Just for the record: no, I don't hate cats and would not ever try to harm one. It isn't their fault some humans don't bother to neuter cats, allow them to breed freely and instead of finding them homes just release the animals into the urban wild. People leave food out for them on their doorstep (I have seen this in front of a couple of homes on my block.) Last year my neighbor had a feral cat give birth in her back yard and had the nasty task of disposing of the part of the litter that didn't survive. It is sad, but I don't want them living in my yard.

Above is an image of one of the feline perps — there are at least 4-5 others: a solid grey, a solid black, orange stripe/tiger, and at least two grey tigers such as this guy. LL managed the above grab-shot.

Here is what we have tried/considered in order to discourage them from using the back yard as their personal toilette:

	Pepper mixture spread hot pepper about the flower beds. Google will lead you to few different recipes — some people create mixtures with dried mustard, coffee grounds and other things. I've tried this but it hasn't worked reliably for me in any noticeable way. It likely needs a fair amount of reapplication. Cost: probably not too expensive it you can find some cheap red pepper at the dollar store.
	Moth balls in the garden beds: honestly haven't tried it. I wouldn't enjoy the strong camphor scent either. My neighbor uses this stuff and finds it successful, I have no idea how long it lasts. Cost: About $4 per box.
	Havahart “Get Away” Cat (and Dog) Repellent: This seems to work though the down side is it only lasts a day or two and lots of reapplication is a necessity — plus it isn't cheap. Also, once I started using this product the cats just switched to defecating on the lawn itself. Yuck. Cost: about $10-12 for 32 oz Container.
	Havahart Spray Away: “Electronic valve releases three seconds of water from an attached garden hose. Water sprays up to 35ft. Adjustable sensitivity detector and random spray pattern to prevent animals from growing accustomed to the sprayer.” Essentially operates with a motion detector. This was a little tricky to set up given the size of the yard and desire not to see the neighbors hosed down when they spent time in their own back yards. Its been three days and no kitty feces, no evidence of squirrel digging. Too early to tell if they animals will adapt — so the jury is still out on this, but I feel a little hopeful. Cost: About $60.