AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGGGG
GGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
not ANOTHER CAT
post!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!! madgardener
whose cats know to STAY outa her many soft, loose, wonderous raised boxes or
face the wrath of the garden hose..........(in other words, put a sprinkler
on a timer to go off ramdomly to spritz them, they get pneumonia just like
we do and hate to get wet)
"Albert Fiantaca" wrote in message
...
Hi

It's springtime. The garden soil is soft and has been turned once. The
gang of neighborhood cats have decided that my vegetable garden plot is
the place to crap in. It stinks to the heavens and I particularly don't
want it where I grow food. I have to search out the spot where they
their bury it and dig it out to dispose of it. What can I do to put a
stop to this? No, I can't shoot them. Poison is out, I have a dog, and
young children around.

Thanks, Al

Cat poll at

http://home.golden.net/~dhobson/catpoll.htm

"Albert Fiantaca" wrote in message
...
Hi

It's springtime. The garden soil is soft and has been turned once. The
gang of neighborhood cats have decided that my vegetable garden plot is
the place to crap in. It stinks to the heavens and I particularly don't
want it where I grow food. I have to search out the spot where they
their bury it and dig it out to dispose of it. What can I do to put a
stop to this? No, I can't shoot them. Poison is out, I have a dog, and
young children around.

Thanks, Al

"Albert Fiantaca" wrote in message
...
Hi

It's springtime. The garden soil is soft and has been turned once. The
gang of neighborhood cats have decided that my vegetable garden plot is

Upside down mousetraps to startle them.

Well, sure - product documentation is designed to show the product in the
best possible light - I've never considered that a negative thing. It's just
a starting point and I'm OK with that.

I have been using it for two years and it is working for me. There are some
things that come to mind as to why I consider it successful. First is that
although I prefer dogs I'm not a cat hater so I am willing to have some give
and take with pets and wildlife in general. Also, using Cocoa mulch as a
repellent is not the only thing I do, like all pest problems it's a balance
of repelling and attracting. So, I did leave one flower bed for the cats to
....uh, enjoy :-) so I'm not on a eradication campaign.

On, the moldy and disgusting issue - I had about a 1/2 bag of Cocoa mulch
left that I stored for the winter in the plastic bag - not sealed but just
kind of "mostly" out of the weather. It did get some moisture in it. Whoooo
that did get gross and moldy. BUT where I have it spread in my
Strawberry/Alyssum bed (about 20' by 2 1/2') it didn't appear to mold at
all. We just went through all the bed a week or so ago and it looks great.
It was a southern exposure so that undoubtably helped with keeping mold
away. I bet if it was a northern exposure or an area that would make good
mushroom habitat it would get gross.

We love it. We have it as the from the mulch around our blueberries and
strawberries in our favorite outside morning coffee place - right outside
our kitchen door.

I guess spring has sprung - it's hailing here in Seattle!


"paghat" wrote in message
news
In article , Tom Jaszewski
wrote:

On Wed, 02 Apr 2003 12:16:15 GMT, "Burl" wrote:

Cocoa mulch documentation

propaganda!

I didn't have the desire to read the advertising, but I assume it failed
to mention that cocoa mulch though it starts out pretty & nice-smelling
very soon gets all moldy & dusgusting?

-paghat the ratgirl

--
"Of what are you afraid, my child?" inquired the kindly teacher.
"Oh, sir! The flowers, they are wild," replied the timid creature.
-from Peter Newell's "Wild Flowers"
See the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com/

On Thu, 03 Apr 2003 01:07:55 GMT, "Burl" wrote:

First is that
although I prefer dogs


"We called the national Animal Poison Control Center in search of more
information, not only about cocoa mulch, but about preventing pet
poisoning in general, and talked with Dr. Michael Knight, the Center's
medical director.

