As the name sounds, a cat repellent is a substance that keeps cats out of a particular spot in your home. For instance, cat repellents can be applied to gardens to protect different plants and healthy flower beds from cats.
Most repellents have certain ingredients, which have a strong smell that repels cats. For instance, neighbourhood cats will not want to frequent areas that smell strongly of citronella. In this article, we will show you how to make cat repellent at your home with some simple ingredients. The good thing is DIY cat repellents have tons of recipes, making it easier for you to create a homemade cat repellent that suits you the most.
Reasons to Create a Repellent
While cats are friendly and welcoming pets, they might try to access delicate parts of your garden or home.
Cats, especially kittens, can scratch different types of wooden furniture while experimenting with their newly grown claws, leaving claw marks on your furniture. Not to mention, repairing different kinds of furniture can be quite costly.
In some instances, cats might convert your garden, flower bed, or lawn into a litter box, making a mess on such spots. Apart from that, some cats might dig delicate sections of your garden or flower beds with their claws, killing some plants that may have grown on such sections.
Two Types of Cat Repellents
Essential Oil
Essential oils are manufactured from multiple plant extracts and can be found in various shops. Examples of cat deterrent essential oils include lemon essential oil, lavender oil, citrus oil, peppermint oil, and tea tree oil.
However, most essential oils have a highly concentrated scent, which has to be toned down to keep cats safe. For instance, essential oils need to be mixed with large quantities of water to reduce scent concentration.
If an essential oil emits a strong scent, it might affect the health of cats. Not to mention, cats might start developing different symptoms. Examples of such symptoms include vomiting, dullness, shaking, and seizures. Such symptoms might start developing if a cat inhales the scent of a highly concentrated essential oil. They might also begin to develop when a cat touches a highly concentrated essential oil. Due to this, essential oil containers should not be put in an open place where cats can reach them.
Homemade Cat Deterrent
On the other hand, natural homemade cat repellents are natural plant mixtures and scented solutions that deter cats from your house, outdoor garden, and yard. Homemade repellents are not as concentrated as various essential oils and are safer and non-toxic to cats.
While some natural homemade cat repellents produce a strong smell, they can not harm cats. Natural homemade cat deters also makes it possible for you to experiment with different recipes. Due to this, you can easily get some insight into the best cat repellent recipe for your cats. Natural homemade cat deterrents might also be ideal for cat lovers or cat owners that prefer natural solutions.
Apart from that, creating non-toxic homemade cat repellents is less costly than buying an essential oil. For starters, most of the plants that are listed in deterrent recipes can be found in your outdoor garden.
Vinegar Recipe
The first thing you need to do is to look for a spray bottle container that is big enough to hold a cat deterrent solution. It will make it easier for you to apply the vinegar cat repellent spray to indoor and outdoor spaces, keeping cats from those areas.
Afterwards, pour some vinegar into the spray bottle until it fills it halfway. Next, pour some liquid hand detergent into the container until it fills the container. The two solutions should have equal volumes.
Once you finish pouring the liquid detergent into the spray bottle, close it. Next, shake the mixture to mix those two ingredients (vinegar and liquid detergent) evenly. You can use the vinegar cat repellent spray on multiple parts of your garden or house to repel cats.
Garlic and Pepper Recipe
Garlic, lemon, and pepper can also create an effective cat repellent spray. While cayenne pepper can be added to a cat repellent spray, it should be added in small quantities. A lot of hot cayenne pepper in a cat deterrent can affect your cat.
To create a cat repellent spray out of these three ingredients, you must crush the garlic until it turns into a paste. Cut some lemons, then squeeze the lemon juice out of the lemons into a big container.
Add the garlic paste into the container with the lemon juice, then stir the solution gently. Afterwards, add some black pepper to the solution. However, you have to be quite keen while adding the pepper; make sure that you only add a little.
Once you finish mixing the ingredients, place the lemon solution in a safe spot, then leave it there for at least 24 hours. By doing this, all the ingredients will have enough time to dissolve into the solution to create a scent that is strong enough to repel cats.
