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Deer repellent

by Jimmy Inglish
(Murray,Ky)

Mountain Lion

Dear Sir,
Do you feel that deer are bothered by the smell of domestic cat waste? I’ve heard some say they use used kitty litter to repel deer? I also hear almost everyone say it does not bother them at all . In fact, deer and cats are often seen together. I suppose the idea behind using kitty litter is to emit the smell of a predator to fend off the deer? Just curious what you thought? Thank you sir so much for your help.

Thank you and God bless,
Jimmy Inglish

Comments for Deer repellent

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Oct 27, 2020

Not a 'sir'
by: Jacki Cammidge, Certified Horticulturist

I'm not a sir, but I can take a kick at your question.

When they say 'cat', they're not referring to a regular sweet little house cat, which as you say, do not scare deer.

What they mean is a cougar or other large cat. However, the part that would scare deer, to the point that they leave your plants alone, would be the urine. Try and collect big cat urine! I'll bet you can't.

In my area, deer are a huge problem in the town. The cougars will sometimes follow them down from the mountains where they usually live, taking out their meal in someone's front yard. How is this a problem you ask? Well, if they finish up with the deer, it wouldn't be a huge leap for them to then start taking out domestic dogs, cats, even kids.

Best scenario is to fence the deer out so they have no free lunch, and whatever you do, don't feed them!

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