Cat repellent

This might be better on the cat forum but I don't want to join just to ask how to get rid of them so here goes.

We have recently moved house and the garden was very very over grown. And it seems the whole neighbourhood of cats had been using it as a toilet. Since we have dug all plants out and cleared the ground this has cut down a lot but there are still about 10 cats who use it as a toilet.

For their safety (from Cookie) and my sanity and shoes is there any 'nice' safe way to get them to find another toilet and never set foot in my garden or run along my walls?
I need something that will only effect them, and not bother Cookie or the birds I love watching.
My OH is thinking about a water gun to spray them with but I hate that idea, worried about damaging eyes plus wont they just learn to avoid it when people are about.

I even came home one day and took Cookie out and thought one of the cats had died in the corner. Turns out it was a very deep sleep but if Cookie was offlead I hate to think what would have happened. It didn't wake up until I had taken Cookie back in and came back out to check on it up close. I've seen it numerous times since, including today and it looks healthy still, so not really worried about it.

I think your husband has the right idea, a few squirts with the garden hose and they'll find somewhere else to go. I have cats and I'd far rather someone squirted them with water than did some of the things you read about.

My thoughts exactly water won't harm cats. My old cat wouldn't SHIFT if you sprayed the hose on her! You had to physically move her!

Dogs are usually enough of a repellant on their own.

Thanks to you both, so as cat owners you wouldn't complain if your found your new neighbours had squirted your cat?

To be honest I'm can get over the poo, but I really hate the idea of Cookie catching one of them so need them to get the idea that the garden is a no go area. For an older dog with health issues he is very quick and most of these cats have little to no fear of dogs. They just stroll around when I normally have him out on his lead. There are 3 other dogs on the street I know of that are all super cat friendly so maybe that is why.

If have a little word with the owners if you are new and you intend soaking their cat! Explain you are worried your dog might kill it?

Wish you luck getting rid of the smell if it's been used as a cat toilet for yonks.

Took for me to remove the old soil and replace it when I was in same situation. None of the repellents work when the stink is well established.

You could try one of the electronic cat repellents I s'pose

I agree with Tang I'd tell the neighbours and stress it's for the cats own good but I'd have no problem with a wet cat, better a squirt of water than stones and air guns which is what some seem to think is acceptable.

I squirt my my own cats with a water pistol from the kitchen window when they're sitting under the bird table after the birds.

It's enough to move then on but they always come back.

I know it's not much help but I find having the biggest cat in the neighborhood (and 3 dogs) keeps the other cats away.

You could also try some of cat repellents (pepper based or garlic based) and orange peel deters some cats.

Cottage remedy down in Cornwall was to soak T bags with Oil of Olbas and lay them around on the soil.

If it doesn't work at least the neighbourhood cats won't suffer from stuffed up noses!

Sorry I haven't been back on to check this. Real life keeps getting in the way and I keep forgetting. So I'm sorry for being rude and asking and running away.

Thank you all for your advice. I think I will try to avoid anything more than shooing the cats until we start tearing up the garden and putting a fence in. By then I hope the neighbours will have a good relationship with us and we will know who actually owns these cats if they do live on this street. I don't really want to go knocking on doors and saying 'Can I soak your cat so my dog doesn't kill it'. I can't think of a way to phrase it that doesn't make it sound like I have an out of control psycho dog that it likely to kill everything and everyone in it's path. Doesn't help he is a large staffy too.
Maybe I am being a bit OTT, but hope you can see the funny side of it as well as the serious side that I don't want to be falling out when the garden still smells like a cat toilet and is attracting every cat in a 20 mile radius. I'm sure they tell their cat friends and have cat parties in the middle of the night.

what i do to protect my garden from my own cats is lay chicken wire loosely ie flat atop the area. works great.

wish you luck with the neighbours; you may well have a colony of ferals there which needs a different approach altogether.