Cats are wonderful animals and bring a lot of joy if they are well-mannered and desired. But what to do with stray cats that constantly run into your summer cottage? These guests can cause a lot of trouble. Torn up flower beds, dented beds in the garden, unpleasant piles. Instead of caught mice, scattered food remains. And finally, the marked front door. Here you will involuntarily begin to get irritated and upset.
First, let's look at the reason why other people's cats come to you. Pay attention to whether you leave food on the street near your house? Cats may come running to the smell of food. Therefore, it is recommended to take food into the house. Lock trash cans if there are any at your dacha. If you have an indoor cat, feed it indoors.
Perhaps uninvited guests resort to a cat living in a private house? In this case, try not to let her go outside.
It is recommended to sterilize the animal so that you don’t have to think about what to do with the unwanted offspring. This is a lot of stress, both for the furry pet and for its owners.
Lonely animals are impudent and fearless, sometimes they themselves enter open doors in search of food. Close the door tightly, otherwise you may find the marked territory not only on the land plot, but also in the home itself. You don't want to see a puddle in your house. Think, maybe it’s worth getting a dog that you’ve been wanting for a long time? Uninvited guests will definitely not like her barking.
Alpha male or terrible revenge?
Many people, out of ignorance, are sure that their neighbors, and sometimes their own four-legged tailed animals, show their indomitable character in a similar way.
Or they take revenge for punishment in the form of slippers, brooms, a bucket of cold water, etc. Everything is much more complicated and depends on the nature of the furry creatures. People know about the high olfactory abilities of dogs, while underestimating cats. And their world in the same way mainly consists of smells, which play the role of media, alarm signals and messengers.
Cat marks are concentrated portions of urine with pheromones, and not only males, but also females can delimit territory. By marking a place, the animal thereby sets up a kind of barrier for other animals and a reminder for itself that increased care should be taken here. There may be several reasons for this.
- The alpha male marks the territory, wanting to show others who is boss in the pack. No matter how cute and domestic these animals may seem, the ancient instincts inherent in Mother Nature will always be stronger.
- This is a manifestation of the cat's sexual activity. If your cat is in heat, potential suitors will not fail to notify you of their existence.
- Cats also experience stress. This may be due to renovations, the appearance of a new pet in the house or in the neighborhood.
- Another factor of anxiety is the arrival of a baby in the family.
- Disease.
Experts believe that either one factor or a combination of them can cause an unpleasant phenomenon. In some cases, an animal begins to mark for a specific reason, and the owners, without understanding, constantly punish him for this. As a result, the intensity of the marks only intensifies as the cat becomes very nervous.
What to do in such cases? The most important thing is not to punish when it comes to a pet. He will not understand the reason and will continue his work. Let's look at several possible ways to solve the odor problem.
Fill the plantings with cones and the paths with gravel
Delicate cat paws are unaccustomed to sharp surfaces and try to avoid them. There are many insidious inventions with sharp and prickly edges, but torturing your own pet (and your neighbor’s too) is inhumane. To protect your garden beds, it will be enough to mulch them with cones or fill the paths and perimeter of the garden with fine gravel with sharp edges. The cat will definitely not walk on it and dig holes in it.
The surest way to protect your site from uninvited furry guests is to build a solid fence to the ground - it will prevent stray and neighbor cats from visiting your plantings, and you will be able to pacify your own pet.
How to help and what to feed homeless cats
The cat is cute to humans, so it is difficult to pass by a hungry stray cat. Compassionate people are trying to solve the problem of where to give a stray cat so that it does not starve or die from the cold. They are looking for new owners for animals, helping shelters, trying to save those who are left without shelter and food.
Feeding is important, especially in winter. If the cat is hungry for more than 6 hours in the cold, the cat dies
The problem of feeding animals is solved without special costs. Here's a simple recipe:
800 g of pearl barley and 1 kg of minced meat are poured into three liters of water - no matter what quality. After boiling, turn down the heat
The result is a hearty and nutritious porridge - about 5 kg. It needs to be divided into containers and placed in the refrigerator.
This amount of food is enough to feed several cats for 5-6 days. The average cost of porridge is 150 rubles. Minced meat can be replaced with offal and cheap canned food.
A simple ration will help keep cats and cats warm until it gets warmer.
