Good Samaritan pushed too far by stray cats’ habits
DEAR JOAN>> A feral cat gave birth on our patio three years ago. We trapped her and the kittens and had them spayed and neutered. Now we’ve got a family of five living in our yard.
They’re accustomed to us and they roll over on their backs and allow us to touch them, and we feed them both wet and dry cat food daily and give them fresh water. We live along the railroad tracks, and they are getting plenty of field mice in their diets.
The problem is they (poop) all over. How long do feral cats live under these conditions. and when should I expect my garden to be cat feces-free?
— Jim, Cherryland
DEAR JIM >> The average age of stray cats is 8 years, but the average age of a house cat is 16 years.
You’ve gone out of your way to make these cats welcome, which is a good thing. Life out in the world is difficult for cats, so having human friends that care about them is a huge plus. That you’ve taken the time and the expense to have them neutered is an amazing gift to them and to the neighborhood.
Because you have provided a safe harbor for the cats, they have no desire to leave, and even though, thankfully, they can’t reproduce, you might attract other cats to your yard.
There are a couple of things you can do to reclaim your garden. The first is perhaps the easiest. Put out a litter box or create a designated pooping spot for the cats and keep it clean. The cats might not know exactly what’s up, but if you encourage them to use it by putting them in it and rewarding them with treats when they go, they’ll get the idea.
They still might prefer the garden bed, so you’ll need to make it an uncomfortable place for them to go. You can try using deterrents — sprays, citrus, peppermint oil — on the perimeter of the bed, or cover it with bird netting, plastic bags or tarps, or by burying plastic forks (handles down, tines showing just above the soil level).
If you opt for bird netting, make sure it is tacked down tightly, and check it often to make sure creatures haven’t gotten tangled up in it.
As the cats are quite tame, you could try turning them into indoor cats and then find new homes for them.
DEAR JOAN>> I have a metal bird bath on a pedestal. It is looking very faded these days, especially the basin, which I clean often.
Is there a safe spray paint and sealer that I can use to refresh the look of the bird bath?
I don’t want to do anything that might harm the birds.
— Sean Stone, Union City
DEAR SEAN>> The general consensus is that any paint that doesn’t contain lead, oil or petroleum products is fine to use on birdbaths, but read the label to make certain.
Most paints won’t hold up to being underwater, so you’ll need a sealer of some type to keep the paint from bubbling up — polyurethane is considered safe as long as you give it time to dry completely — or, as some people suggest, use a marine paint. Others say use whatever safe paint you want and then put in an insert to actually hold the water.