Free Roaming Cat Making My Cats Nervous

[Lisannez]

We just moved a few months ago to a house in Washington, DC. We have two cats and after living in a condo for years were overjoyed for them to have some outdoor space. They are both indoor cats, and we never let them out unsupervised but they still do enjoy time outside. With our Tuxie we actually walk her on a leash in the yard. We also have two fenced in decks, first level and second and enjoy sitting out there with her. Our shy ragdoll had even started to come out on the decks. All was well until about a week ago when we started to notice that it smelled like cat pee around our cars, and we knew our cats were not the culprits. Then we begin to see at least daily a white cat with calico markings in our yard all hours of the day and night. The cat is definitely not a stray although it does not appear to have a collar on, and is well fed and friendly. Normally I would be fine with a friendly cat stopping by, but our cats are not used to other cats and this cat's presence is causing them stress. Yesterday the cat approached the yard and I found my Tuxie in the corner hissing at the cat. The cat was not hissing back and seemed sort of surprised by the response. I ushered my cat inside. My cat hissed at me (which is rare) then hissed at her sister and was hissing for the rest of the evening. I went back outside and the other cat was on my steps trying to get up onto the deck, again not mean just like do you want to play? This scenario has repeated itself several times to the point I am just not comfortable having my cats outside even with me. On the second level deck the other cat cannot climb up but my cats can see the cat from above and get stressed and start hissing.

From what I understand this is allowed in DC meaning cats can roam free. I know this cat belongs to someone, and I sort of want to post on our local neighborhood page to ask if anyone has lost this cat. I know no one has lost the cat, but I want to make whomever the actual owner is aware that their cat needs to stay out of my yard or away from my cats. My cats are spayed so it's not that. I truly think this cat just wants to play but my cats will have none of it. I also worry about disease or fighting. What would you all do in my situation? We are in the process of building a small catio but this cat will still be able to sit outside the catio and upset my cats. Will they get used to it? FYI they are fine with the dogs that pop by or live next door, just not cats.

 

[Kieka]

I have indoor/outdoor cats, so dealing with neighborhoods cats is right in my wheelhouse. The number one thing is to let the other cat know it is not welcome. Which means telling it to go home and shooing it away whenever you see it. Your yard is your cats territory now and the only way the other cat will know that is with constant reinforcement that it isn't welcome. For the nighttime, you can get a motion sensor sprinkler that will spritz the other cat if it comes around when your cats are in for the night. It usually will take a few weeks but eventually the other cats will stop coming around and your cats will be more comfortable. It does suck in the sense that shooing away cats is not a fun task but if your cats are uncomfortable in their new home then it's what you have to do. Consider yourself their guards or an extension of their territory protection squad and tell the invader to go home. Another option is install a fence guard around your yard that prevents cats from going over the fence.

And tracking down the owner and telling them their cat is not welcome won't do anything, TBH. If the cat is free roaming then it is free roaming. If someone told me my cats weren't welcome in there yard, then tell my cats to go home, wave a hose in their direction, turn on a yard tool, they will go away. I can't tell my cats to only go in one yard or not go to the old horse field. The only way they learn not to go somewhere is to be shooed away whenever they do go there. I understand the concern over disease but there are usually so many feral cats that the bigger risk is disease with them. If your letting a cat outside you have to be proactive by keeping up with the vaccines you have control over and getting immediate attention for any injuries that will happen

 

[Lisannez]

I have indoor/outdoor cats, so dealing with neighborhoods cats is right in my wheelhouse. The number one thing is to let the other cat know it is not welcome. Which means telling it to go home and shooing it away whenever you see it. Your yard is your cats territory now and the only way the other cat will know that is with constant reinforcement that it isn't welcome. For the nighttime, you can get a motion sensor sprinkler that will spritz the other cat if it comes around when your cats are in for the night. It usually will take a few weeks but eventually the other cats will stop coming around and your cats will be more comfortable. It does suck in the sense that shooing away cats is not a fun task but if your cats are uncomfortable in their new home then it's what you have to do. Consider yourself their guards or an extension of their territory protection squad and tell the invader to go home. Another option is install a fence guard around your yard that prevents cats from going over the fence.