Insulated houses for cats are installed in many courtyards; citizens spay and neuter cats at their own expense.
If there is no way to take it home, then at least feed it and help keep it warm - it’s simple.
Cats are cute fluffy creatures that you want to cuddle and pet endlessly with their pleasant purrs and soothing purrs. This is how most ordinary people treat animals, but only until they choose their entrance as their toilet.
There are immediately noticeably fewer touching animal lovers, and compassionate old women who feed mustachioed animals are outlawed.
And the only question that interests all residents is how to get rid of an unwanted neighborhood?
Method number two
You can get rid of animals coming into your yard using Pavlov’s method. Since school, we know that Pavlov founded a theory (absolutely correct) about the stability of reflexes. It is on this theory that our method of deliverance is based, and it works one hundred percent! You need to leave food in a certain place for several days, in sufficient quantities - this will teach the animals to come there constantly. Then, when all the incoming cats are there, throw a small firecracker into this place (or next to it). The sound of the explosion will frighten the animals so much that they will scatter in all directions. And for the next few days, periodically throw firecrackers there. Your yard, at the level of reflexes, will become a real “minefield” for them, where they will be afraid to enter!
It is especially difficult, of course, not even to get rid of, but not to tame kittens. These cute creatures are so hilarious, you feel so sorry for them that you constantly want to feed them, pet them, and play with them. But do not forget that the babies then grow up, begin to bear fruit and multiply, increasing the population of stray animals. The best thing to do when you find a homeless and cute kitten is to simply take it to an animal shelter!
Invalid methods
How to stop a cat from crapping in the entrance, so as not to harm the animal and not engage in useless activities, is of interest to any resident. To do this, you must adhere to the following rules:
- Do not use bleach, as some cats love this smell, and it can be dangerous for humans.
- Do not use a strong chemical odor, as it can cause intoxication in animals and allergic (and asthmatic) reactions in humans.
- Do not use perfume, as the smell of cologne, combined with ammonia, will become a real horror for those who enter the entrance. In addition, it quickly disappears and cats do not react to it.
- You should not punish the animal very strictly, this will not lead to a positive result. It is necessary to have a “serious conversation” at the site of the immediate “offense”, but without using forceful methods.
A very important factor is the immediate response to cat urine in the form of cleaning. Once urea turns into crystals, it will be almost impossible to deal with it. After each moisturizing, the smell will appear again.
The main condition for getting rid of discomfort in the entrance is to understand your neighbors. You can fight with your own methods or simply raise money and call specialists. Then there will be no trace of the problem. And build a cozy house for the animals, which will be located outside the entrance area. Then people and their smaller brothers will have fun and comfort living together.
Why do cats shit in hallways?
A persistent, ammonia smell in hallways is a common phenomenon, but we admit that the cause of this inconvenience is often not only animals, but also people. If you have become a victim of an invasion of cats who have gotten into the habit of shitting under your door or marking it, the problem needs to be solved, and the sooner the better.
There are not many options: the absence of a door at the entrance or the deliberate introduction of cats into it. In the first case, the situation can only be solved by installing a door, since constant control of street cats is simply unrealistic. In the second case the situation is more complicated. The opinions of others are as follows:
- Whoever allows cats into the entrance is a kind person who saves them from the street, cold, hunger, etc.
- Anyone who is outraged by the presence of cats in the entrance is an evil person who offends defenseless animals.
You probably don't want to become known as a flayer or a cruel person. Not many people enjoy scandals related to the protection of animals and their role in people's lives. What to do? First of all, try to talk. An adequate person will understand the reasons for your dissatisfaction and will look for a way out. If a person is inadequate and believes that you will endure inconvenience, you need to act more restrained and smarter.
There is nothing wrong with cats living in the entrance, at least there will definitely be no rats and mice in it. However, in order for coexistence to be conflict-free, a “good person” needs to offer the following measures:
All cats living in the entrance must be neutered (male and female). If this point is ignored, animals will mark doors and reproduce. And very soon your problem will increase in number and scale.
All cats living in the entrance must be treated for fleas and worms. Treatment should be carried out at least once every 3 months in winter and summer. Ignoring this point will most likely lead to the appearance of fleas in basements, in the entrance, and then in apartments.
