Cats enter properties seeking food and shelter. Perhaps, you have left uneaten food in your trash or maybe you recently set up a bird feeder. Now, they have wreaked havoc on your garden, damaging your plants and pooping on the soil.
Sounds to make cats go away
One effective way to make cats go away from your property is to harness the power of sound. While cats are scared of certain sounds, using these can be downright inconvenient.
If you are looking for a cat deterrent that uses sound, consider investing in an ultrasonic cat repellent. This device emits a high-pitched frequency that scares cats.
There are some devices that use motion detection technology. When a cat enters your property and makes a movement that triggers the cat repellent’s sensors, the device will produce an annoying sound that is perceptible only to humans.
The problem with this device is that cats can figure out that their movement triggers the sensors. Eventually, they find a workaround and avoid getting detected.
Some ultrasonic cat repellents use infrared sensors which are triggered by the heat produced by living things. This means that cats are always detected whenever they are within the range of the sensors.
According to some studies conducted on the effectiveness of these devices, it was discovered that using these can reduce the intrusion of neighborhood cats by as much as 46 percent. And when cats do enter your property, their stay was reduced by as much as 78 percent.
How to keep cats off your yard
Apart from using an ultrasonic cat repellent, there are a few other ways to drive off cat visitors off your property.
Repellent pellets
Although ultrasonic cat repellents are effective, some cats are clever enough to enter your property without being detected by these devices.
If you have bought a few ultrasonic cat repellents, you can boost the efficiency of these by using repellent pellets.
To use this product, all you have to do is to scatter the pellets on the perimeter of the areas that cats get into. This product works by confusing cats. Even if they can still enter your yard, they will soon be deterred by the pellets the next time around.
Plants
Apart from certain sounds, there are also a few scents that cats hate. These include some herbs and spices like lavender.
Just pick a few live plants from your local nursery and place these strategically in your yard. The effect may not be quick but cats will eventually stop coming to your property.
What sounds do cats hate?
There are four main categories of sounds that cats hate, including high-frequency sounds: hissing, abrupt sounds, and loud sounds.
1. High-frequency sounds
Why do ultrasonic cat repellents annoy cats? The answer lies in a cat’s hearing.
Compared to humans, felines can hear high-frequency sounds, including those that are imperceptible to human ears.
Apart from ultrasonic cat repellents, felines can also hear sounds produced by electronic devices like remote controls, light bulbs, and television screens.
2. Hissing
When a cat is trying to fend off another cat, he will produce a hissing sound while baring his fangs.
As such, it should not come as a surprise that cats are annoyed by hissing sounds. Felines associate this type of sound with an imminent attack from other cats.
Things that produce a similar hissing sound include crinkly objects like tin foils and plastic bags and the sound produced by spraying from an aerosol can.
3. Abrupt sounds
Some feline behaviorists recommend using loud and abrupt sounds to prevent cats from mischievous behavior. This is because cats dislike sounds that surprise them, from clapping hands to doorbells.
Using abrupt sounds to train cats creates a negative association. That means that if you want to stop bad behavior in your pet, you should use an abrupt sound consistently until he stops doing the thing that you dislike.
4. Loud noises
Most cats have a disdain for loud noises, from sirens produced by passing ambulances to thumping dance music and yes, even the sound produced by a vacuum cleaner.
Again, you need to remember that cats have sensitive hearing and these loud sounds can upset your pet. If you must play loud music or vacuum a room, move your cat to a different room.
But take note, not all cats dislike the same sounds. If you have multiple cats in your home, it is possible that you will have at least one cat that likes an annoying sound, like the sound of crinkling plastic.
Sounds that cats like
If there are sounds that felines abhor, are there sounds that they like?
It may seem unlikely, but cats enjoy music. But not the tunes that you hum along or dance to. Instead, they prefer music that is composed specifically for them.
These cat-specific tunes had 1380 beats per minute and resembled purring sounds. The cats that listened to this music showed their appreciation by rubbing themselves against the speakers while purring.
Aside from species-specific music, cats also love the sounds that are similar to the noises that prey make, like tiny feet rustling on leaves.
Understanding feline hearing
Although a dog’s hearing is impressive, it pales in comparison to a cat’s.
Humans can hear sounds that are within the range of 20 to 20000 Hertz. Cats, on the other hand, can hear sounds within the range of 45 to 60,000 hertz. This simply means that felines can hear sounds that are imperceptible even to dogs.
Aside from that, cats can also pick up sounds from afar, around four to five times farther than human ears can pick up. More than that, they can also perceive minute variations in sound, all of these are invaluable when hunting.
A lot of these have to do with how cat ears are shaped. Look closely at a cat’s ears. You will immediately see that the outer ear acts like a radar turned outward. This shape and position enable felines to pick up sounds. Even more interesting is the fact that cats can rotate their ears toward the direction of a sound.
Deterring cats with sound
Cats can enter a property for a variety of reasons. More often than not, a cat will venture into a property looking for food and shelter. But if you have a female cat, you are likely to see neighboring tomcats camping in your yard when your queen is in heat.
Using an ultrasonic cat repellent is an effective yet humane way to get these pesky felines off your property.
Image: istockphoto.com / Nils Jacobi