posted
Yes, that's right. I have a question about friggin' cat poop.
We have 2 outdoor cats. We keep their cat house, food, and water on our front porch. They seem to spend their time divided between the front porch, the woods, and the balcony (due to the A-frame they can climb all the way on top of the house).
The last few days we've found what looks like cat feces on our porch. I don't think it's our cats, as we've had them for over 6 months and they've never pooped on the porch. I know there are at least 2 kitties that live further up the road who come occasionally to snack out of our cats' food, so I think it's one of them. Anyway, I'm wondering if it's some kind of weird territory thing. Is there anything I can put on the porch to discourage the pooping or to keep the other cats away?
posted
I don't know of anything that will keep cats from messing up your porch, but I just wanted to remind you (you probably know, but it's what I do) that you, as a pregnant woman should not have contact with cat feces - especially of stray cats who most likely hunt for their food.
posted
Cats usually urinate to mark territory, not defecate. You could try providing a litter bin or pile of sand next to the porch; sometimes cats poop to express displeasure, but sometimes it's because they are having trouble getting to or digging in where they usually go. Let me second that you need to not be the one dealing with the feces.
Leaving citrus peels around in your yard is supposed to keep cats from peeing there, but I don't know if it works.
Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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I don't want to put a litter box out, though I know it's a good suggestion. Our cats have 4 acres of yard and woods to poop in, and this is the first time ever I've seen/smelled cat poop. I suppose we're lazy, but part of the appeal of outdoor cats for us was the fact that there wasn't a litterbox to deal with.
I really think it's our cat visitors, and I'm definately not putting out a toilet for them.
posted
I've seen cats leave a pile of poop outside a human visitor's bedroom to show them they're not fond of guests. Unneutered male cats will spray urine all over everything to send the message "this is my food, not yours. stay away". So I suppose it's not too much of a stretch to believe that a cat might leave poop to try and establish control of the territory around a food bowl. Usually they keep their poop very far away from their food. Are you positive it isn't racoon or possum poop?
Cats don't automatically gain control of the territory of their human's yard, they have to fight for it. The best solution I've found is to bring them inside. They're a lot healthier inside and live much longer. Also there are deadly diseases for which there are no immunizations that they can acquire through the scratches or bites of the other cats from whom they must defend their territory. FIV (the feline aids virus) is one. As maui babe pointed out, they're also vulnerable to toxoplasmosis and to many other cat diseases like the terrible feline infectious peritonitis that's so deadly. Feline leukemia virus vaccines are only 85% effective, and FeLeuk is very very common in stray and outside cats. I had a cat die once who had been fully immunized, when she escaped and found her way back home after two weeks. She had become infected with FeLeuk despite the shots.
In addition, they are prone when living outside to many parasites like fleas, ticks, round worms, tape worms, hook worms, and spongile worms which I've probably spelt wrong. Other things they are in danger from outside are cars, packs of family dogs who will tear them limb from limb, coyotes who kill them for food and to eliminate competition for smaller prey, and people who deliberately put out poison, rat poison, or leave antifreeze where animals can find it. If you're in the eastern hemisphere, cats will be vulnerable to bird flu when it gets in local wild bird populations in your area. The western hemisphere probably has a few years before it will be a problem here.
All told, there are many many good reasons to bring cats inside. My vet recommended it to me many years ago, and I'm very glad I finally took his advice. Mine have been much happier and healthier ever since.
Other than that, or creating some sort of barrier like a tall fence (which could in any case be climbed, though it might discourage them), I don't know of any way to allow your own cats to eat while keeping other cats and animals away.
posted
As a general rule, cats don't like to defecate where they eat. If you put a bowl of cat food on the porch it might help, but of course it also might attract the cats you don't want around.
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posted
Am I reading wrong, or doesn't she already put food on the porch? I'm thinking if it's your cats, they're sick or something. If it's the neighbor cats, yeah, they're probably doing it just to tick your cats off or tell you they don't like you.
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posted
I have nothing intelligent to add, but I want to be able to tell my friends I have been in an online discussion of cat scat.
Posts: 1877 | Registered: Apr 2005
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posted
I myself have little to add since all of my cats have been indoor, but how often does a thread title like "cat poop" come along?
Posts: 681 | Registered: Feb 2004
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posted
BTW, if it's a raccoon, the supersoaker idea will likely work just as well as it does on a cat. Just make sure that in either case you can fire from a place it can't reach.
Posts: 26071 | Registered: Oct 2003
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posted
I have this image of a pregnant SO, lying in wait, hunkered behind a cracked open window, waiting for a marauding animal to come and poop, camo makeup on, supersoaker in hand... Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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The other cats run off as soon as they see us even without being squirted. But, a supersoaker would be fun I must admit.
I'll have to think about moving the food. I like it on the porch because it makes feeding/watering easy and it's next to the cat house. It also means that our cats hang there a lot, so you can always give them pats when you're going in and out the door.
As someone suggested, I guess it *could* be a raccoon. They've been known to steal entire bags of cat food accidently left out on the porch. Could be a possum as well, as our dog regularly finds them out in the woods. Maybe I could retitle the thread, "Cat, Raccoon, or Possum Poop."
posted
Our neighbor's cats pooped on our welcome mat a couple of times. I think it was because they were pissed that we wouldn't let them in. I don't know why they stopped, but now they visit us on our deck all the time. They like the way we say "Hi kittykittykitty" and never try to touch them or pick them up.
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posted
Cats usually bury their poop by instinct. When they don't, it is to send a message. Not a friendly one, usually. YOUr cats may be doing it to keep other cats away. (mine once did it right in front of the door to the garage, where my husband always entered. Those two never got along. Suppose I should NOT have named the cat Oedipus )
If the feces are formed and dry, the cat isn't sick. If it is wet or runny, your cats may be sick. Sick is easier to fix than other causes.
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Other things they are in danger from outside are cars, packs of family dogs who will tear them limb from limb, coyotes who kill them for food and to eliminate competition for smaller prey, and people who deliberately put out poison, rat poison, or leave antifreeze where animals can find it. If you're in the eastern hemisphere, cats will be vulnerable to bird flu when it gets in local wild bird populations in your area. The western hemisphere probably has a few years before it will be a problem here. ![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
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