Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with repel

How to keep cats from bombing our yard?

canine epigram — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 19:00:05 -0800

How do I keep cats from crapping in our front yard? A neighbor down the street (we suspect old lady, we never see her) has several cats, some apparently (or maybe just one - we never catch the culprits in the act) who use our small patch of front garden as a litterbox. It stinks up the front walk something terrible.

An automatic sprinkler or something would be awesome, but that's not really feasible.

I've done some googling, but a lot of the results seem heavily anecdotal or folklorish - I'm looking for real solutions, and it's hard to tell which have basis in fact, and which are just wishful thinking.

tiny vials of ammonia? (won't that stink too?) buy coyote pee? or bobcat urine? (mentioned in an earlier askme - where the heck do I find that in an urban area?) coffee grounds?

Please, help us, MetaFilter, you're our only hope!

Scat, cat - get off the mat!

taz — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 03:01:40 -0800

How can I make my "welcome mats" unwelcoming to cats? I'm getting ready to replace all my outside door mats (three) because they're yucky and covered in cat hair from my neighbor's cats who like to hang out on them. The current ones have been very hard to clean from cat hair, and would need constant, labor-intensive attention to keep them presentable. But I'm afraid the new ones (stiff coconut fibre, something like this) are going to be just as bad, or possibly even worse.

But I just can't bring myself to buy those ugly black rubber door mats. Is there some way I can discourage the kitty mat love? Most of the Google info on natural cat repellents focus on keeping cats out of plants and gardens. Have any of you dealt successfully with this kind of problem?

I'm going to be on the lookout for repellent spray, but so far I haven't found any (I don't live in the U.S. or U.K., and some things are not as easy to find as they are there) - and I'm picking up my mats today, so even if I am able to find a packaged repellent, I need some strategy in the interim.

Oh god it's humping my leg

skjønn — Thu, 03 May 2007 11:28:17 -0800

I hate dogs. Help me deal so I don't lose my jobs. I'm writing this in a spirit of desperation as I find myself in my office dry heaving after needing to pick up a dog and carry her the space of 30 feet.

I'm 23 year old girl working very awesome and challenging part time jobs. 30 hours a week as a paralegal for a local law firm and 10 hours a week for a local fashion boutique.

Everything about both jobs is perfect except for thing: the dogs. By some very cruel twist of fate, both of my bosses are dog people.

The lawyer I work for bought an ultra fancy purebred puppy poodle something that cost thousands of dollars after I started working for him. He put a kennel in his office and brings the puppy to work with him everyday.

The owner of the fashion boutique I work for brings her little dog with her everyday too.

Both of these dogs are free to roam most of the time and the office and the boutique have been pet-proofed.

Although I love animals in the general sense and have a ton of compassion for them in general and would never wish an ounce of harm on either of these doggies, I can't deny I despise everything about them.

Their smell, the touch of their fur, the way they rub up against my leg, its enough to make me puke (and actually has made me do so more than once). My dad had allergies and my mom hated pets so I never had them growing up.

Here is my question: I can coexist with these doggies in the same building, but how do I make them stay away from me? Obviously strategies that would harm the dogs are out the question.

I am open to:
-learning to alter my body language...but how?
-purchasing discreet ultrasonic devices i can set off when the doggies get close. I'm poor but price is not a problem, this is desperate.
-applying lotions/creams/perfumes that repel canines (as long as it wouldn't make me too repellant for humans)
-anything else you could offer on how to make the doggies not touch or come near me.

Not open to:
-seeing a therapist to brainwash me into liking these little furry beasts.

Thank you. :)