Bowls from which indoor cats eat should be washed daily and kept in a hidden place. Compliance with basic rules of cleanliness will preserve the health of animals and save residents from an unpleasant sight. Dirty bowls, especially in summer, emit an unpleasant odor and attract insects.
Cats living in the entrance must eat dry food and always have water at their disposal - cereals, soups, and table scraps spoil very quickly. Not only will such food smell, but it can also cause poisoning. Bowls should not be in plain sight, because if residents of nearby houses find out that there is a cat paradise in your entrance, boxes with kittens and adult cats that have become unwanted cats will begin to appear under the door of your entrance.
Cats living in an entryway should be litter box trained - most indoor cats go outside to the toilet, but when the door is closed, they have no choice but to relieve themselves wherever they have to.
Yes, there are many points, many requirements and almost all of them involve financial costs. Perhaps many residents of your building will want to take part in the fate of disadvantaged cats, but for this, they need to be informed. In any case, taking care of the cats that live in the entrance falls on the shoulders of a “kind person.”
The second way out of this situation is to equip houses for street cats. All the above points will also have to be observed, otherwise there will be more cats and the number of problems will only grow. Living cats outside, in insulated houses and having a front door, makes it physically impossible for the entrance to get dirty.
Special repellers for cats
If all of the above methods for repelling cats from your private home have not been successful, or they cannot be used due to certain circumstances, pay attention to electronic cat repellers, which are becoming increasingly popular every year.
The operating principle of these devices is based on the use of a special sensor that reacts to the movement of cats, and as soon as this sensor detects its target, a special ultrasonic siren is turned on, forcing the cat to leave the area of influence of this repeller.
The advantage of this kind of repeller is that the sound signal they emit is absolutely safe for humans and is not perceived by their ears.
In addition, electronic repellers take up little space and can be installed in any room or outdoor space, regardless of climatic conditions. The devices can operate either from the mains or from a battery.
It is also worth mentioning that recently new types of electronic cat repellers have begun to appear, which, instead of sound impact, release a stream of liquid that smells unpleasant to cats into the animal. Unfortunately, electronic repellers based on water spray are much more expensive than ultrasonic ones, and at the same time they are less effective when it comes to long-term use, without the possibility of timely maintenance of the devices.
You can also add special scented crystals to the cat repeller section, which are saturated with a cat-repellent smell. These crystals can be used both at home and outdoors. To do this, they are scattered in places where cats do not want to appear, after which the animals will avoid them. They can be purchased at almost any veterinary pharmacy, but limit their use to areas where small children live.
Aerosol repellers
Aerosol cat repellers are divided into 2 main categories, such as:
- sprays aimed at protecting shoes, furniture and household appliances from the unwanted attention of cats;
- sprays aimed at scaring away cats in places where they have unwanted bowel movements.
How to get cats out of the basement
In urban areas, cats usually settle in the basement, it is warm there, people appear infrequently.
- Chopped onions and garlic (lemon or tangerine peel) scattered around the basement will quickly wean them off.
- Repellent solution: stir a few tablespoons of ground black pepper in 500 ml of hot water, let it brew, pour into a spray bottle, and spray in the corners.
- Spraying with vinegar will cause cats to go into shock.
In the basement, cats do not bother anyone, but if the basement is dirty and damp, cats can get sick:
- fungal diseases
- dermatological diseases
- chlamydia.
Plus they can carry rabies and other diseases. This danger appears if there are rats in the basement, which cats hunt. Furry hunters often die because rats are poisoned with poisons to which they are immune.
In this case, the responsibility of the housing office is not to exterminate cats, but to bring the basement premises into decent shape. Treatment against insects and rodents will prevent the spread of all the unpleasant things listed above.
Cats are distrustful and will not be picked up, so stories about infected children have no basis.
As for worms, this is a common problem that is only remotely related to cats. Most children become infected with worms, and prevention of infestation must be carried out regularly, regardless of the presence of cats somewhere in the basement.
Fear
Cats are very shy, so you can play on this. For example, loud sounds of a siren or ultrasound can scare them. This is a very good way that will forever discourage them from coming to you. In addition, you can install an automatic irrigation system equipped with a motion sensor on your plot of land. As soon as the animal comes to you, it will be exposed to a stream of water, which will scare it.
