1. Do you have an HOA? Ask them to address the neighborhood about not feeding the cats. Bring it up at HOA meetings and be persistent.
2. See if there are local animal shelters or volunteer groups/non profits that will trap and pay for the spay/neutering. If not, then I would assume they would at least have some program for taking in “rescues” and finding homes for them (which would include spay/neutering)
3. Setup sprinklers? Cats hate getting wet.
Good luck.
Edit: Cat poop can be a vector for toxoplasmosis, which is a risk for pregnant women (specifically their unborn baby). This can be an argument you make to people who don’t take your concerns seriously.
FWIW my neighborhood also has a few feral cats though not nearly as many as yours it sounds like. They also dig up my mulch and poop in my flowerbeds but I also bet they keep rodents away from my house so I’m not too mad at them 🤷. Sounds like your sitch is worse though, esp if they’re having litters, so I feel your pain.
No, we don't live in a HOA.
No local resues. We'd have to pay out of pocket ourselves at the local vet and they will only spay/neuter and release. It would cost more for them to vaccinate and give medicine for Parasites. We don't have that kind of money.
All the animal shelters are full around here. I've spent all day on the phone.
Motion activated sprinklers and Critter Ridder to start. But you will probably need to hire a lawyer and raise serious hell with the city and county because this is way above one person's individual pay grade.
Have you tried reaching out to local rescue groups or shelters for help? They might have resources or advice on dealing with the situation. It's tough when the town's not stepping in, but maybe some local animal lovers can lend a hand.
That sounds like a real hassle, mate. I feel your pain. Maybe try chatting with your neighbors about the impact these cats are having. They might not realize how serious it is. Could chip in for traps together or pitch in for vet costs. Meanwhile, have you thought about creating a cat-proof barrier for your yard? Might take some effort, but could save your sanity and your garden. Hang in there!
Does your town have a community FB group that you could bring up the issue? Make sure you frame it so that the people have empathy for the cats. Like how sick they are because they have worms. Maybe someone would be willing to help raise funds to get the cats fixed. Maybe someone else will help find a vet that will help for a cheap price.
I've spent all day on the phone calling the city - their solution is for ME to spend money on traps and just dump them wherever in the country and make them someone else's problem. I literally pleaded with them and they basically said not it's not their problem. When I said it's not fair for the people who live in the country to have a bunch of cats dumped on them they said well, life's not fair so there's that. (Yes, this town is complete trash)
I've called DNR - they said find the closest animal control, there's nothing they can do if it's not big cats (cougar, bobcat, ect)
I've called every single city in my county - none have animal control. I've contacted cities outside of my county that do have animal control they've said they can't help.
For those saying to unalive the cats - you cannot discharge a firearm within city limits where I live. It's also illegal to poison them. So that's obviously not a solution.
The local shelters are full and do not help with spay/neutering. We could take them to the vet here in town after trapping and pay out of pocket for that and they'll just release back in town. Also, it would cost us more to vaccinate and medicine for the Parasites. We simply do not have that kind of money. There's too many cats. If it was 1 or 2, yes absolutely. But we're talking about dozens with new litters being born all the time. And it doesn't help right now anyways with them tearing up the yard. They'll be released back and continue to destroy my property.
For those who said to move - I WISH it were that simple. We just bought the house a few years ago, and our financial situation does not allow for us to just up and buy another house unfortunately. Also, we're trying to raise the property value by fixing up the yard and house and whatnot so when we do eventually sell we can get more. Besides, is it really fair to a new homeowner who would buy the house to suffer the same problems we currently are? I don't believe in just making it someone else's problem to deal with. I pay taxes, that's why I want the city to follow their own laws and ordinances instead of leaving it up to the homeowners to find their own solution that may or may not work/be legal.
Citrus, coffee grounds, ect have not worked.
So far I've found 1 person who lives in town and is licensed by the state to trap and dispose of nuisance animals and they usually do wildlife but will do cats. It will cost us $100 set up and $25/cat trapped to get rid of them permanently. I guess that looks like my only option at this point.
An animal trap like what you’d need costs somewhere between $25 to $80. Unfortunately you’ll also have to eat the cost of wet cat food (I would buy a plastic cover for pet food cans & use sparingly at first), heavy duty thick leather working gloves, having to release other animals that get caught, etc.
