Moved. Neighbor Cat thinks yard is his

[JacqueC]

Hello!

We just moved to a townhouse with a small fenced yard a week ago. I have 2 fur babies that love to go outside. Older, so they stay in our fenced yard. A big black cat keeps coming to our door and crying or I've found him in our outdoor cat tree right next to the house, on the patio! He's obviously well fed, groomed and not afraid of me at all so I know he must have a home.

He scares my cats and I'm afraid of a fight. And his lovely wail is a great accompaniment to my new home sounds. I've been using a spray bottle with water and he runs from the water but returns quickly. I don't know who he belongs to, how to stop him from terrorizing my cats or keep him out of my yard. Tonight I have a friends medium size dog. Loves to chase things that run, but has 2 cat sisters and won 't hurt anything. He's chased the cat out of my yard a couple times tonight. It keeps coming back in less than 30 minutes!

If he was a feral or stray I know how to get him fixed and rescued. Help! How do I keep this cat out of my yard?? Thanks!

[Lilith]

Hi and welcome

Ohh dear. As a friend of mine says - they KNOW, don't they?

Could it have been that he used to visit previously? Or that he knows you love cats?

If he persists you might have to get him checked out, just in case he's been recently abandoned. Is it possible to ask neighbours in case they know about him? Hard to tell I know - I once had one like this who tried to invade us and bullied my once-tough tomcat - I had to get really stern as he DID have a good home and was just trying it on. If this is the case with this boy the dog is a good idea and so is the squirty bottle, aimed at his backside, poor chap.

I've often had visitors who've dropped in for a free feed of biscuits and they've been tolerated, but if a cat wants to take over the place, then you might have to put your foot down with a heavy hand ...

Hope others are along with more advice soon but hope this helps for now.

It's awful to have to send off a sweet cat who wants your company though, I know.

Good luck

[fjm]

If you have recently moved I suspect he lives near by and was tolerated or actively welcomed by the previous owners of your house. New neighbours across the courtyard could not understand why my two dogs and two cats sat hopefully by their back door at 7.30am every morning, waiting for their much loved friend to come out with the chicken pieces she saved for them. It took the animals months to accept that she no longer lived there...

I think the water bottle and general discouragement will work eventually, but I would be sure to accompany your cats out for the time being until he accepts this part of his territory is now to be shared. The more time they spend outside spreading their own scent the better, though, and you need to be there to supervise any chance encounters. Some feuds can be long and bitter, but often cats arrange things between them given time.

[Antonio]

If the visitor cat is someone's, could you just wear a collar on him with a message where you ask to be called by its owners?