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Forum Index : Microcontroller and PC projects : Cat Detector and Deterrent
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| Andrew_G Guru  Joined: 18/10/2016 Location: AustraliaPosts: 871 |
Hi, a little off topic, but maybe not? A working solution would garner many bonus points at home. We have a neighbour (in suburban Melbourne) who has seven cats. She applied for, and the Council granted her a permit (despite several objections). Their logic is that she can now be prosecuted if the cats stray. The are crapping everywhere, including our veggie patch etc (I nearly died from Toxoplasmosis shortly after we moved here 20+ years ago so it is very important to us). She won't listen to us nor her husband. I can't see why we should have to trap each cat twice before the Council will take action (their process). Traps are $140 to buy, $55 per fortnight to hire and there is little likelihood of trapping them anyway. For about $100 there are bird/cat scarers that have a motion sensor which then squirts the little beast with water. There must be a MM-based solution to detect movement and turn on a solenoid etc. to either squirt them or video them or?? (it would need to be humane and legal - no guns!). Any suggestions? Andrew (In the meantime we are ramping up the formal process but it won't be as satisfying as a good squirt up the . . .) |
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Grogster Admin Group  Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 9610 |
You have my sympathies.  Something like this might help. Cheap enough, self-contained, and says it will work on cats. Or there is this crafty thing built by a fellow Aussie.... EDIT: ....and part 2 Smoke makes things work. When the smoke gets out, it stops! |
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Chopperp Guru Joined: 03/01/2018 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1097 |
Good ones Groggs. So funny. ChopperP |
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| Grogster Admin Group Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 9610 |
There's also a bloopers video if you are interested. It's pretty funny too. Smoke makes things work. When the smoke gets out, it stops! |
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| Andrew_G Guru Joined: 18/10/2016 Location: AustraliaPosts: 871 |
Thanks Grogs and ChopperP. Anyone know of reasonably priced outdoor video camera and a motion sensor? I will possibly get an ultrasonic thingy (or two) but they will no doubt upset our dog and somewhere in the recesses of my mind I suspect they may be illegal - I'll try and check after I've placed an order. Andrew (I was actually watching the videos when the neighbour knocked at the front door asking if she could retrieve her cat from our veggie patch. She admitted that she cant keep them in but how could I be sure it was her cat crapping in the veggie patch - ie the very one she was searching for was in the veggie patch . . . She provided me with a good opportunity for a "conversation". She now knows the depth of my concerns and what I will do about it.) |
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| Boppa Guru Joined: 08/11/2016 Location: AustraliaPosts: 814 |
I know that feeling, had across the roads cat pissed on the front screen door the other night, stanky bloody thing... NSFW kevin bloody wilson, that ..... cats back, lotssa swearin! |
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| matherp Guru Joined: 11/12/2012 Location: United KingdomPosts: 10315 |
I've put an electric fence round our vegetable plot - they learn quickly  |
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Revlac Guru Joined: 31/12/2016 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1154 |
Yes cats are a real problem when let go and running a muck. I live in a farm area and half the place is wildlife habitat, so Cats, Dogs, foxes are a problem for not only the wildlife but also to the farm livestock. For some hard to find culprits we setup a wildlife camera or farm cam they are sometimes called, they will capture video or photo's of most things rats, badicoots and even bats however the infra red sensors often failed to pick up the cats, could be due to there low heat signature and long fur.? Since then we put in a security camera system, 8 cameras total we see a lot of stuff with them, the IR led's and cameras run all night, the system is set to record motion/triggered for 10 second intervals. Now I believe the motion that triggers the system to record is actually a change in the picture from the previous frame, perhaps a comparison between images triggers whether to record or not? So far it will pick up Moths PITA that, frogs, toads, snakes, bats, cats, mice even picks up geckos some times if close enough, so most things that move. This one is UL-TECH low budget and AHD The system software (not sure about the hardware) has an alarm out function which could possibly used to activate some sort of deterrent of choice...  and film the action.  There should be many security cameras out there that have these functions and more. Digital HD should be better quality and something with descent night vision at least 15m distance, depends on the area to cover. Worth looking at a few different brands anyway. Cheers Aaron Off The Grid |
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CaptainBoing Guru Joined: 07/09/2016 Location: United KingdomPosts: 2170 |
perhaps some ultrasonic distance devices - the type that self-trigger (flashing LED) As I understand it - un-proved- animals don't like the 40kHz - enough of them around your plot could make an invisible screen wall perhaps. |
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| lizby Guru Joined: 17/05/2016 Location: United StatesPosts: 3378 |
"Anyone know of reasonably priced outdoor video camera and a motion sensor?" You'd have to provide your own waterproofing, but I found this motion-sensing Raspberry Pi setup easy--I now have 6 cameras connected: https://randomnerdtutorials.com/cctv-raspberry-pi-based-system-storage-motioneyeos/ Where I am, a raspberry pi zero w can be had for $15USD including shipping, and a camera can be $8-$25 depending on features. PicoMite, Armmite F4, SensorKits, MMBasic Hardware, Games, etc. on fruitoftheshed |
