Cat attacking ducks

[K4zn4v3]

Heres the problem. My neighbor has a cat that is really mean. The cat lives outside and is able to go where ever it likes, which 90% of the time is my yard. It has already gone after my ducks on two occasions and Im sure it will try again. I have tried to talk to the cats owner about making it a house cat or keeping it in their yard but I was ignored. I cannot contact animal control or take any legal action because due to zoning laws I am not suppose to even have the ducks. The neighbors love the cat and would be devastated if it was hurt and I am an animal lover so killing the cat is not an option either. The only thing I can think of is to go to walmart and buy a low power airsoft gun and shoot the cat whenever it comes in my yard. It would not hurt it, it would just sting. I really dont want to do that either though. Putting up a fence is also not an option. So any ideas on how to keep the cat out of my yard.

 

[Enchanted Sunrise Farms]

Wow, i am having an identical problem. Even had a very long thread on the topic which got closed when our neighbor's mother stalked me on BYC to rant at me.

Here's the thing i have found, talking to cat owners rarely does any good. There are people who feel their cats have a right to be outside and do whatever they want, and they personally don't care what damage they cause. So others have to suffer with ruined gardens, injured or killed pets, and the horrible sounds of cat fights wafting through the night. All that being said, i love cats. i just keep mine safe and sound in my own house.

Anyhow, some suggestions i received were shooting the cat with a super soaker (for range and accuracy). Use vinegar water and perhaps a little food coloring so the neighbor knows the cat has been in your yard. Although with the food coloring you run the risk of the neighbor trying to accuse you of harming their cat. So maybe just the vinegar.

One option i'm exploring with my neighbors is to top our mutual fence with something, like wobbly hardware cloth or aviary netting that curves inward towards their yard so the cat can't get over the fence. This may only work in our situation as their cat tends to come over at a particular spot. Were the cat to come over farther down they would be where our goats roam and the goats are so curious they tend to scare cats out of that area.

Some people suggested to me to get a dog, but that comes with another whole host of problems. And who's to say the dog won't end up attacking your ducks? Animal Control suggested i get a mean rooster (my hens have voted a resounding "NO" on that option). They also suggested getting a peacock or geese. But again, that would entail me taking on another animal, more work, and i'm not up for that.

i'm not sure how air soft guns work. Are those the air guns that shoot little plastic balls? i've seen neighbor kids playing with them, shooting each other, but don't know how much that would sting a cat. So i'm thinking a super soaker water pistol might be your best bet.

Okay, last suggestion is to keep your ducks penned all the time. Totally not fair that you have to pen your pets because someone else feels their cat has a right to your yard, but that's unfortunately the way it is when you're dealing with unreasonable neighbors.

Good luck, and let me know what you try and what works for you.

 

[K4zn4v3]

Yes, an airsoft gun shoot little plastic balls. I have a dog but it wont do any good, he is 18 years old completly blind and almost completly deaf. I cannot put up a fence becuase the neighbor lives across a road and I dont want my front yard blocked. The cat has been lucky so far as to not draw blood or seriously hurt the ducks, but If it does I will not hesitate to kill it. In my state it is perfectly legal to shoot a ''pest''. The difference between pet and pest is about 30 feet, from my side of the road to their side of the road. Fencing in my ducks is also not going to happen, I would go ever to the neighbors and offer to put up a fence for their cat before I fence in my ducks.

 

[katharinad]

Here is my solution and it works like a charm. Only downside you have to get a couple of them.
Motion Activated ULTRASONIC PEST ANIMAL REPELLER

Each unit runs on 6 C batteries and can be set to different sound levels depending on the animal you are trying to keep away.
I decided to get one, because they showed on Myth Busters that it works. At the same time our golden retriever thought it was fun walking down the 200 foot driveway (fenced left and right), cross the street and roam around. Our other 3 dogs never walk down that way, but he decided to be adventurous. Needless to say he now avoids the driveway like the devil is in it. He walk to the spot he know is wont come on and looks at it really hard. He hates it, but it works. It also works on our cat. It does not work on our deaf dog.

I did buy them on ebay and I'm very happy with this seller:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Motion-Activate...811?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item255f2ce19b

Forgot to mention a red led light comes on when it is in action. Also my ducks do activate it, but they don't seem to hear it.

 

[K4zn4v3]

Quote:
Thats a good Idea but I did the math and I would have to buy at least 38 of them to place around the perimeter of my yard since they only have a 30 foot range. These would work great if the cat only came in through my front yard but the cat roams the entire neighborhood and comes in at any point of my yard.

 

[askjcm2005]

Hmm. Wish I could help as I have 9 cats but they are all indoors except one who does love to go up to the chickens and ducks and watch them. When I do let the chickens and ducks out the cat does come up and just walks around with them but has never tried to hurt them which shocks me because she loves to hunt. We do have 5 dogs as well so none of the stray cats ever stick around my property but what I use on my cats inside when they are up to no good is a squirt bottle, in your care you would need a super soaker or something for far distance because I am sure the cat splits when you see her. Your ducks should be in a fenced area though most the time for there own safety.

 

[pips&peeps]

My barn kitty got a wild hair this spring and decided it would be fun to chase the ducks. Well after he did it in front of me a couple times, I just grabbed the hose and soaked him real good. He quit immediately..........

 

[katharinad]

My cat is afraid of the ducks. She hunt everything else, but avoids the ducks. It all happened a couple of months ago when the ducks were in my back yard taking care of weeds etc. The cat was trying to catch a small bird in the shrub. The ducks were watching, started to talk and all ran towards the cat. She split as fast as she could and has been staying as far away as possible. Ducks are evil in her mind. My ducks also hang around with the 4 dogs. About 2 months ago they were thinking of grabbing my golden retrievers tail, but he turned around and they pretended that they never even tried or thought about it.

 

[Where The Wild Things Are]

Our animal control office here will let you take a live catch cage/trap. Once you have caught the cat, you just call them and they come pick up the live animal. Now one of 3 things will happen. Either the owners will tire of bailing their cat out of jail. Or they won't bail it out at all. Or the animal control will simply take away the animal and ticket the owners. If your animal control does not offer live traps, then you can buy one from IFA, Tractor Supply, Harbor Frieght, or Cal Ranch. Once you have the cat in the trap simply take it to your animal control office. Then if your neighbors ask if you have seen their cat, you can tell them where it is. You will have reported documented proof that the animal was delivered unharmed to animal services. I assure you it's effective...my neighbors got tired of bailing their cat out of jail. They surrendered the cat to animal services, and will not be allowed to adopt another in the state of Utah. Its win, win

 

[pascopol]

Quote:
If you rule out harming a cat and going against a neighboor, sorry, I do not see viable solution for you.

However if I was in such situation I would trap the cat and take it to the pound as a stray.

Cat would disappear, problem solved.

This way you would not hurt the cat or openly take action againts the neiboour.