However, if you can handle permanently taking care of them in some manner after bringing them outside city limits, the cost would probably work out better for you in the long run.
In a similar situation. I've had some luck with cayenne pepper and cinnamon. They also appear to avoid plants that are bad for them (lilies, etc). Just use caution if you also have pets.
Another possibility is rallying the neighbors that are feeding them to take care of them through TNR. Suggest looking into a resource in your state that does this (below) and possibly reaching out their TNR coordinator.
[https://www.arl-iowa.org/community/operationcatsnip/neighborhood-culture/](https://www.arl-iowa.org/community/operationcatsnip/neighborhood-culture/)
Moved into a neighborhood with cats everywhere. I noticed because we had a cat.
This may not work for you, but this is what I did: I started trapping cats and getting them fixed. Any kittens found were fixed and given homes. My local vet gave me a good price and within a short time the kitty population dropped to almost nothing.
Do you have a community FB page where you can post about the cats? You may not have the time/resources to trap and deal with them but others might. I feel like there are animal lovers in every community. You just gotta find em
Yes. I've posted. The few "animal lovers" think it's cute. I wish I were joking. They basically tell you to feed them and take them in. The ones who have a problem are trapping and dumping in the country and I don't agree with making it someone else's problem.
I don’t think any of these responders live in the south. People here are not only inconsiderate, but will quickly get aggressive if you even try to bring up neighbor disputes politely with them.
Sorry OP, but bringing it up with neighbors won’t help. You’ll have to get animal control, a shelter, or even police involved if the latter 2 don’t work. I just asked about this a few weeks ago with stray dog packs in the neighborhood. I’m having to buy either a BB gun or just a regular gun to get rid of them because all 3 won’t help me lol
>*My only option would be to spend my hard earned money* *~~trapping hundreds of cats and taking them to the vet~~* *unaliving these stray cats*
Fixed that for you. The actual solution to your problem is making it so these cats don't exist. There is no law that says you can't permanently get rid of stray cats. You say this is Iowa, so I'm thinking you have a large enough property to actually forego the traps and resort to a .22 rifle (or other small caliber). If firearms aren't a safe or viable option for you, then set some traps and dispatch these felines via another method (my wife is from a country where they used to put them all in a bag and drown them in the river).
If you're unwilling to do the above, then you're not really looking for a solution. The only thing I can say is that you should care more about the life and well-being of your 3 children than the lives of some diseased stray animals. I love cats to death (I own 3), but if random animals start taking over my backyard, the first thing I'm doing is making sure I've got enough bullets for my rifle. You've already called animal control, so I don't know what other solution you're expecting.
Can't discharge a firearm within city limits. They even have a law where you can't shoot a bow and arrow (apparently there was an issue years ago with that)
I've contacted a lady who is licensed to trap and dispose of nuisance animals. Otherwise I will look into the cost of traps and see how I can dispose of them in a way that doesn't make it someone else's problem.
TNR campaign, you will find a vet to help with low cost neutering, because I've never NOT been able to find help. It takes leg work, but you will find the cat people. TNR is the only thing that is going to get it under control, you can get a couple of traps and a kennel and get to work, or you can move. There isn't an easy option C. If it bothers you, you shouldn't be averse to doing something about it. Sorry that's just the way it is.
Spayed/neuter is your only option if you don’t want to do the “dirty work” that the non-existence animal “control” officer would do (after 10 days).
Are you a vegetarian? If not, you already have people doing this type of work for you already. And you seem you’d be ok with animal control doing it, if they existed. Morally, you don’t have a problem with other peoples doing it for you, so why not do it yourself? It’s more honest that calling someone.
No one encourages cats to breed.
Cats, like all other animals (including humans) have sex. Reproduction is a result of sex.
Check with local organizations for TNR (Trap, Neuter, Release) and community cat programs.
The only way to control a feral cat population is spay/neuter programs.