Although it won’t be ready to be used right away, you can make some up beforehand, so you always have on hand, if needed.
Rosemary and White Vinegar or Apple Cider Vinegar Recipe
Since cats don’t like this spice, you can plant it in your outdoor garden or close to your flower beds to deter cats and protect your outdoor garden. Apart from that, you can also create a rosemary cat repellent spray solution mixture that will help you keep cats away from different spots in your home.
However, you need to look for some rosemary herbs. You can either use dried rosemary herbs or fresh rosemary herbs to create this cat repellent spray solution.
If you are using dried herbs, you have to crush the herbs into small particles. On the other hand, if you are using fresh rosemary herbs, you just have to cut them into smaller pieces.
Next, open your spray bottle, then add the herbs to the bottle.
Afterwards, pour some white vinegar or apple cider vinegar into the container with the herbs until it fills halfway.
After that, squeeze some lemon juice out of the lemons. Pour the lemon juice into the bottle until it fills completely. Close the spray bottle, then shake the solution gently to mix all the ingredients. Spray it on designated spots to keep the cats out of those sections.
Citronella Recipe
Citronella is a type of grass, which is quite effective in repelling cats and insects by producing a smell that cats hate.
Start off by boiling some water (boil enough water to fill your spray bottle). Once the water boils, add about five tablespoons of citronella. Cover the repellent solution with a huge lid. If the solution is open, some of the citronella oils may evaporate into the room, making the solution less potent.
Let the solution cool off for about 30 minutes to one hour. Sieve the solution to get rid of the Citronella particles.
After that, pour the citronella cat deterrent spray solution into a sprayer. Citronella oil is also effective in deterring cats from your garden.
While citronella is quite effective in repelling cats from different spots, it might cause various allergies. Examples of such allergies include coughing and skin irritation. You have to check whether you are allergic to citronella or not before you use the solution. If you are allergic to this solution, you should opt for another deterrent.
However, this is also an excellent deterrent for specific bugs, so it has an added bonus!
Citrus Recipe
Well, cats are easily repelled by items that have a citrusy smell. Due to this, you can easily create a natural cat repellent from different citrus fruits to prevent cats from going to different areas of your garden. Some citrus fruits that can help you make a homemade cat repellent include tangerines, oranges, lime, and lemons.
Peel the citrus fruits, then place the citrus peels in a large container. Squeeze the citrus juice out of those fruits and pour it into the container. Pour some water into the mixture of lemon juice and orange juice. Moreover, you can also use a citrus-scented detergent to enhance the citrusy scent. Just add a few drops to the citrus solution.
Once you finish adding the citrusy ingredients, place the citrus solution in a safe spot. After that, leave it for a few hours so that the ingredients can diffuse into the solution. Next, sieve the citrus solution to get rid of the huge peels that may be in the solution. Pour the citrus cat repellent spray solution into a spray bottle until it fills it to the brim. Close the bottle, then apply the citrus homemade cat repellent to different parts of your house or garden to keep cats away, protecting your plants.
Strong Coffee Recipe
A blend of strong coffee with citrus fruits can help you create a powerful natural cat repellent. For instance, you can extract citrus juice from orange fruit, and then blend it with strong coffee to get a cat repellent.
Apart from that, you can slice citrus fruits to get citrus rinds (orange peel), then place the citrus rinds (orange peel) in a huge container. Next, add some coffee grounds to the container with the orange peel. Let the citrus/coffee solution sit in a safe place for some hours until the citrus flavour dissolves into the natural cat repellent solution completely. After that, it will help you keep cats away from multiple sections of your home.
Use One of Those Recipes
Learning how to make cat repellent is easy. With tons of different recipes, you can easily create a non-toxic cat deterrent in the comfort of your home. Since there are various recipes to choose from, you can make a deterrent with items you likely have in your kitchen. Homemade cat deterrents are non-toxic and do not harm cats. Plus, making such deterrents is often cheaper than buying online.
Once you finish creating the deterrent, you have to spray it on indoor spaces and outdoor spaces, keeping cats away from those sections. If the scent starts to fade away, just reapply!