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What you should absolutely not do
In the fight for cleanliness, contrary to popular belief, we do not recommend using bleach. Whiteness overpowers the scent of cat marks, but studies have shown that some cats really like its smell. Therefore, they will continue to go to the toilet in these places.
Perfumes, deodorants, perfumes are very controversial products and the effect of their use will be minimal. In addition, having reacted with urine, the smell in the entrances will be simply monstrous.
Another option that will help stop cats from crapping in the hallway is bowls of food placed in corners, places that animals have chosen for their toilet. Cats are clean animals and will not pee where they eat. Of course, not many neighbors will like the cat “dining room” in the front door, so feed the cats one by one, but do it as far as possible from entrances and basements.
If a cat is walking on the street, but is not of breeding value, it is better to spay or neuter the animal. It is possible that your pet marks not only in the entrance, on the street, but also in secluded corners of the house.
If you notice that your pet has gotten into the habit of pooping in the front door or regularly defecating on neighbors' rugs, do not use physical training methods. Swearing, poking your face in excrement, puddles of urine, and beating will not help. This approach can only provoke a backlash. Cats are vindictive, touchy animals and can simply start doing evil things.
Of course, it is worth conducting an educational conversation in a common tone, but this must be done immediately as soon as the cat went to the toilet where it is not allowed. Remember, cats need to be taught good behavior at an early age.
Why do cats come into the yard?
You shouldn't offend them. There is a folk sign: a cat that comes into the house will bring happiness and prosperity. And if you caress and accept her, she will certainly help you find good luck. And your soul will feel better if you help the hungry. This way you will kill two birds with one stone - teach the barbel good manners and get a loyal, affectionate friend. Never use force on someone who is weaker than you. Maybe you just need to help him and he will never come back. Or he will love you with all his soul and give you his warmth.
Invalid methods
How to stop a cat from crapping in the entrance, so as not to harm the animal and not engage in useless activities, is of interest to any resident. To do this, you must adhere to the following rules:
- Do not use bleach, as some cats love this smell, and it can be dangerous for humans.
- Do not use a strong chemical odor, as it can cause intoxication in animals and allergic (and asthmatic) reactions in humans.
- Do not use perfume, as the smell of cologne, combined with ammonia, will become a real horror for those who enter the entrance. In addition, it quickly disappears and cats do not react to it.
- You should not punish the animal very strictly, this will not lead to a positive result. It is necessary to have a “serious conversation” at the site of the immediate “offense”, but without using forceful methods.
A very important factor is the immediate response to cat urine in the form of cleaning. Once urea turns into crystals, it will be almost impossible to deal with it. After each moisturizing, the smell will appear again.
The main condition for getting rid of discomfort in the entrance is to understand your neighbors. You can fight with your own methods or simply raise money and call specialists. Then there will be no trace of the problem. And build a cozy house for the animals, which will be located outside the entrance area. Then people and their smaller brothers will have fun and comfort living together.
With the onset of summer, many people move to their summer cottages and, of course, take their pets with them. In the heat, no cat wants to sit in a stuffy apartment, but here there is freedom, green grass and sunshine. And everything would be fine, but the fluffy beauties and handsome men begin to walk throughout the entire dacha village and go to the toilet where they like. What if your neighbor has not one, but five cats, and all of them have taken a liking to the children’s tent that is located on your property? The “fragrance” marks are eaten away so much that soon it will be impossible to play in it. A separate discussion is about the piles in the garden beds. All this causes understandable dissatisfaction and a completely logical question: “How to keep cats away from the site?”
Aerosols and water sprays
To solve the problem of how to keep your neighbor's cats away from your property, you can use special aerosols. They are sold in pet stores and do not harm animals. The action of these aerosols is based on the fact that cats are very sensitive to odors. They affect the sense of smell and repel animals. True, these funds have one drawback. They are easily washed off by the first rain, so they need to be applied regularly.
There are also irrigation systems with built-in motion sensors. When a cat appears, they spray water over the area, which almost all of these animals cannot stand.
Cats on your property
A cat is a cute and fluffy creature. If, of course, it is yours. Strange cats that regularly wander into the garden area cause a lot of trouble. Despite the benefits that cats bring, for example, they catch pests such as mice, they are considered to be the most dangerous creatures for the garden after rodents.
Cats are great at getting rid of pests, but they themselves also pose a danger to the garden.
