HELP! Animal Control

[BubbleWright]

Neighborhood cats have decided that my front door step is a litter box. Weekdays I leave for work at 5 AM and have to be careful where I step on the way out the door. When I get home, the afternoon sun has cooked the mess, which now stinks to high heaven and is covered with flies. The deposits appear in the middle of the night. I bought a spray called Boundary which seems to work but at $14 a bottle it is expensive and it needs to be sprayed every night. Any ideas on how to stop this from happening short of an electric fence/grid or very large doberman? 

[Merlin the Elder]

I've never heard of such a thing! Cats are normally such fastidious creatures! There is a water sprayer that works by proximity to turn on. Frequently used around ponds to keep unwanted animals from getting the fish.  Are you sure this isn't a prankster?

[Grov]

Try some kind of predator urine.

[irish]

Well, my kittens used to claw at furniture. So I took some duct tape and reversed it, by connecting  long strips of it, then taping the sticky side up, on the furniture. That took care of the problem, also cats seem to dislike aluminum foil taped on things. Crumble it up, unroll it, then tape it down. If you use anything with ammonia smell, that wont deter them at all. Maybe try putting out a litter box?

[NoBill Lurker]

Could it be raccoons or opossums maybe?

I can see cats spraying the front door or turning your yard into a mine field, but leaving droppings on your door step is just odd...

As far as keeping the varmints away, I second the motion activated water sprayer!

[Gwen aka Punstergal]

If it is cats, first step is to scrub that area VERY thoroughly with detergent. If there is any lingering ammonia (pee) smell at all, then the area is "marked" as a litter area. Cats ARE fastidious, in that they usually go potty in places that are already designated as potty areas. So make sure you eradicate all those traces- if you have a door mat with a weave, this may mean getting rid of it entirely. A good non-toxic solution for cleaning if you don't want to use harsh chemicals is a 50/50 mix of vinegar and water.

You can treat the area with a deterrent like you bought, or try a natural deterrent like lavendar, eucalyptus, geranium, absinthe, rue, or lemon thyme, which you can have planted nearby (or in pots) or sprayed around as an essential oil (your store-bought spray is probably some derivative of these).

Whatever you do, Do not clean the cat spots with BLEACH products, no matter the temptation. Cat urine contains ammonia and even though it's not a lot, you will be creating mustard gas and can pose a health risk to yourself and the animals.

[BubbleWright]

The reason I think the varmint is a cat is 'cause I've seen them a couple of times when I came home late. I live in an apartment that opens to a driveway. On one side is my landlord's house and the other side is a tall privacy fence. The neighborhood is an old tract development built in the early 1950's.

Are you sure this isn't a prankster?

I would doubt this since I know only a few people in the hood and have not been here all that long to annoy anyone.

Try some kind of predator urine.

My front door gets the full afternoon sun... I'm sure this would really stink when it heated up! My landlord would probably ask me to leave (lol)

Maybe try putting out a litter box?

I had thought of that but why encourage them... they are not my cats.

Gwen- you posted while I was writing this. I'll try your suggestions... Thanks all.....  Felix aka The Bubble Wright

[Magister]

A trip to your local SPCA for a few free traps?  They typically loan them out for a short period.  Put some wet food in there and leave them out over night.

Problem typically solved.

[William_MacKean]

A trip to your local SPCA for a few free traps?  They typically loan them out for a short period.  Put some wet food in there and leave them out over night.

Problem typically solved.

Yup.  Trap them and call the pound.  Scrub it with bleach often.  Cat's don't like that smell.

Though I am not quite convinced it is cats, because thet instinctively bury their poo.  Coons don't.  Possums don't.  Neighborhood kids don't.

[Mairte]

Yeah, I would go with the coon and possums too....
I also agree with the traps.

[Becky10]

Scrub it with bleach often.  Cat's don't like that smell.

I've never met a cat that didn't love the smell of bleach. I wouldn't recommend using it unless you want more to show up but like everyone else said this really doesn't sound like cats. We have like 4 strays that hang about outside and and about 10 others in the area and I've never heard anything like this, I would go with the traps as well problem solved whatever it is.

[BubbleWright]

I scooped up the poop and dropped it at the far side of the yard. Next I hosed down and scrubbed a large section of the drive in front of my door with a bucket of hot pine cleaner (1/2 a bottle). I then sprayed the Boundary all over the drive. There were no presents this morning. I will continue to spray every night until the stuff runs out. My landlord and also my next door neighbor have confirmed that a large white cat hangs around the drive under the cars. The cat drives the neighbor's dog wild.

[LadyDracolich]

When cats do that, it's a sign that they're claiming the territory.  It's meant to be disrespectful.  He's probably smelled some other cat scent around and has decided that since this is now HIS territory, but he's got to make it known to everyone around.  Good luck.

[BubbleWright]

Well... this morning I had another gift on my door step despite having sprayed the area with the Boundary spray. I just sprayed again but with a 100 % vinegar solution. Next stop will be to Tractor Supply for the electric fence!

[Merlin the Elder]

All due respect, I still don't think it's a cat doing it. I've had cats around for all of my adult life—40+ years—and leaving droppings just isn't something I've ever seen. Admittedly, I'm not a feline-ologist or whatever, but it is a bit out of character for the species.