude, unpleasant personality somewhere else where it’s appreciated (LOL!). But before I go let me lastly point out that you don’t really know me at all, you just think you do based on my keystrokes. Would it surprise you at all if I said that I was being somewhat less than honest on your website for several months. You see Michael, there are actually two truths, that which YOU perceive to be true, and then there is the real truth. The problem, especaially with cyberspace, is knowing which which is which…… Have a wonderful life Mikey!!!!


May 17, 2011 Daniel
by: Michael

Daniel, I appreciate you saying that what I said was “the true voice of reason”, but I find your comments unpleasant, crude, rude and unhelpful. They reflect on your character.

Just reading the comments tells me that Daniel is truly an unpleasant person while Bob is a thinking, decent and intelligent person who contributes. Daniel you don’t contribute. You just throw mud and get a kick out of it. It is what I would expect from a retired law enforcement officer.

If you insult Bob again or if I see another objectionable comment of yours it will be “Hasta la vista, baby” non-negotiable. You’ll be banned and the comment deleted.

Michael Avatar


May 17, 2011 Another response for Bob Sucker, I mean Tucker.
by: Daniel

I’ll bet if that Rhodesian Ridgeback was latched on to your scrotum, something I absolutely guarantee you he is capable of without having even met him – you’d be singing an entirely different tune, rather high pitched I would imagine. LOL!
Oh yeah, the anonymous “For Bob” was mine too, just didn’t feel like typing in my name since I was in a hurry. boo-hoo!


May 16, 2011 For Bob
by: Anonymous

You know what they say Bob, old boy – opinions are just like a**holes, everbody’s got one. And you’ve got your’s, the very obvious opinion of a “cat person”, and he has his, obviously a dog person. (I’m bi-pet myself.) In the end you can say you have nothing against dogs, but all your previous comments scream out differently. All of that is MY a**hole, by the way.
However, being retired law enforcement, I wouldn’t advice taking care of it yourself should someone poison one of you kitty kats, well not unless prison sounds like something you might enjoy, and since I don’t know you, I suppose that is possible. The good news is however that there are a couple of prisons that I’ve heard of that will allow you to have a kat! That part is all fact!


May 16, 2011 Neighbor’s Cats
by: Bob Tucker

It seem unlikely that cats are causing all the problems described here. I have cared for more than fifty feral cats over the last few years, have been a cat owner for many more and haven’t seen any where near these kinds of problems from all of them combined. My neighbors are glad they are around. They keep down the moles, rats, mice and snakes and a few of my big males keep the stray dogs ran off.

I don’t know how you find the cat poop in your garden unless you walk around with your nose to the ground. Cats nearly always bury it.

Cats seldom dig holes. If they do there is probably a mole somewhere down there that is going to do much more damage to your yard.

This dog must be a real whimp; cats don’t go near where there is a dog. I would get the doggie some breath mints, the anti-bacterial kind. He could spread disease to you!

SOLUTIONS 1 Get a dog that is something besides a whimp.

2 If you hook a lawn sprinkler to a cheap motion detection sensor, there will be no cat problems around there.

3 Forget the poision, the neighbors can do the same thing to your whimpy dog and you could go to jail. If someone did this to one of my cats, I wouldn’t call the police but take care of this one myself.

4 Some anger management would probably solve this problem. As Michael says “it’s a people problem.”

It just seems that some people look for something to complain about. I have been kept awake many more nights from a barking dog than from a cat that occasionally squalls. If you ask a dog owner to do something about a dog problem, you nearly always make an enemy. One thing I’ve learned for sure in all my years of caring for cats; cat people are much easier to get along with than dog people and I don’t have a thing against dogs…….Bob


Apr 26, 2011 Mixed thoughts and hi again Daniel!
by: Leah (England)

I have mixed thoughts on this; friends who aren’t as keen on cats as I am used to complain like hell about cats digging holes in their garden and burying their faeces (or sometimes just leaving it there!) I’d never experienced this so I thought it was extremely funny to hear them wail and moan about it, that is until 2 cats moved in next door to me! They are now doing it in my garden and it isn’t so funny!

I love cats and believe it or not I’m very fond of the 2 next door but I wish they wouldn’t dig up my lovely garden! Any tips anyone?

Hi Daniel! Nice to read what appears to be the real Daniel. You sound a lot more human in this than in previous posts glad you could take time away from chopping off kitties toes to join us! You have a very bizzare sense of humour but I think I’m starting to get used to you. Knowing you have a cat called Jackson helps! I’ll read his story in a min.


