Cats Archives - Primrose Blog

Cat Repellent That Works

Cats are great, there’s a reason why there are over 2 million cat videos on YouTube alone! What’s not so great for the neighbours of cats is when they foul in your garden, torment your family of guinea pigs, or attack that sweet little robin that you’ve been watching out the window. If this sounds familiar and you’d like to learn about our purrrr-fectly safe methods of deterring cats from trespassing in your garden through the use of cat repellents, read on…

What Is The UK’s Best Selling Cat Deterrent?

Have you heard of ultrasonic frequency repellents?

These are our most effective solution for deterring cats from your garden. When triggered by a motion sensor, this type of repellent emits a high frequency sound that cannot be heard by human or bird hearing. Although the sound is rather annoying for your backyard trespassing cat, it will effectively prevent them from wanting to return to your garden.

But hang on a moment, how long can you expect for this product to officially stop your cat problem? Typically, cats that visit your garden every now and again will be stopped within 7 days of the device being switched on. However, it may take between 14-28 days to break the habit of a regular visitor.

Prevention with Anti-Climb Strips

Are you fed up of worrying about what your neighbouring cat will leave behind after its next visit? Well, our first recommendation would be to prevent cats from entering your garden in the first place.

An affordable way to do this is to add in PestBye anti-climb strips to your garden walls and fences. These anti-climb strips are easily cut, bent, and attached with glue, nails or screws – making them super easy to install around your garden. Available in a range of colours, you can also disguise the anti-climb strips to match your fencing so that they don’t interfere with your garden decor or design.

These end-to-end strips work effectively to prevent cats from climbing or sitting on your wall, but don’t worry! The anti-climb strips only cause discomfort for the cat, not cuts, scratches, or wounds.

Protect Your Flower Beds With Deterrent Sprays

If you’re a keen gardener who spends time caring for and proudly designing your flower beds, a neighbouring cat can be quite a disappointment when it fouls on or rips apart your delightful display. A simple deterrent spray containing deterring natural oils could be the fast and easy solution that you have been looking for.

You can use the deterrent spray around your garden or allotment and it will not harm any animals or your plants. Cats (and dogs) will be off-put by the scent of the natural oil aromas and leave your vegetable patch or flower bed well and truly alone!

Shop the cat repellent range now, or find out more about how to keep cats out of your garden.

Posts you may also like…

Plants that deter cats from your garden

Homemade cat repellents

Evie works in the Primrose Marketing Team.
Growing up in the English countryside, she likes nothing more than to be surrounded by nature’s peace and quiet, with the addition of the family pets of course!
Evie is passionate about all things digital marketing and loves the challenge of combining creativity with online content.
When not at her desk, you’ll typically find her in the gym, posting on social media, or watching a popular series on Netflix!

See all of Evie’s posts.

Cats, How To, Jorge, Pest Control

How to Get Rid of Cats In Your Garden

Despite being loveable pets to many, cats can also be a gardener’s nightmare, ripping up flower beds, defecating on lawns and killing birds and pets. Primrose stocks a range of solutions, but recommends ultrasonic repellers as a lasting solution to your cat problem.

Ultrasonic Repellers

Tried and tested, Primrose sells thousands of repellers each year with our top selling product possessing over a thousand reviews with an average rating of 4.4/5. We are so confident of its effectiveness, we even offer a money back guarantee.

How does it work?

Ultrasonic repellers work by emitting ultrasound, inaudible to humans, but painful to cats, causing them to flee the area. Cats are adept predators who use ultrasound to hunt for small mammals, who in turn use these frequencies to communicate.

Our device is fitted with a motion sensor and will only activate in the presence of a warm body, which ensures cats will associate their presence with the noise. Thus, a cat will quickly associate your garden with disconcerting ultrasound.

How long does it take to take effect?

Like many animals, cats can become accustomed to feeding and fouling in a particular area and it will take time for your repeller to take effect. Most will see results within 7 days, however we recommend you wait 30 days before passing judgement.

How do I install it?

Our repellers are small and unassuming. They can be nailed to a wall, attached to a fence or staked into the ground. They are completely weather resistant, so you don’t have to worry about them getting wet.

We recommend, you place your repeller at eye level with the intruding cat and place it away from areas with regular movement as to save battery life.

how to stop cats — I hope your not reading this for pictures of cute cats

Do I need to do anything once its installed?