Trouble in the garden
Among the troubles caused by cats in the garden are the following:
Flowerbeds and beds are used by visiting cats as a toilet. Cat feces are not fertilizer at all; they can completely destroy your favorite flowers or vegetables. Cats are territorial animals, they instinctively mark their possessions with urine, and this will also not benefit the garden. Cats love to roll around in cool, lush greenery.
And it doesn’t matter whether it’s carrot tops or a flower bed with gladioli.
It can be very difficult to drive a cheeky cat out of the area
In addition, cats like to use the bark of fruit trees as a scratching post. Cats are excellent hunters of game birds. Summer residents who attract birds to their plots are unlikely to like this
Big cats wreak havoc in a chicken coop just as well as a fox.
Cats in apartment buildings
Flocks of stray cats can be found in almost every courtyard of an apartment building. Moreover, such a neighborhood often causes a lot of inconvenience to apartment owners, ranging from an unpleasant odor to various diseases (lichen, toxoplasmosis, etc.), which are carried by representatives of the cat family.
Thus, the appearance of homeless animals at the entrance often becomes a problem, which is sometimes not so easy to get rid of.
How to get rid of neighbor cats that shit under the door or on the landing
As noted above, cats living in the courtyard of an apartment building bring a lot of trouble to its residents. At the same time, the main problem is related to the spread of an unpleasant odor and contamination of the landing with the waste products of these animals. In this regard, many apartment owners are wondering - what to do to get rid of uninvited guests who have bothered all the residents?
So, the following recommendations will help you ward off abandoned cats forever:
- First of all, it is necessary to remove any source of food - you should understand that until compassionate neighbors stop feeding the cats, they will still live near the house and regularly go for food.
- You can inform a specialized service for catching stray animals, which will be required to respond to the signal.
- Another measure is to block all paths through which an animal can enter an apartment building. This is mainly the entrance door to the entrance (it should always be kept closed), windows on the stairs on the first floors (bars can be placed on them), etc.
In practice, another situation occurs when a neighbor’s cat regularly comes to a specific flight of stairs or under the door and relieves itself there.
There are several options to solve this problem:
- First of all, you need to talk with the owners of the animal and ask them to resolve this issue.
- If the cat's owners do not take any action in such a situation, you can write a complaint to the organization that performs the functions of managing the high-rise building (MC, HOA, etc.).
- Another option would be to file a lawsuit. The basis in this case will be the creation of unsanitary conditions (Article 6.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation), as well as violation of the rights of owners of other apartments (Article 304 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).
- You can try to stop your cat from shitting in the wrong places on your own. For example, treat the area in front of the entrance to the apartment with bleach, buy special products at the pet store and apply them to the landing.
How to attract a neighbor for feeding cats
Currently, feeding stray animals, including cats, is not prohibited at the federal level. However, such a ban applies on the territory of some constituent entities of the Russian Federation. Moreover, in case of failure to comply with this requirement, an administrative fine will be collected from the violator.
For example, in accordance with clause 3.5 of the “Rules for keeping pets on the territory of the Ochersky urban settlement,” citizens are prohibited from feeding stray animals. A similar restriction also applies in the city of Verkhnyaya Pyshma, where it is not allowed to feed animals in common areas of apartment buildings (on the platform near the stairs or elevators, in basements, etc.).
In order to punish a neighbor who regularly feeds cats, you must act as follows:
- First, you need to make sure that such an action is prohibited in a particular region of the Russian Federation.
- Send a complaint to the city administration.
- After considering the received complaint, appropriate measures will be taken against the violator.
If you can’t catch your neighbor for feeding stray cats (due to the absence of such an offense in a particular region), then you can write a complaint against her about the creation of unsanitary conditions (cats shit on the stairs, shed, etc.).
According to Art. 6.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation for violation of sanitary and epidemiological standards provides for a warning or a fine of 100-500 rubles (for citizens).
Another option is to file a claim in court for violation of the owner’s rights.
Scarecrow with cat sound, is it legal?
One of the modern ways to get rid of stray cats is to use a special scarecrow with sound. The operation of this device is based on ultrasonic waves, which are audible only to animals and cause them a feeling of anxiety.