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| Grogster Admin Group Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 9610 |
@ Boppa - I love KWB. I just bought his latest Christmas CD. Some good songs on this one. You can get it from his website if you are so inclined. That London show is awesome, and that lady in the audience that does the funny laugh in the background is the icing on the cake! I guess it becomes more of an issue the more cats you have in any one area. The more of them there are, the more they all try to tag their own bit with that 'Territorial Pissings' And that piss really stinks, so I guess I am just lucky that there are only two or three cats in my area, and two of them are the neighbours cats, so I never have this cat piss problem - thankfully.Smoke makes things work. When the smoke gets out, it stops! |
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| greybeard Senior Member  Joined: 04/01/2010 Location: AustraliaPosts: 174 |
Rottweiler |
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| Volhout Guru Joined: 05/03/2018 Location: NetherlandsPosts: 5091 |
Question is, are you trying to keep them in their garden, or trying to keep them out of your garden. I think the latter. I have been succesfull with electric fencing. 12V car spark ingniter, driven from a timer relay with a repetition rate higher that for cows (cat are faster). They survive, but learn quickly. Expensive part was the wiring. Few dollars. Regards, Volhout P.S. this would also be a nice micromite project.....  PicomiteVGA PETSCII ROBOTS |
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| Andrew_G Guru Joined: 18/10/2016 Location: AustraliaPosts: 871 |
Thanks all for your concerns and suggestions. Volhout - re the electric fence; what repetition rate would you recommend? I think that you and Peter M may be on a winner . . . (there are commercial units aplenty too). I do like the idea of a jet of water too! Greybeard - I laughed at the "Rottweiler" suggestion (but see below) Re the ultrasonic deterrents - yes would probably work but might upset our 12 yo schnoodle. It is his barking at the cats is part of the problem. Thanks again, Andrew |
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palcal Guru Joined: 12/10/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1993 |
Depending on where you live, watch the electric fence option they are illegal in some areas and the neighbour would probably dob you in if they are. If you already have irrigation to the patch it would be easy to use a sensor and switch it on when the cat comes. Edit. As for a sensor Captain Boing put me onto these Microwave Sensor I have used them, so easy and they work great on humans anyway but should work with cats. "It is better to be ignorant and ask a stupid question than to be plain Stupid and not ask at all" |
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| Grogster Admin Group Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 9610 |
Agreed. Some would question weather an electric fence designed to contain something the size of a cow, could be humane when used on a cat which is only a fraction of the size. That's the tricky bit. You don't want to actually harm the cat, just find a way to etch into their feline brain not to come back around here again. Tricky, as cats can be 'Dumb as a post' to some extent, and will just keep coming back again and again. Not really that easy to solve. I like that Aussie fella's compressed air and pipe trick, and that seemed to work, but it would probably annoy the neighbours so much that it would be pointless to use it. A funny invention though! Smoke makes things work. When the smoke gets out, it stops! |
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| Boppa Guru Joined: 08/11/2016 Location: AustraliaPosts: 814 |
There are dog/cat containment/exclusion fences which are lower powered electric fences available, mob I used to work for made them, so I dare say they are still available (they were the same voltage but just had smaller storage caps in them so less joules output) They werent the collar types (which we made as well) but actual electric fences, I had a 'side job' working with them for quite a while making the fence mounts, which were 3 plastic brackets poprivetted to a predrilled galvanised metal strip- we made them in the thousands at a time in batches as required, obviously a big ask for hand riveting, and I owned a air compressor and air powered pop rivetter so I got to 'work' at home making boxes of these things... |
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| Grogster Admin Group Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 9610 |
Ahhh, I see. That's OK then. I stand corrected.  Smoke makes things work. When the smoke gets out, it stops! |
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TassyJim Guru Joined: 07/08/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 6283 |
I'm not sure what the type a neighbour has, I think it's the collar, but it doesn't work very well. The mut got used to it in a couple of weeks and we have had to give up walking the dogs in that direction. Our new pooch trod on the neighbours electric fence wire. She lept but kept going. I think we have a tough cookie there. I think he needs a rocking chair and a water pistol full of citronella. Jim VK7JH MMedit |
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| Volhout Guru Joined: 05/03/2018 Location: NetherlandsPosts: 5091 |
I am not sure if in your area this is possible, but I have been successful in my current house (the electric fence was at my previous house) by using the legal way. I caught the cat (by tricking it into a bench (like a giant mouse trap)) and took it to the local asylum, and told them the story. Since the cat was chipped, they called the owners that their cat was found, and that they could pick it up (at 50 dollar cost). That repeated 2 times, and then the cat was not seen in my garden again. It either remained at the asylum, or they kept the cat indoor..... PicomiteVGA PETSCII ROBOTS |
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