Apr 25, 2011 Cat Overpopulation
by: Gail (Boston, USA)

Here in the New England area, we have a TNR program (trap, neuter, return) which is very effective in controlling feral cats.

I care for the local stray/feral population. Working with our local no-kill shelter, we’ve trapped somewhere around 2 dozen cats over several years. We take the feral kittens to the shelter, which are spayed/neutered when they come of age and adopt them out. The adults are returned once they’ve been spayed/neutered. When I started, my yard had around 6-7 cats. Happily, we’re down to 2.

Brandy is correct – the citrus is a deterrent to cats’ spraying. Our neighbors use citrus also and don’t have the problem anymore. If only humans got their animals neutered, you wouldn’t be experiencing the after-effects.


Apr 24, 2011 Terrific Info!
by: Daniel

Outstanding Brandy! Great information, thank you!
You go girl!!!


Apr 24, 2011 Forgot to add
by: Brandy

This is actually one of the most important parts. you need to clean away all the pee. Wash everything down with a strong scented LEMON cleaner. (cats do not like citrus)


Apr 24, 2011 Everyone has their own opinion
by: Brandy

I love cats dearly but i do understand how they can be terrible if they aren’t your own. At my house where there is a bad ferral cat population the outdoor cats terrorize my indoor cats. They spray urine on my front door and my patio door. Its embarrassing when your house smells like pee and to be constantly cleaning it up is a waste of time.

There was a simple solution, it solved my problem instantly so i know it will yours too. At our Petsmarts here in Canada they sell some cat deterrent stuff. There is a air can with a motion sensor on the top. I chose a few strategic places to put these cans and now the cats have no interest going on my property. It scares the living sh*t out of them.

Hope this helps, cause you cant ever act on your frustrations. Its not their fault that they have instincts.


Apr 24, 2011 To – “…..Cats Are a Nuisance”
by: Daniel

Yes, they certainly can be, sir (a nuisance that is). I do hope that you are ready to not only hear some critisiam, but personal attacks (and at same time the krazy kitty kooks will accuse you of attacking either them or the kats). Your first response from Petra, who accuses you of using crude language, even though the only word you used in the entire piece was “piss”, is just the beginning. I can hardly wait until all the k.k.k.’s (not the Klu Klux Klan) come crawling out of their litter box homes and start responding to your article!
The only true voice of reason is Michael. He is right when he says it’s the people. It is no different from the situation with pit bulls, who are wonderful, docile dogs, unless that is they are raised/trained by some moron to fight in a ring.
There are a number of “double standards” in our society, and now you have opened my eyes to another one of which you are quite right. There should be more restrictions placed on kat owners.
Since Michael did not want to suggest that you sue your neighbors then I WILL! Not only is it likely that it is the only way you will get their full attention, but it is better to address your situation and “nip it in the bud” now before it becomes much worse. It is very possible, even likely, that the situation will continue to escalate. Today 6 kats, this time next year it may very well be 36 kats, and the stench in your carport will be enough to make a pollock puke! LOL!
I personally have 6 dogs (3 of my own, and 3 that I foster for the local humane society) and 1 really terrific kat, named General Stonewall Jackson, or just Jackson(His story is located somewhere in this website called “My Japanese Bobtail Story.). He is now an “outdoor kat” but I live out in the country, and I doubt seriously that he bothers anyone, especially when you consider the fact that the people across the street have a mini-farm with, a cow, goats, sheep, chickens and a rooster, and of course, about 5 dogs of their own.
I also agree with Michael that harming the kats is not the answer, however should you ultimately disagree, I would think some poison in some yummy kat food would be most effective! LOL!
GOOD LUCK, sir!
Respectfully,


Apr 24, 2011 What I say…
by: Petra

I say your language is very crude, you are full of anger and resentment and your attitude is aggressive to say the least. There’s no point in coming on this site chewing the fat and demanding an explanation, if you have a grievance take it to your neighbour and discuss it in a calm and civilised way. And remember – someone has to take care of those cats, and it seems obvious that it isn’t going to be you who does so.


