Cats can be a nuisance. They may scratch up your furniture, dig up your plants, or urinate and defecate in your garden beds. Whether you love cats or not, it’s frustrating when their behaviors impinge on your property. We believe in finding humane and cost-effective ways to dissuade felines from becoming a nuisance where they are not wanted. There are many natural, homemade solutions that repel cats without using toxic or harmful ingredients. Our list includes physical barriers, sprays, and other deterrents which will keep your home and garden humanely cat-free.
Add 20 drops in total of any of the essential oils listed above to a spray bottle.Top up the spray bottle with water.Shake well to mix.Combine the oil and water, and then apply the cat repellent to areas where you don't want cats to congregate. In particular, it is effective for keeping cats away from house plants. The mixture should be sprayed liberally at all relevant locations.
Notes
Due to cats' heightened sensitivity to scents, essential oils with strong odors, such as citrus and lavender, can deter them. Lemon, citronella, wild orange, lavender, lime, peppermint, and eucalyptus all work well. You should use a glass bottle for the spray since plastic bottles degrade essential oils more quickly.
Method:
Chemical
Effectiveness:
High
2. Vinegar-Based Cat Repellent
Image Credit: FotoHelin, Shutterstock
Method:
Biological
Effectiveness:
Works Well
Ingredients
½ cup vinegar
½ cup liquid hand soap
½ cup water
Instructions
Combine equal parts of vinegar, water, and hand soap in a spray bottle and shake the mixture well to combine.
The mixture can be sprayed or wiped on areas that are targeted by cats. You can also spray this combination onto a cloth and wipe it over the surface of the object you wish to deter cats away from.
Notes:
It’s best to use clear-colored vinegar for this spray to prevent discoloration on application. This combination does not react with plastic, so you can use either a plastic or glass spray bottle. Although you can use any type of hand soap for this recipe, it’s best to choose a clear formula. Again, this is to minimize any staining the cat repellent may cause.
3. Triple Action Citrus Cat Repellent
Image Credit: Obodai26, Pixabay
Method:
Aromatic
Effectiveness:
Efficacious
Ingredients
1 cup water
½ cup citrus peel (grapefruit, lemon, lime, or orange)
1 teaspoon citrus juice
Citrus-scented dish soap
Instructions
Heat the water in a pot over medium-high heat until it reaches a rolling boil.
Once the water is boiling, add the citrus peel and reduce the heat to low.
Simmer the peel for 30 minutes.
Take the pot off the heat and strain.
Allow it to cool down completely.
Add the juice and dish soap and shake vigorously to combine.
Spray the mixture in any area of your house or garden where you want to keep cats away after thoroughly mixing the ingredients. It works well on floors and walls, as well as furniture.
Notes:
Make sure the repellent doesn’t damage delicate surfaces or fabric-covered items by testing it out on a hidden spot.
Physical Deterrents
4. Repel a Cat With Obstacles
Image Credit: Agnes Kantaruk, Shutterstock
Method:
Barrier
Effectiveness:
Moderate
Aluminum foil or sandpaper can also be wrapped or draped over furniture, carpets, and countertops. Double-sided tape is also an excellent cat repellent. These items provide a novel texture and create a surface cats find unpleasant to walk on, as they simply do not enjoy the feeling of these materials on their paws. It’s also a good idea to run a string along the top of your wall or fence to deter cats. This will make crossing the fence more challenging. Smearing a slippery oil to the top of a fence or wall will also deter cats as they do not like to get dirty. These are easy ways to teach a kitty to stay away from specific areas of your home or garden.
Water Deterrents
5. Spritzing a Cat With Water to Deter It
Image Credit: mayapujiati, Pixabay
Method:
Physical
Effectiveness:
High
All cats hate to get wet. You can’t spend your life patrolling your home and gardens with a water gun, but if you spray a cat often enough, it will eventually get the message. This is perhaps the easiest home remedy of them all, but it is also the most time-consuming. Repeating this process often enough will discourage a cat from returning. Motion-activated sprinklers are a great alternative when all else fails. The sprinkler sends a quick spray of water at the intruding kitty after when the cat enters its vicinity. Motion-activated sprinklers have proven to be the most effective repellent for unwanted cats and other wildlife. Although it is not “homemade”, it is a safe and natural solution that you may be able to take advantage of.
What is the Best Homemade Cat Repellant?
Many people rate citronella oil as the most effective scent at dissuading cats from entering an area or lingering for very long. The only drawback to using heavily scented methods of preventing a cat from loitering is that you must live with the smells you employ. Of all of the methods listed above, we think the essential oil route is perhaps the most amenable to a home’s human occupants. For this reason, we think essential oil repellants, and in particular, the citronella-based repellant is the best one. This mixture may also have the added benefit of deterring mosquitos too!
What Smells Will Repel Cats?
There are a wide variety of smells that felines dislike. All cats are different, and you may have to try several before finding the right one for your prowler. All citrus scents are loathsome to kitties, including grapefruit, lemon, lime, and orange. You can use the peels, essential oils, or spray recipes listed above. Cats also generally despise cayenne pepper, cinnamon, coffee grounds, pipe tobacco, and mustard oil.
Image Credit: Kristi Blokhin, Shutterstock
Does Vinegar Prevent Cats From Pooping?
With its strong, sour smell, vinegar is said to be highly effective in removing the odor of cat poop and preventing cats from returning. All you need is a spray bottle with vinegar and water. Spray the plants or areas where cats poop frequently and you should find they soon give up on their favorite rest area.
Conclusion
It’s not fun to have a cat making trouble where it’s not wanted. There are several non-toxic and humane ways to persuade an unwanted feline to go elsewhere. It’s easy to make a cat repellant spray by combining some of the strong scents cats dislike in a spray bottle and dousing your home and garden liberally. You can also try creating unusual textures on the surfaces cats are walking on or spritzing cats with water when they wander where they shouldn’t.
Nicole is a lover of animals of all sizes but is especially fascinated with the feline variety. She’s the proud mom of Baby, a Burmese, and works every day so he can relax in the sunshine or by the fire. She’s always had a cat in her home and has spent countless days with others, observing behaviors and softening up even the grouchiest of the lot. Nicole wants to share her kitty expertise with you so you and your cat can live happy, healthy, and care-free.