Knight said all parts of the cocoa plant contain a compound called
theobromine, a central nervous system and cardiovascular stimulant.
"There are no hard numbers on just how much of the substance might be
in a given batch of cocoa shell mulch, but the caller's dog was
exhibiting symptoms consistent with theobromine poisoning -
restlessness, panting, pacing, anxious behavior."

http://ceinfo.unh.edu/Common/Documents/protpois.htm
The toxic compounds in chocolate are theobromine and caffeine, which
are classified as methylxanthine alkaloids. Theobromine is the primary
chemical involved in chocolate toxicity in small animals. Dogs and
cats are exposed to chocolate especially during the holiday season.
Because of their small body size relative to human beings, ingestion
of a fairly small amount of chocolate may cause toxicity. As little as
4 ounces of baking chocolate or 1 pound of milk chocolate could be
fatal if ingested by a dog weighing 10 pounds or less. Dogs will
readily eat a toxic dose of chocolate. Ingestion of the rich smelling
cocoa bean landscaping mulch also can be a cause of methylxanthine
toxicity. The relative amount of theobromine contained in various
chocolate compounds is described in the table below.


CHOCOLATE PRODUCT THEOBROMINE CONTENT (mg/oz)
Cocoa bean landscaping mulch 300-1200
Cacao beans 400-1500
Cocoa powder 400-550
Unsweetened baking chocolate 450

Semi-sweet baking chocolate (chips) 135-260
Milk chocolate 60
Hot chocolate beverage 12
White chocolate 1

http://petcare.umn.edu/FAQ/Toxicology/Chocolate.htm
http://hoaxinfo.com/chocolate.htm


"As crude a weapon as a cave man's club the chemical barrage has been hurled at the fabric of life."
Rachel Carson

Wow! Thanks for that heads up and sharing the great information.

I knew that chocolate was toxic to dogs and to not let them get into the
Snicker's bars (if there's even any chocolate in there) but I hadn't thought
of the dogs getting into the cocoa by way of licking or drinking water
leached through the mulch.

In our situtation the critters just have so many other great places to hang
out that they don't even bother with the battle.

Burl

"Tom Jaszewski" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 03 Apr 2003 01:07:55 GMT, "Burl" wrote:

First is that
although I prefer dogs


"We called the national Animal Poison Control Center in search of more
information, not only about cocoa mulch, but about preventing pet
poisoning in general, and talked with Dr. Michael Knight, the Center's
medical director.

Knight said all parts of the cocoa plant contain a compound called
theobromine, a central nervous system and cardiovascular stimulant.
"There are no hard numbers on just how much of the substance might be
in a given batch of cocoa shell mulch, but the caller's dog was
exhibiting symptoms consistent with theobromine poisoning -
restlessness, panting, pacing, anxious behavior."

http://ceinfo.unh.edu/Common/Documents/protpois.htm
The toxic compounds in chocolate are theobromine and caffeine, which
are classified as methylxanthine alkaloids. Theobromine is the primary
chemical involved in chocolate toxicity in small animals. Dogs and
cats are exposed to chocolate especially during the holiday season.
Because of their small body size relative to human beings, ingestion
of a fairly small amount of chocolate may cause toxicity. As little as
4 ounces of baking chocolate or 1 pound of milk chocolate could be
fatal if ingested by a dog weighing 10 pounds or less. Dogs will
readily eat a toxic dose of chocolate. Ingestion of the rich smelling
cocoa bean landscaping mulch also can be a cause of methylxanthine
toxicity. The relative amount of theobromine contained in various
chocolate compounds is described in the table below.


CHOCOLATE PRODUCT THEOBROMINE CONTENT (mg/oz)
Cocoa bean landscaping mulch 300-1200
Cacao beans 400-1500
Cocoa powder 400-550
Unsweetened baking chocolate 450

Semi-sweet baking chocolate (chips) 135-260
Milk chocolate 60
Hot chocolate beverage 12
White chocolate 1

http://petcare.umn.edu/FAQ/Toxicology/Chocolate.htm
http://hoaxinfo.com/chocolate.htm


"As crude a weapon as a cave man's club the chemical barrage has been
hurled at the fabric of life."
Rachel Carson

Wow 2354 votes!
With Cats should be Welcomed/Tolerated getting 61% of the vote and
Discouraged/!&*%#*! getting 39%.