The Law of the Russian Federation dated December 27, 218 No. 498-FZ does not indicate whether such repellers can be used against representatives of the animal world. In Art. 11 of this regulatory act only states that animals must be protected from cruelty. It should be noted that repellers are absolutely not harmful to the health of pets. In this regard, we can conclude that the use of such methods of dealing with stray cats is completely legal.
In conclusion, it is worth noting that any methods chosen to drive away stray cats must be humane. Otherwise, you may find yourself prosecuted for animal cruelty.
Effective methods of repelling using improvised means
You can scare away other people's cats from your dacha using various available means, some of which are not always humane
If you want to get rid of cats using humane methods, pay attention to the following points:
- Mulch the soil of the beds and vegetable garden. To do this, we need citrus zest, leftover coffee grounds, or the cheapest cigarette tobacco. Take one of the above ingredients and mix it with the soil in areas where you do not want cats to be seen. Cats hate these smells, and regularly mulching them will not only help keep cats away, but will also fertilize your garden soil.
- Get a small dog in your yard that, even while on a leash, will scare away cats with its barking.
- If you have a domestic cat, we strongly recommend that you move her indoors, as her smell, especially during heat, will force cats to make their way into your yard, overcoming any obstacles.
- If you find a strange cat on your property, you can use firecrackers, firecrackers, and even a starter pistol that fires blank charges.
- Fence the fence with barbed wire, cover all cracks and tunnels with metal sheets, and if there are trees whose branches extend beyond the boundaries of your site, cut them off.
- If you have the means, you can purchase a cage trap. As soon as the cat enters this cage, the door will close and the animal will be at your disposal. The cage is the most effective of all humane methods, since it does not drive the cat away to an unknown location, but rather catches it.
Having dealt with humane methods, let’s move on to effective, but inhumane ones, such as:
- Buy an air pistol with a muzzle velocity of no more than 130 m/s.
- You can scatter poisoned food around your property, which is also not prohibited by law, as long as you do not go beyond your yard. This method is extremely inhumane, and its use is justified only in cases where stray cats cause serious damage to your area (eat poultry) and also pose a direct threat to humans (there are outbreaks of rabies in the region).
- Place a large number of mouse traps around your yard. A cat caught in a mousetrap will run away and will never visit your yard again.
- If cats come into your yard through a hole that cannot be repaired, cover it with polyurethane foam and attach glass wool there, which, if it gets on the cat's fur, will cause itching and irritation without causing serious injury to the animal.
Based on this article, you have received basic information on how to drive strangers and neighbors' cats away from your property. We encourage you to use only humane methods, but if animals pose a real problem for you, the choice of methods to deal with them depends only on you!
Despite the fact that cats are very clean animals, pet owners may notice that the cat relieves itself not in the tray, but in an inappropriate secluded place, for example, in the corners, under the front door. Therefore, the question of how to scare cats away so that they don’t spoil the house is of interest to many breeders of furry purrs. What means will help discourage a cat from going to the toilet in the wrong places in the house?
What in general can keep cats away from the yard?
If you decide to start fighting against outside cats visiting your property, pay attention to such simple and effective methods as:
1. It is necessary to get rid of food sources in your yard, and most importantly, tightly close garbage containers, if any. Often, it is the accumulation of food waste, as well as food forgotten in the yard, that is the main magnet for other people's cats to visit your yard, prowling in search of food. If you have pets in your yard, you also need to hide their bowls after feeding them.
2. If possible, install moving lawn sprinklers in your yard. These devices have both automatic and manual watering modes, which allows you to activate the sprinklers when the cat first approaches your area and drive the insolent animal out of the yard for a long time. This method is very effective, but requires additional costs for installing an irrigation system and increased waste of water.
3. Plant special plants on your property whose smell repels cats. So, you can plant bushes of fragrant rue around your yard, since cats cannot stand its smell. In addition, you can collect fragrant rue in bunches and place them in the barn, along the fence, in the garden and at the doorstep. In addition to this plant, you can use citronella, lemongrass, eucalyptus and lavender. You can also purchase special scented oils with the scent of these plants, soak rags in them, and leave them in areas where cats appear.
4. Use a water gun as a repeller. As soon as you notice that a cat has appeared on your property, sneak up to it and spray it with a stream of water from a water pistol, which will shock the animal. For greater effectiveness, you can add vinegar, ammonia, acetone, or citrus and lavender flavoring to the water.