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How do I keep cats out of my garden?

I live in a town that is full of stray cats and outdoor cats. And my neighbors adopt cats for the Humane Society, so there are even more right around our property. We have a veggie garden, and I want to put in a second one. The trouble is, these cats all seem to think my garden is a toilet, so it is always full of cat poop. Is there any way to keep them out of the garden? Preferably something that doesn't involve chemicals (the garden is entirely organic; the seeds aren't even treated)? I'm at my wits' end with these critters.

Public Comments

1. get a dog
2. spray stinky stuff in your gharden?
3. you asked this question three times. : )
4. How about a fence? Or a squirt gun? (don't harm the kitties, they're just doing what they do)
5. they make little spike strips you lay around your garden, you just hide them in the grass. or get a dog, or put a fence around. good luck
6. cats don't like the flavor green apple so if you could incorporate that
7. Try putting vinegar around the outside of your garden and see how that reacts with them. If not, you may want to consider trying to contact the owners if you know who they are.
8. fill a bottle with normal tap water, and leave it outside, it worked with our stray cats, they see their own reflected on the bottle and get scared, well it worked for me...
9. there's one thing cats hate...WATER! so maybe buy some sprinklers and leave them on or hose down the cats everytime they come then they'll know not to come near you. hope this helpes!!
10. I'm not sure if this would work for that too, but I know it works for rabbits and deer. Go to a local salon or barber shop and ask for some hair. I know it sounds gross but mixing it in with soil, it leaves a "scent" and keeps animals away.
11. Hi x Erm sometimes i've seen my neighbour do this but you get an emty bottle and full it with water apparently it must scare them because my neighbour didnt like cats. or try to get something that will scare them my neighbour (a diffrent one) has a dog and when it gets out the dog will have a toilet in my garden and ruin the beautiful flowers so it is annoying:( good luck x
12. Landmines
13. You can buy lions dung to fertilise the edges of your garden- yes lion poop lol the poopy smell of larger mammals keeps them away. Im not sure where u can buy it possibly some store but way easier online. There are other organic method ive heard of have a look on google- cats dont like the scent of certain plants or fragrances. Im sure theres something organic u could put in the soil to put them off. make sure when u do this you get rid of the cats scent cos they mark their toilet as a toilet. cats are also attracted to freshly turfed soil so id advise chicken wire or small fence so put them off, altho they might be capable of jumping its more effort to jump over a fence everytime they wana poop aswell as your garden fence! If you have a friend with a dog you could invite him other to spray up a few trees too lol although that would only be a temporary measure whilst you find a more permanent one. best of luck. corin.
14. you can purchase 'cat proof spikes' for the top of your fences which would stop cats being able to climb up them. (also called 'fence spikes' 'wall spikes' or 'prikka strips') However, these aren't the prettiest of things... My gran has a similar problem and has an ornament in her garden (i think it's either a cat or a dog) which scares most of them away - you could try that otherwise. Best of luck
15. shoot them. no, really. get a dog. spray pheromones. get a fence that is uncooperative to cat feet. call the humane society and give them your situation, maybe they have some tips or ideas. tell your neighbors...i say shoot them though
16. expensive method that keeps ALL animals from your garden.. http://www.petfooddirect.com/store/product_detail.asp?pf_id=207100102&dept_id=1076&brand_id=1001&Page= homemade methods: string old scratched ( or new if you have no scratched) CD and hang them above the garden. the flashes of light run off birds, rabbits and some cats. Coleus Canina aka the-pee-off-plant or the Scardy cat coleus is a plant that has a odor that cats, dogs and foxes avoid.. easily propagated they will over winter indoors and should be planted 1-2 yards apart. Plant Rue. its a pretty blue flowering plant and cats dislike the smell.
17. I find having a big dog helps keep away cats. Unfortunately the dog does even more damage to the garden than the cats.
18. Kill one and leave it as an example.. I'm just saying...
19. Try some realistic looking fake snakes. Move them occasionally.
20. I see you got a whole slew of answers. I don't know if you've ever heard of a "Jerry Lewis". He's apparently some sort of gardening guru and one of his tips for keeping cats our of your garden is to plant a row of garlic, a row of onion, and a row of jalapeno peppers on the edges. The "violent" mix of spices doesn't go well with a cat's nose and they take care to skip that part. My mom used to put wooden stakes up and put some old pie pans on a string and string them from stakes. For the smaller flower boxes, she put a bunch of sharp ended sticks into the ground in the bare areas. It even kept the dog from getting comfortable.