"Dvd" wrote in message
e.rogers.com...
Cat poll at

http://home.golden.net/~dhobson/catpoll.htm

"Albert Fiantaca" wrote in message
...
Hi

It's springtime. The garden soil is soft and has been turned once. The
gang of neighborhood cats have decided that my vegetable garden plot is
the place to crap in. It stinks to the heavens and I particularly don't
want it where I grow food. I have to search out the spot where they
their bury it and dig it out to dispose of it. What can I do to put a
stop to this? No, I can't shoot them. Poison is out, I have a dog, and
young children around.

Thanks, Al

I use this method, but have them at least 20cm out of the ground, and run
string in a tangle between all of them. Keeps both birds and cats off
seedlings etc.... Well, it worked for me. I saw the idea on an aussie garden
show, where the guy was protecting his strawberries, and the birds would get
their feet sort of tangled in the string, and wouldnt come back, and I used
it in my garden, and it kept the cats off cos they cant find a big enough
place to squat.

Then my cats might just be nice, they always seem to dig their holes 10-20cm
away from where the plants are. Unless they just dont like the spring onion
smell to get on their coat.

--
Anna Merchant

http://www.thecotfactory.co.nz
If electricity comes from electrons, does that mean that morality comes from
morons?
"Thalocean2" wrote in message
...
Randomly buried bamboo skewers with about 1/2in above ground. (don't step
on
them)

Laura B.

What can I do to put a
stop to this? No, I can't shoot them. Poison is out, I have a dog, and
young children around.

Thanks, Al

A short time ago there was a thread about the diseases/dangers of cats and
dogs in the house and their poo in the garden. It was a lengthy/detailed
and
informative post.

I was saving it for my neighbor but some how it got deleted.

Does anyone have it or tell me how to find it in the archives? duh.

Sam,

When looking for old Usenet postings, it is typically easiest to use Google.
You can search all of Usenet or just a particular group.

Since what you are looking for deals with toxoplasmosis, give this link to a
preformed search a try:

http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=e...plasmosis+grou
p%3Arec.gardens&btnG=Google+Search

(if it word wraps, you'll have to cut and paste it).

To summarize, feral cats (and those that are "outside pets") frequently
carry a little bugger called toxoplasma gondii. It is responsible for
toxoplasmosis. It is transmitted when eggs are transferred from hands to
eyes or nose and/or ingested inadvertently. It's in some raw meat as well,
and survives to some degree in the soil. The primary danger here is to
pregnant mothers -- toxoplasmosis can cause miscarriage.

James

When the ancient war dogs did battle on 02 Apr 2003 05:51:01 GMT,
Albert Fiantaca did speak the following bit of
wisdom:

It's springtime. The garden soil is soft and has been turned once. The
gang of neighborhood cats have decided that my vegetable garden plot is
the place to crap in.

It's official! Even though it is snowing like crazy here in New
England, the cat posts say that Spring has arrived at last!

HURRAY!!!

* * * * *
Karen C.
Southern CT / USDA Zone 6
Spammers be damned! I can't be emailed from this account...

"Gardeners know all the best dirt!"

I have had good luck using plain old black pepper. I get the biggest,
cheapest bottles from any discount store. Sprinkle it liberally around the
plants. It usually lasts for about a month, and is much cheaper than
commercial cat repellents

Albert Fiantaca wrote:

Hi

It's springtime. The garden soil is soft and has been turned once. The
gang of neighborhood cats have decided that my vegetable garden plot is
the place to crap in. It stinks to the heavens and I particularly don't
want it where I grow food. I have to search out the spot where they
their bury it and dig it out to dispose of it. What can I do to put a
stop to this? No, I can't shoot them. Poison is out, I have a dog, and
young children around.

Thanks, Al

Learn some Italian, chase them with a broom. It's not very effective,
but you can't beat the imagery.