cats pissing on the patio

[SteveB]

[SteveB]

Are you saying it is needlessly cruel to deal with a free roaming animal in the country that is eating your stock? Killing something quickly is not cruelty, as any farmer or rancher knows.

Steve

[The Real Tom]

Cruel?

These animals aren't imoblized and starved to death in a bed.

:\\

[Jim Yanik]

CatMan wrote in news: [e-mail]:

Jeez,some people are KILL-crazy. Sick.

[Jim Yanik]

"SteveB" wrote in news:GCz3e.52409$AN1.16910@fed1read03:

It's amazing how many people are needlessly cruel to animals.

[Oscar_Lives]

That works good, but I prefer the ol car antifreeze. It takes a little longer, but gets the job done well.

Wayfarin is good for the tuna bowl.

Small pieces of sponges soaked in bacon grease are also very effective.

Good luck.

[Oscar_Lives]

They sure do in my yard!

[CatMan]

Those are great tips Oscar...thanks! Meeeeeeeeeeeeouch!

[nielloeb]

I feel I've been misunderstood and want to make sure my position is clear. I had cats marking in my garage, patio, and bushes. They made things smell and die and drove my inside dog crazy. I researched and tried everything from shooing them to throwing a tennis ball at them to Tabasco or cayenne pepper on the ground to water spraying to traps to neighborhood notes to talking with owners. My talk with owners resulted in exactly what my research showed: they suddenly didn't like me and they did nothing about the problem. I was nice, explaining about my dying bushes and smelly patio. I simply asked if they thought we could do something about it. They said you can't rein in a cat. That's true. If you let a cat outside, it will wander around. My local laws make it illegal for a dog or cat to be off its owner's property without a leash or the owner's full command. Only two things worked to keep cats out of my yard. The first worked only partially. It was a trap from the humane society. It worked on only one cat. The cat had no tags (another illegality). The humane society said they would keep the cat for seven days for an owner to claim it. Then it would be up for adoption for seven days. Then it would be put down. The owner did not claim it. My research showed this is typical. The only other thing that worked to keep cats out of my yard worked

100% of the time. I shot them with a BB gun. It's legal to shoot BB guns in my city. I shot the cats far enough away so as to not caused injury other than a bruise, and away from the eyes and ears to prevent blindness or deafness. I don't know whether it's legal to hit cats in my city. I bet it is okay. After all, pinging or bruising a cat with a BB is no more injurious than spanking. And people spank their cats (although the usually punishment is a finger flick to the nose) all the time with no outrage.

[Jim Yanik]

"SteveB" wrote in news:MdG3e.52656$AN1.5025@fed1read03:

There's a big difference between killing an animal eating farm stock and killing a pet because it's a nuisance.(urban settings,too,not farms) We have people here advocating putting out rat poison,and other cruel methods with the intent to kill or seriously injure a neighborhood pet.

[Doug Kanter]

That's not true. My 16 yr old son told me so, after I warned him about wearing a helmet and goggles for the sport. Teenagers are always right. Or, almost. When he got to the paintball place, they handed him a helmet with goggles. He refused to look me in the eye at that moment. :-)

[Doug Kanter]

Electric fence? What kind of batteries? How long do they last? The brand you have - would you buy it again? I'm in the market for that within the next couple of weeks. Not really in the mood to trench an AC line to the garage.

[Doug Kanter]

"Pet" is just a word, Jim. It only has meaning to the owners, and the moment they let their pet out the door unsupervised, the word loses all its meaning. Now, it's just another animal.

[SteveB]

Google Fi-Shock

They have several models. A basic one that plugs into an AC plug and steps down the electricity is about $30, and all you need. You then run two wires off the unit (about 4"x6"x3") to what you want to electrify. Sometimes one of the leads goes to ground. Sometimes, you might want to use two parallel strips of metal screening on a wood porch to get them when they are walking in. I like putting one on a piece of metal screen, and the other on a metal bowl of water or food. Put a sheet of plastic under the bowl. This insulates the bowl from the metal screen.

When the prowling animal (cat, dog, raccoon, possum, whatever) makes contact with the bowl, they will get a shock that will make him/her/it stay away from your porch for the rest of its natural life. It will not kill the animal, as it has a low voltage.

A really simple quick inexpensive way to get rid of pesky animals. The only other thing better is the motion sensor water sprayer, but they are about $70, and can't be used where water is an issue.

These shockers work, and are a million laughs.

Steve

[SteveB]

Let's add another definition: responsible pet owner.

A "responsible pet owner" provides for the needs of their animal. They give it food and water. They give it companionship, love, and kindness. They take it to the doctor when it is sick. They provide a warm/cool safe place for it to live.

They do not let it wander out unsupervised. They don't allow it to wander into traffic. They don't allow it to wander into any place where it might be hurt by any means.

They are like five year olds. Yes, you can let them run around on their own, but it takes them about ten minutes to get into something and get hurt.

"Responsible pet owners" take care of their "pets."

Unresponsible pet owners do not, and just like unresponsible parents, then want to go after (and usually sue) anyone or anything that their kid gets messed up by, but don't want to mention the fact they weren't doing their job and fulfilling their responsibilities in the first place.

I notice that we don't have people writing in and complaining that their dog/cat who stays at home or on leash or under control got into trouble. It's the ones that are kicked out the door and let back in eight hours later that have a problem.

Steve

[Jim Yanik]

"Doug Kanter" wrote in news:FwY3e.2786$ [e-mail]:

"Pet" does have meaning;a feral cat or dog is no one's pet. These kill-crazy people know that the animal in their sights is somebody's pet.They aren't "losing crops",either.

Unsupervised has nothing to do with it. Many areas,cats are not required to be under "supervision" or on a leash.

[SteveB]

"Doug Kanter" wrote

But, so far,

I had the same problem here. Went to pet stores. They wanted a fortune, and didn't have anything but kits that had zillions of wires and connectors and insulators, etc. Went to tack and feed stores, and same thing. Only high priced models with high prices that would energize five miles of fence.

Enter: Google.

I had what I wanted within five days. Delivered to my door.

Steve

[Doug Kanter]

Let's add a definition, then. If someone will cry or otherwise have a bad day when a particular animal is killed, maybe you can call it a "pet". But, that is of no significance to anyone but the person who will be upset. Again, it's just a word. And, if they let it roam the neighborhood, they probably wanted it dead anyway.

[Doug Kanter]

This sounds about right. I guess the next logical step is what each of us does when we know we're dealing with an irresponsible pet owner. Personally, I relegate them and their pets to the same category as empty Chinese food take-out containers.

[Doug Kanter]

I need to fence a 30x30 garden plot. Still looking for the best way. It's amazing - 20 minutes south of Rochester NY, there's a dairy farm every half mile, with an electric fence around at least part of the land. But, so far, I haven't found a farm supply store where anyone knows anything about electric fences, and might actually want to take some of my money in return for the materials I need. Gotta pull over at a farm later this week and find out if they ordered theirs from another planet, or what.