Cats, not a Musical
Well the scourge of the Cats continues. They are reaching plague proportions with another pregnant “skank” (next doors constantly pregnant females) sighted in the last 2 days. On Sunday (9th December) I e-mailed the RSPCA requesting advice on how to humanely to deter the feline pests from my yard. They are still yet to respond. They are probably too busy dealing with abandoned puppies and kittens as is common at this time of year. Piece of advice for all, never buy a puppy or a cat for a present on instinct, sit down and consider the cost implications and whether the pet will still be loved and wanted in 6-12 months. Anyways, back to the plague at hand!
Yesterday one of virii, oops kittens, decided to play in the trailer, which is loaded with cardboard and waiting for a tip run. Normally that would not have bothered me, but knowing the numbers around at the moment I thought it best to get it to move along back to where it belongs (ie. the neighbours yard) before they were all in there. When I tried scaring it off it got itself confused and decided to bury itself to a safe place deep within the cardboard. It could well still be there, although it would be awfully wet given the rain.
Later in the afternoon not one, but two of the “skanks” brazenly jumped off the fence and ran under the house in front of me. No doubt they were rendevousing with one of the lucky tom cats in the area, lucky cos theres always at least one “skank” ready to raise it’s tail. Luckily though the “skanks” were not heard copping a serve. That said I am fed up with constantly having to defend the yard against these god awful infestations. Needless to say I have now had enough.
Now, I hear you ask why can I not talk to the neighbour. Well she is quite old and set in her ways. Further, it is clear that English is not her first language, so comprehension is simply not there. In fact I have heard one of the many community workers try to explain to her that she had far too many animals and it ended with the old lady in tears and under the impression that the community worker wished all her cats eliminated.
That is not the case. What is required is for the numbers to be thinned out through:
- The sale of the healthy kittens.
- Those that are found to be suffering with severe health challenges such as being blind or deaf should be put down, given they are outdoor cats it is best that happens than them be run over because they could not sense the vehicle coming as has occurred in the past.
- The “skanks” should be desexed to prevent a rampant plague again. Sorry to the Toms you will need to find a new harem.
However, it appears that the plethora of community workers simply do not have the power and/or intestinal fortitude to actually take the steps to ensure that the above occurs.
As a result I have been doing some research. I do not want to spend regular copious amounts of money and introduce a chemical solution to my garden. I would prefer to spend some money up front and solve the issue for good.
As such I am thinking of purchasing 1 or 2 CatWatch devices. A CatWatch device detects the presence of an animal and then blasts them with an ultra-sonic sound that has been specifically developed to annoy cats. The cat will soon learn to stay away or it will hear the adverse sound.
Units are either battery or mains powered. The mains power kit is optional. However, with the mains power the sound is boosted by 35% which is going to be required in my yard. In terms of cost the units are available for $135.00 each and a mains adapter is $22.50. I can also purchase a connector kit for $13.50 and utilise 1 mains adapter for 2 (or more) devices. I think I will go down that path and ensure the “garbage”, they have gone beyond a litter, of felines is kept away from my fruit and vegetables.
So all up im looking at $306 to keep the neighbours sprawling pack of cats out of part of my yard. I will still need to purchase some rocks to scatter around the White Bird to ensure that the scourge do not begin using its pot as a toilet. I also need to contact the distributor about the effects the unit will have on deaf cats, if it will have no effect I will performing more research until I can safely say the invasion of the hordes is cessated.
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