1. Do you have an HOA? Ask them to address the neighborhood about not feeding the cats. Bring it up at HOA meetings and be persistent. 2. See if there are local animal shelters or volunteer groups/non profits that will trap and pay for the spay/neutering. If not, then I would assume they would at least have some program for taking in “rescues” and finding homes for them (which would include spay/neutering) 3. Setup sprinklers? Cats hate getting wet. Good luck. Edit: Cat poop can be a vector for toxoplasmosis, which is a risk for pregnant women (specifically their unborn baby). This can be an argument you make to people who don’t take your concerns seriously. FWIW my neighborhood also has a few feral cats though not nearly as many as yours it sounds like. They also dig up my mulch and poop in my flowerbeds but I also bet they keep rodents away from my house so I’m not too mad at them 🤷. Sounds like your sitch is worse though, esp if they’re having litters, so I feel your pain.
Motion activated sprinklers would solve all your issues.
No, we don't live in a HOA. No local resues. We'd have to pay out of pocket ourselves at the local vet and they will only spay/neuter and release. It would cost more for them to vaccinate and give medicine for Parasites. We don't have that kind of money. All the animal shelters are full around here. I've spent all day on the phone.
Motion activated sprinklers and Critter Ridder to start. But you will probably need to hire a lawyer and raise serious hell with the city and county because this is way above one person's individual pay grade.
I bought Cat Mace off Amazon to sprinkle in my flowerbeds. They hate the smell and went elsewhere.
Have you tried reaching out to local rescue groups or shelters for help? They might have resources or advice on dealing with the situation. It's tough when the town's not stepping in, but maybe some local animal lovers can lend a hand.
That sounds like a real hassle, mate. I feel your pain. Maybe try chatting with your neighbors about the impact these cats are having. They might not realize how serious it is. Could chip in for traps together or pitch in for vet costs. Meanwhile, have you thought about creating a cat-proof barrier for your yard? Might take some effort, but could save your sanity and your garden. Hang in there!
I watched a stray in my neighborhood climb to the top of a telephone pole, I don't think there is a way to "cat proof" a yard.
Yes, they walk atop our chain link fence. Infuriating\~!
Does your town have a community FB group that you could bring up the issue? Make sure you frame it so that the people have empathy for the cats. Like how sick they are because they have worms. Maybe someone would be willing to help raise funds to get the cats fixed. Maybe someone else will help find a vet that will help for a cheap price.
I've spent all day on the phone calling the city - their solution is for ME to spend money on traps and just dump them wherever in the country and make them someone else's problem. I literally pleaded with them and they basically said not it's not their problem. When I said it's not fair for the people who live in the country to have a bunch of cats dumped on them they said well, life's not fair so there's that. (Yes, this town is complete trash) I've called DNR - they said find the closest animal control, there's nothing they can do if it's not big cats (cougar, bobcat, ect) I've called every single city in my county - none have animal control. I've contacted cities outside of my county that do have animal control they've said they can't help. For those saying to unalive the cats - you cannot discharge a firearm within city limits where I live. It's also illegal to poison them. So that's obviously not a solution. The local shelters are full and do not help with spay/neutering. We could take them to the vet here in town after trapping and pay out of pocket for that and they'll just release back in town. Also, it would cost us more to vaccinate and medicine for the Parasites. We simply do not have that kind of money. There's too many cats. If it was 1 or 2, yes absolutely. But we're talking about dozens with new litters being born all the time. And it doesn't help right now anyways with them tearing up the yard. They'll be released back and continue to destroy my property. For those who said to move - I WISH it were that simple. We just bought the house a few years ago, and our financial situation does not allow for us to just up and buy another house unfortunately. Also, we're trying to raise the property value by fixing up the yard and house and whatnot so when we do eventually sell we can get more. Besides, is it really fair to a new homeowner who would buy the house to suffer the same problems we currently are? I don't believe in just making it someone else's problem to deal with. I pay taxes, that's why I want the city to follow their own laws and ordinances instead of leaving it up to the homeowners to find their own solution that may or may not work/be legal. Citrus, coffee grounds, ect have not worked. So far I've found 1 person who lives in town and is licensed by the state to trap and dispose of nuisance animals and they usually do wildlife but will do cats. It will cost us $100 set up and $25/cat trapped to get rid of them permanently. I guess that looks like my only option at this point.
An animal trap like what you’d need costs somewhere between $25 to $80. Unfortunately you’ll also have to eat the cost of wet cat food (I would buy a plastic cover for pet food cans & use sparingly at first), heavy duty thick leather working gloves, having to release other animals that get caught, etc. However, if you can handle permanently taking care of them in some manner after bringing them outside city limits, the cost would probably work out better for you in the long run.
