[sion01]

Having had enough of the local cats useing my garden as a toilet especially the veg bits I had enough and asked my neighbour who is a farmer if he had some spare electric fence.He brought it round for me and helped me set it up.I had hours of fun watching the local cat population jumping really quite high from a standing start and one tom cat actually p---ed on it.I think it spayed itself by the unearthly noise it made.

I left the battery pack there for 2 weeks at which time the farmer wanted it back but left me with the wire.The cats still havent sussed this out and keep away from the wire remembering the pain that it can give.

It's a bit expensive for me to justify buying it myself but I was just thinking that if a lot chipped in on an allotment site it would really spread the cost.If everybody bought their own wire all you'd have to do is move the batterypack say every three days to another plot and as cats aren't really that clever(and they don't really have thumbs ) they wouldn't know which wire was giving out volts today so would keep clear.

Just a thought(might even work with vandals)

[simonwatson]

A word of warning in our over litigious society. Put up some damned big warning notices about it.

[Rangerkris]

People do tend to steel wire fencing too, so don't be surprised if it get taken as you say it can be expensive.  You will have to have will have to have warning stickers and try and get it past the other user's on the site i would think.   I like the idea as it is very effective around sites i have worked on but never for cat's.

I would think this will cause some problems with cat lovers too. 

[sion01]

I know cat lovers might not like the idea but as a parent I'm not overjoyed at the kids getting toxoplasmosis either.

[Comfortably Numb]

I know cat lovers might not like the idea but as a parent I'm not overjoyed at the kids getting toxoplasmosis either.

You're a parent, and yet you are seriously considering using an electric fence 

[sion01]

At night when the kids are in bed

[joyfull]

sorry sion01 but this proves that cats are highly intelligent - only a fool would keep trying to touch something that may harm them. I personally do not find anything funny in watching an animal jumping through being shocked and find it cruel that you spent hours watching the local cat population doing so.

[gazza975526570]

I cant imagine an allotment society would allow electic fencing

My children and others enjoy time at the allotment - if they where playing and fell into your fence would you also enjoy watching them?

I think you need to have a rethink - you do realise that cats will go into farmers fields where they grow veg too dont you?

[Aidy]

A slightly more humane approach which I have found by accident, is chooks, since the chooks have gone on the plot, cats wont go near it.
I have on many a night turned up to see them on the next plot looking, but thats as far as they go, I also noticed while my neighbours were complaining of cats digging up beds, mine were fine.
And you cant get toxo off chicken cack.

[grosmont50]

What if your children fell onto a cane support and took thier eye out or fell head first into a water butt and coudnt get out, i could go on, its an allotment not a play ground

[DD.]

i could go on

I sincerely hope you don't.

Anyway the garden in question is not an allotment.

[ferreter51]

A word of warning in our over litigious society. Put up some damned big warning notices about it.

Sorry to be facetious, but cats can read in your area?

[sunshineband]

Either way, deliberately inflicing pain on any animal, even one you feel you have some sort of grudge against, is just plain wrong in my book.

On this occasion I feel strongly enough to say so too.

There are other ways of keeping cats off veg beds (or foxes in our case) that are harmless and still effective.


Rant over

[arugula]

A word of warning in our over litigious society. Put up some damned big warning notices about it.

Sorry to be facetious, but cats can read in your area?

Display of warning signs is required by law.

[grosmont50]

Dont want to harp on digger but gazza clearly states ALLOTMENT in reply No 8