12 thoughts on “My Neighbor’s Cats Are A Nuisance”

  1. The author of the best comment will receive an Amazon gift of their choice at Christmas! Please comment as they can add to the article and pass on your valuable experience.
  2. I have the same cat problem. Neighbor has 6 or more cats who live in my yard. They use it for a toilet and they have caught mice and carried them to my house. I work and they spend their day pooping all over the place and then the neighbor leans on the fence at the bottom of my yard and calls them home. Why do people have cats just to feed them and throw them out to irritate the neighbors?

    Reply
    • I love cats but your neighbor is being irresponsible if he can’t respect neighbors and manage his cats in a way which avoids neighbor conflicts. Not everyone likes cats and cat owners should respect that and take heed. Good luck with this tricky problem.

      Reply
  3. I understand completely my neighbor also routinely feeds the feral/stray cats. While I think it is admirable to help an animal in need, she has taken it to extremes. She currently stands at over forty animals. The females routinely use the underside of my house as a nursery. We’ve have pulled no less than a dozen batches of kittens from under our house, some not living. I have personally adopted two of them after their mother was eaten by raccoons, also under my house. I also lost a pair of prized rabbits due to coyotes drawn in by a ready food supply. I have had to rip out my garden because they contaminated it, my pond because even pouring vinegar in it after they ate the koi didn’t help and throw away a swimming pool because they popped the upper ring. I have tried calling animal control not only because they are a nuisance but because I was concerned that not a single one of them has had any kind of medical care. With wild animals around that puts them and my own animals at risk for rabies. Animal control basically said they can’t do anything so my next stop is the courthouse because talking to her isn’t working either. It does really bother me having to take this route because ultimately its the animals that will bear the most harm.

    Reply
    • Thank you for commenting Jenna. Although I am a cat lover and a cat advocate, I completely understand your thoughts and where you are coming from. I am one of those cat lovers who believes that we should be respectful of our neighbours desires and wishes. We can’t just say that our cat needs to behave naturally and go outside et cetera without considering the consequences. We have to take into account how that affects other people. If your neighbour is harbouring very many cats who are not neutered or spayed then she’s behaving irresponsibly. It is sad that you are acting alone and cannot get support. Is a great shame that you have to force this person to act responsibly. And as you say, the greatest victims in all of this are the cats. You of course are also a victim. I believe that this person gives cat lovers a bad name. They project the image of the crazy cat lady which is incorrect because 99% of cat lovers are responsible decent minded caring people.

      Reply
  4. I feel for the people that have to go thru this. I have a dog, 2 cats and a rabbit. They all live indoors. My neighbor aka the crazy cat lady has numerous, (approx. 25 cats) that perfume my porch, interiors of my vehicles, and the insides my work shops. They defecate everywhere including ON the porch furniture. Having any kind of food garden is not possible. People who live in the city that do this to their neighbors need help period. As one poster says “it is the people”… 101% correct. I feel sorry for the animals, and the people who have to live next to a nuisance such as this. It disgusts me people of any sort can make up excuses for any such conduct towards any animal, including their neighbors. Would you feed your kids outdoors and leave them in the yard 24/7 with no refuge? Expect your neighbors to deal with your childrens cleanup? care? Well being? Damages? Think not. Animal control here has been a big help along with Animal rescue Carolina in finding homes for some of these cats. The cat P$$ don’t smell good, the feces ain’t any better. Seeing dead kittens mangled with fire ants on them surely is heartbreaking. The thing that smells worse than any expletive I can think of are these self centered mentally Ill people who subject any animals, or their neighbors to conditions such as these to fill their own personal void. Shame on them… their time will come.

    Reply
  5. I have a precious kitty and live on a large corner lot that I have made into a lovely flower garden, My neighbor however has 26, yes, 26 cats, some she keeps inside, but the rest are a mix of strays and her “outside” cats,she has huge bowls of food constantly out, which of course attracts Racoons and other wildlife, the cats love to use my nice loose soil as their litter box, and I can tell you it STINKS,Plus they worry my own cat, I have tried to nicely ask if she will contain her cats as I’m tired of cleaning up after them, MORE than once,but it falls on deaf ears, I’ve thought of getting a trap, but as mentioned, it’s not the cats fault and she would only bring them back from the shelter anyway.I’ve tried repellants and chasing them like some lunatic, all to no avail. Now this past few weeks with the warmer weather I have my doors open, two of them come into the house, I’m beside myself, PLEASE,
    CAN ANYONE OUT THERE GIVE ME SUGGESTIONS. I can’t afford to move.
    Help…..

    Reply

Leave a Comment

follow it link and logo