And tracking down the owner and telling them their cat is not welcome won't do anything, TBH. If the cat is free roaming then it is free roaming. If someone told me my cats weren't welcome in there yard, then tell my cats to go home, wave a hose in their direction, turn on a yard tool, they will go away. I can't tell my cats to only go in one yard or not go to the old horse field. The only way they learn not to go somewhere is to be shooed away whenever they do go there. I understand the concern over disease but there are usually so many feral cats that the bigger risk is disease with them. If your letting a cat outside you have to be proactive by keeping up with the vaccines you have control over and getting immediate attention for any injuries that will happen

Thanks. These are some really great ideas. We will try the sprinklers and be clear that the cat needs to get out. Our cats are all up to date with their vaccines, but I still have concerns with them being hurt or injured. I just feel like we cannot enjoy our time outside with them because of this.

 

[Kieka]

Thanks. These are some really great ideas. We will try the sprinklers and be clear that the cat needs to get out. Our cats are all up to date with their vaccines, but I still have concerns with them being hurt or injured. I just feel like we cannot enjoy our time outside with them because of this.

If they are only going outside with you, it should be fairly simple to prevent injury by shooing away the other cat. I tend to make sure I am between my cat and the other when I tell the other cat to go home. Just so my cat knows I am directing it away from them. Just remember, if the cats are fighting do NOT try to physically break it up yourself. Grab a rake, spray them with a hose, drop something nearby but do not get between them with hands, arms or legs. Everyone I've ever known whose tried to physically break up a cat or dog fight has ended up worse off then their animals.

 

[Sidewinder]

Hmm, looks like an ideal spot for that link I found:

Video: How to stop cats pissing on your car | GrrlScientist

 

[Lisannez]

If they are only going outside with you, it should be fairly simple to prevent injury by shooing away the other cat. I tend to make sure I am between my cat and the other when I tell the other cat to go home. Just so my cat knows I am directing it away from them. Just remember, if the cats are fighting do NOT try to physically break it up yourself. Grab a rake, spray them with a hose, drop something nearby but do not get between them with hands, arms or legs. Everyone I've ever known whose tried to physically break up a cat or dog fight has ended up worse off then their animals.

It should be and that’s good advice to use a rake and not get in between. Growing up I lived in a very rural area and our cats always were indoor/outdoor unfortunately all of them were hit by cars. It’s normal to me for cats to roam in rural areas but where we live is very city so it was surprising that cats would roam free among so many major roads. I hope me shooing the cat away makes my cats feel safe.

 

[Lisannez]

Hmm, looks like an ideal spot for that link I found:

Video: How to stop cats pissing on your car | GrrlScientist

Ha ha that’s great!

 

[goingpostal]

What a pain! I wish people would simply keep their cats responsibly contained, it's rather rude to expect others to buy extra things to keep their yards free of someone's else pet. Plus it stressing your own pets out in their yard and pissing all over your things, that's just gross.

Around here cats aren't supposed to run loose so they get picked up and brought to the humane society, I used to see a lot of stray/loose cats around and now it's much more rare. Occasionally one would come up to my porch and my cats are not impressed by that at all and hearing vicious fights at night was very common and riled up all my animals.

 

[Lisannez]

What a pain! I wish people would simply keep their cats responsibly contained, it's rather rude to expect others to buy extra things to keep their yards free of someone's else pet. Plus it stressing your own pets out in their yard and pissing all over your things, that's just gross.

Around here cats aren't supposed to run loose so they get picked up and brought to the humane society, I used to see a lot of stray/loose cats around and now it's much more rare. Occasionally one would come up to my porch and my cats are not impressed by that at all and hearing vicious fights at night was very common and riled up all my animals.

I kind of feel that way too. I can understand in a more rural area, but in a city like this the only place for cats to roam is in other people’s yards or the roads, there’s not really public space or farmland. I do think that the neighborhood association would actually do something about it if the owner was reported but I feel bad doing that. Here if you call the humane society or animal control they will spay or neuter than re release the cats to the area where they were found so that does not help. I also know that some cats will drive their owners crazy to go outside, and if you did not have the cat from birth its hard to change that. But if you are living in a city like this the cat may be better to be rehomed.

 

[IndyJones]

Do you have a garden hose? There was a cat making a nuisance of it's self at my place (harassing the birds, crapping in the yard etc.) I just get out the hose and spray the water jet just next to the cat not directly on the cat and yell "shoo! Git!".

 

[Lisannez]

Do you have a garden hose? There was a cat making a nuisance of it's self at my place (harassing the birds, crapping in the yard etc.) I just get out the hose and spray the water jet just next to the cat not directly on the cat and yell "shoo! Git!".

We do indeed have a water hose. We will try that. Since I last wrote we have not seen the cat around, and have sat out on the deck everytime with our cat when she was outside. But the cat is still peeing and marking on our cars. Ugh.