Sometimes canny cats will find a way to navigate you garden as to avoid the repeller. Hence, we recommend you move it every so often.

Do I need to buy two repellers?

It depends on the size of your garden. Our most popular repeller covers an 80 degree arc up to a distance of 7m (23ft). It is worth noting that ultrasound does not travel well through walls, which ensures your device will not affect your neighbours animals, but also means heavily delineated gardens may need multiple repellers.

How cost effective is it?

Primrose stocks both battery-powered and solar-powered models. Solar powered models will work indefinitely, while a battery-powered model will work up to 3-4 months with one set of batteries.

Can my pets hear ultrasound?

Dogs can hear ultrasound, although cannot detect frequencies as high as cats. Hence, if you have a dog that likes to roam the garden, we recommend you set your devices output frequency to the highest range of a cat’s hearing.

Why buy from Primrose?

Primrose has over 10 years pest control experience and has a dedicated team working on innovations, ensuring models are updated with the latest technology to ensure ease of use. Our repeller is the best selling product on both Google Shopping and Amazon and has thousands of reviews. We’d recommend you be wary of buying pest control products on Amazon due to the preponderance of fake-reviewed second-rate Chinese imports.

What solution is best for me?

I want the most effective solution: ultrasonic repeller x2

I want to protect the fish in my pond: jet spray

I have a dog that likes to roam the garden: fence spikes

I want my garden to look as natural as possible: lavender & cat silhouettes

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Jorge works in the Primrose marketing team. He is an avid reader, although struggles to stick to one topic!
His ideal afternoon would involve a long walk, before settling down for scones.
Jorge is a journeyman gardener with experience in growing crops.

See all of Jorge’s posts.

Cats, George, How To, Pest Advice, Pest Control

Homemade Cat Repellents

Neighbourhood cats strolling into your garden and fouling on the lawn can soon become an unmanageable problem. If you’re at your wits’ end then it’s time to get creative to keep the kitties away. Our homemade cat repellents are simple to make and are usually very cheap too.

1. Homemade cat deterrent spray

Mix together lemon juice, rosemary and white vinegar – three things cats detest. Put the liquid in a spray bottle so it’s easy to use around the garden. Simply spray near where the cats spend time – on planters, the patio, or even inside.

2. Lemon or orange peel

Cats hate citrus scents, so take your leftover orange and lemon peel and scatter it where you’d like to deter the offending felines. Just be sure to replace the peels once they get old and lose their smell.

3. Sandpaper

Cats have sensitive paws and will avoid treading on uncomfortable surfaces. Placing a few bits of sandpaper around your flowerbeds should keep cats from clambering around where they are not welcome.

4. Essential oils

There are a few scented oils that are known for repelling cats – peppermint, lemon, orange, lavender and citronella. Mix one part oil to three parts water for the perfect deterrent liquid. Pop it in a spray bottle for easy use.

5. Cat deterrent plants

If you want to keep your garden looking clean and natural then try planting some cat deterrent flowers – our list includes rosemary, lavender and the scaredy cat plant.

6. Dried herbs

Buy some of the herbs cats find most offensive, like rosemary and lavender, and scatter dried bunches around the areas you’d like them to leave. This works great inside too.

Tips for naturally repelling cats

All cats are different and will react better to different deterrents, so try experimenting with all these ideas.
A cat’s sense of smell is 40 times more effective than a human’s, which is why these scented options work so well.
If you’re using one of the spray methods, make sure to reapply after each rainfall has washed the previous effort away.

We hope you find these homemade cat repellents successful. They’re all natural and non-toxic, so completely humane and won’t harm the animals. If you’re still having trouble with invasive cats then you could try boosting your efforts with our ultrasonic repellers. These are also humane and come with a money-back guarantee!

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George works in the Primrose marketing team. As a lover of all things filmic, he also gets involved with our TV ads and web videos.
George’s idea of the perfect time in the garden is a long afternoon sitting in the shade with a good book. A cool breeze, peace and quiet… But of course, he’s usually disturbed by his energetic wire fox terrier, Poppy!
He writes about his misadventures in repotting plants and new discoveries about cat repellers.

See all of George’s posts.

Cats, George, Pest Advice, Pest Control, Plants

Cat Deterrent Plants

Cats and plants do not go well together. Since cats are free to roam throughout the neighbourhood, visiting felines are a common sight in many gardens – but they are not always welcome. Not only do cats eat precious plants, they use your garden as a toilet, ruining the soil with their infertile faeces. But there are many solutions for keeping cats out of your garden, including cat deterrent plants.

