Having your cat pooping anywhere besides her litter box can get to be pretty annoying. Seeing her feces in your garden for several days in a row can get especially frustrating.
Not only is your cat demonstrating a clear issue with using the proper place for her business, but it's also disrupting the garden you've put so much love and effort into.
You certainly have instantly thought of some solution to make her stop.
Maybe you’ve come up with an idea to use bleach, since you’ve thought the smell of it should be repellent for your furry friend. Therefore, pouring some bleach into your garden should stop your cat from pooping in it.
But, is this really true? Does bleach stop cats’ pooping in garden?
Let’s explore the answer to this question.
Is Bleach A Good Solution To Stop Cats’ Pooping In Your Garden?
I have to start with a definitive ‘no' right from the beginning.
Bleach isn’t a good repellent for felines. Contrary to what you’ve probably expected, cats actually might enjoy the smell of bleach.
The video below shows a cat that really enjoys the smell of bleach in a freshly cleaned bathroom.
PetKeen explains how this most probably occurs due to chlorine in bleach that releases pheromones and makes cats attracted to this smell.
So, instead of bleach preventing your cat from pooping in the garden, it might make this place even more attractive for her.
Is It Safe To Use Bleach As A Repellent?
Not only bleach isn’t a good solution for your problem with your cat pooping in the garden, but using this product can also be dangerous for your pet’s health.
Inhaling bleach can be harmful for cats, since this is a harsh and irritant cleaning product. Of course, this doesn’t mean that a cat that had a sniff of bleach once will immediately feel sick.
However, it’s still better not to use bleach as a product to stop your cat from destructive behaviors. Since she might be attracted to it, there’s a good chance that she might sniff it or even lick it.
Bleach is toxic for both humans and animals. Moreover, excess bleach can even harm the plants in your garden.
Higher ingestion might lead to bleach poisoning in felines, which could cause symptoms such as red skin, heavy drooling, and even foaming at the mouth.
To be on the safe side, you should alienate your cat from the room if you’re using bleach and better look for another product to stop her from pooping in the garden.
What Are Some Better Alternatives Than Bleach?
So, it can be concluded that bleach isn't’ the ideal solution to stop your cat from defecating onto your plants. Are there some safer ways to do this?
Yes, there are. The following five solutions are safer and more effective than using bleach in this situation.
1. Fence Your Garden
The ideal thing to do here would be to completely prevent your cat from getting into your garden.
Of course, this might not be the simplest task since most cats are such skillful jumpers.
One solution is to install a fence similar to the wire used on chicken coops, tilted in the direction from which the cat would typically approach.
If your garden is protected, your curious kitty will not be able to approach unless you decide to let her!
2. Use Citrus Repellent
Cats hate oranges, lemons, and all other citrus fruits.
There’s a good chance that your cat won’t find it appealing to poop in your garden if she smells the citrus scent in it.
This is also a pretty simple solution, since you only need to cook oranges or lemons together with some water, let it cool down, and then pour it in a spray bottle and disperse it around your garden.
3. Use Vinegar
Another scent that cats really dislike is that of vinegar, and this is something you certainly have in your home.
According to Pest Pointers, the extremely pungent aroma of vinegar overwhelms a cat’s sensitive sense of smell.
You can also make a deterrent spray here by mixing vinegar and some water in a spray bottle, and then spray it in your garden.
4. Put An Outside Litter Tray In Your Garden
Another thing worth trying is actually giving your cat her spot to defecate in your garden.
This approach allows you to keep your garden free from your cat's feces while providing her with the opportunity to relieve herself outdoors.
The outside litter tray should be easily accessible and shallow. You should also put litter that your furry friend is used to in it.
You can find some suggestions in our list of outdoor cat litter boxes.
5. Thorny Plants Might Also Help
There are also some flowers and trees that might serve as a natural protection from your cat pooping in your garden, such as rose trees or cactuses.
Thorny plants like these could discourage your kitty from choosing the garden as her favorite place to defecate. This method is quite subtle and, at the same time, effective.
Why Your Cat Might Be Pooping In The Garden?
There are several potential reasons behind this behavior.
Most likely, your cat is showing territorial behavior, which is a part of feline nature. She simply wants to mark that area as her own and keep the other cats away.
It’s also possible that your cat likes the feel of grass or soil in the particular spot in your garden she chooses as her ideal place to defecate.
Also, this might be the place where she finds the privacy and solitude she wants to have while pooping.
Furthermore, a change in the litter box habits could sometimes indicate stress or even medical problems in felines. To rule out these possibilities, you might want to have a talk with a veterinarian.
Whatever the reason is, this behavior is undesirable. You should ensure your cat has a clean, safe place to poop inside your household, and explore alternative methods to deter her from your garden that are safer than using bleach
Conclusion
Bleach might be a great solution for cleaning and disinfecting, but, this isn’t a good option to stop your cat’s defecating in an inappropriate place.
Not only it might be dangerous if your cat inhales or licks it, bleach also seems to be appealing to some cats, meaning that it doesn't’ make a successful option to stop them from making a mess in your garden.
Instead of bleach, you should try some other, safer options, such as a citrus repellent, vinegar, or simply planting some thorny plants in your garden.
You should also consider putting an outdoor litter tray for your cat to have her place to defecate while spending time outside.
In conclusion, bleach is definitely not the right choice for this situation, and you should ensure your cat is kept away from it even when using it around your toilet.
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