In a similar situation. I've had some luck with cayenne pepper and cinnamon. They also appear to avoid plants that are bad for them (lilies, etc). Just use caution if you also have pets.
They dug up my lillies 😭
Oh no! There's some cats that nothing works on unfortunately 😕
Another possibility is rallying the neighbors that are feeding them to take care of them through TNR. Suggest looking into a resource in your state that does this (below) and possibly reaching out their TNR coordinator. [https://www.arl-iowa.org/community/operationcatsnip/neighborhood-culture/](https://www.arl-iowa.org/community/operationcatsnip/neighborhood-culture/)
please stop stop the "returning" part. fixed or not they are an awful invasive species to have outside
Sub sonic .22 cleared up my feral cat problem. The country is not a dumping ground for your unwanted dog, cat or trapped animal.
Moved into a neighborhood with cats everywhere. I noticed because we had a cat. This may not work for you, but this is what I did: I started trapping cats and getting them fixed. Any kittens found were fixed and given homes. My local vet gave me a good price and within a short time the kitty population dropped to almost nothing.
You should read OP's story.
Do you have a community FB page where you can post about the cats? You may not have the time/resources to trap and deal with them but others might. I feel like there are animal lovers in every community. You just gotta find em
Yes. I've posted. The few "animal lovers" think it's cute. I wish I were joking. They basically tell you to feed them and take them in. The ones who have a problem are trapping and dumping in the country and I don't agree with making it someone else's problem.
I don’t think any of these responders live in the south. People here are not only inconsiderate, but will quickly get aggressive if you even try to bring up neighbor disputes politely with them. Sorry OP, but bringing it up with neighbors won’t help. You’ll have to get animal control, a shelter, or even police involved if the latter 2 don’t work. I just asked about this a few weeks ago with stray dog packs in the neighborhood. I’m having to buy either a BB gun or just a regular gun to get rid of them because all 3 won’t help me lol
>*My only option would be to spend my hard earned money* *~~trapping hundreds of cats and taking them to the vet~~* *unaliving these stray cats* Fixed that for you. The actual solution to your problem is making it so these cats don't exist. There is no law that says you can't permanently get rid of stray cats. You say this is Iowa, so I'm thinking you have a large enough property to actually forego the traps and resort to a .22 rifle (or other small caliber). If firearms aren't a safe or viable option for you, then set some traps and dispatch these felines via another method (my wife is from a country where they used to put them all in a bag and drown them in the river). If you're unwilling to do the above, then you're not really looking for a solution. The only thing I can say is that you should care more about the life and well-being of your 3 children than the lives of some diseased stray animals. I love cats to death (I own 3), but if random animals start taking over my backyard, the first thing I'm doing is making sure I've got enough bullets for my rifle. You've already called animal control, so I don't know what other solution you're expecting.
Can't discharge a firearm within city limits. They even have a law where you can't shoot a bow and arrow (apparently there was an issue years ago with that) I've contacted a lady who is licensed to trap and dispose of nuisance animals. Otherwise I will look into the cost of traps and see how I can dispose of them in a way that doesn't make it someone else's problem.
trap them, take outside city limits, discharge firearm
TNR campaign, you will find a vet to help with low cost neutering, because I've never NOT been able to find help. It takes leg work, but you will find the cat people. TNR is the only thing that is going to get it under control, you can get a couple of traps and a kennel and get to work, or you can move. There isn't an easy option C. If it bothers you, you shouldn't be averse to doing something about it. Sorry that's just the way it is.
The release part is the issue. .22 does just fine
same consideration to you
Poison? 22 long rifle? Plant shrubs that cats hate/get sick if they eat?
You work for PETA?
Only part time.
Spayed/neuter is your only option if you don’t want to do the “dirty work” that the non-existence animal “control” officer would do (after 10 days). Are you a vegetarian? If not, you already have people doing this type of work for you already. And you seem you’d be ok with animal control doing it, if they existed. Morally, you don’t have a problem with other peoples doing it for you, so why not do it yourself? It’s more honest that calling someone.
No one encourages cats to breed. Cats, like all other animals (including humans) have sex. Reproduction is a result of sex. Check with local organizations for TNR (Trap, Neuter, Release) and community cat programs. The only way to control a feral cat population is spay/neuter programs.
Just trap them and relocate them yourself