Which plants repel cats?

Cats won’t generally be repelled by plants as such, but they can be deterred by the scents or textures of particular shrubs. By carefully placing these plants at entry points you can cut down on cats wandering into your garden. Mixing them into borders can prevent cats from climbing over your flowerbeds, where they dig and disturb plants and seedlings.

Cat deterrent plants

1. Scaredy cat plant (Coleus canina)

The scaredy cat plant was bred in Germany specifically as a garden pest repellent. It emits an odour when animals brush past and can be effective against cats, dogs, foxes and rabbits. Unfortunately the smell of dog urine it gives off is so strong that it is unpleasant for nearby humans too. It’s easy to grow, likes the sun and is drought resistant, but will need protection from the frost during the winter months. It grows best in dry soil, which is ideal as cats usually avoid damp patches anyway. You can expect it to grow no taller than 2 feet and have beautiful blue or purple flowers.

2. Lavender (Lavandula)

Luckily, lavender comes with a scent that’s nice for us but unappealing for felines. These purple flowers are evergreen, so they act as a year round deterrent. Choose the tall varieties and plant them at the front of your borders as cats won’t jump over if they can’t see where they’ll land.

3. Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis)

Another fragrant option is rosemary, a herb that’s great for cooking as well as keeping cats at bay. It likes dry soil and a warm climate, but is also evergreen.

4. Rue (Ruta graveolens)

Rue is a shrub that kitties are adverse to. Plant it outside and sprinkle some of its leaves on the patio or inside if you need to warn cats away from these areas. But be careful since rue is poisonous, so always use gardening gloves when handling. If eaten it can cause nausea, vomiting and convulsions.

5. Pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium)

Also known as pudding grass, pennyroyal is the smallest of the mint family. But unlike a lot of mint, this variety is a deterrent for cats as it gives off a very strong spearmint fragrance. Once used in Roman cooking, pennyroyal has also had medical uses (despite the oil being poisonous) and served as a pest deterrent for early settlers in America.

6. Curry herb plant (Helichrysum italicum)

Cats don’t like curry. This spicy plant grows into a thick bush that releases its odour when animals brush past, offending the creatures with both its smell and coarse texture. You may want to use this one sparingly, however, as it is seen as a weed by many due to the harmful effect it can have on other flowers.

7. Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) and thyme (Thymus citriodorus)

Citrus is well know to ward off felines, so plant some lemon varieties to help with your natural defenses. Lemon balm produces white flowers in the summer and is great for attracting honey bees. Lemon thyme is an evergreen shrub that needs lots of sun and good drainage. It has pink flowers in late summer that attract bees and butterflies.

8. Thorny bushes

Cats won’t tread on uncomfortable surfaces, so covering exposed ground with spiky plants can be a great natural way to keep the kitties off. Grow thorny plants like roses, perennial geraniums or pyracantha over any bare soil in the flower beds. You can also make a spiky wall out of hedging like blackberry, hawthorn and holly to prevent cats from even entering your garden.

How to use plants to deter cats

Place some of these plants around the boundaries of your garden to ward off cats passing through the neighbourhood. Others work well around the front of flowerbeds as they stop cats climbing in to mark their territory. Cats spread their scent through urine and faeces as a reminder that they can visit this spot again, so preventing this is crucial for keeping them out. Cat deterrent plants ward off cats and physically stop them from digging up the flowerbeds to use as a litter tray. Layer mulch and pebbles around your plants to make it even harder for cats to dig the soil up. It’s also worth putting some of the plants in pots, so you can move them around if you see cats entering via another route, or if they come across the patio.

Using plants that attract cats

As well as deterring cats through planting, you can direct them to specific areas with attractive plants and so control their impact on the garden. Cats are attracted to catnip (Nepeta cataria) – hence the name – mint and honeysuckle, so simply plant these in the places you’d prefer cats to visit.

Other ways to repel cats

At Primrose we know a thing or two about pest control. We’ve written a list of ways to keep cats out of your garden and stock a range of cat repellers, including ultrasonic devices and water sprayers.

Our bestselling Pestbye Cat Repeller would make a great companion to deterrent plants to boost your defenses against feline invaders. Simply place it in your flowerbed and it will emit high frequency pulses whenever cats come near to send them running!

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