Car Scratched/Angry Neighbor...Please HELP !

My upstairs neighbor moved out a year ago and couldn't take her 2 cats
with her, so I agreed to take care of them, as I was always just fine
with them here, especially since we used to have a huge rat problem and
I haven't seen (or even heard of one) around here since.

These are both very much outside cats and are not very friendly towards
humans at all, but after 3 years seeing me, they finally are to the
point they actually come up to me and they have become my little
'Buddies.

Okay...Fast forward to now...I live in a duplexe and now have a new
neighbor who is complaining about the cat scratches to his semi-new
Mercedes Benz, and I cant say that I blame him.
He hasn't told me flat-out to get rid of the cat, (I have 2 but only one
likes to lounge on cars) but he gave a strong enough hint. He says he
knows this 'Nice, Old, Kindly Lady' who just LUVs cats, but I somehow
don't believe this is true, I think he would just dump it off
somewhere...I.E...After 5 months of noticing that although his
Rottweiler pup (in the back-yard) is well fed etc...I cant remember him
(or ANY one) EVER going back there to spend time with her (besides me) i
finally asked him..."So, how do you like having a Rotty ? "...to which
his reply was..."Oh Yeah, soon as she's old enough I'm going to start
breeding her, cause I can get big $$$'s for the puppies ! "

Oh Well...his business, but there you have it..I really have become
rather fond of these cats, and this one in particular, so if there is
ANY advice you can offer I would (and I am sure little Lucy, the cat) be
extremely grateful !

Is this a lost cause ? I know of (actually just seen it advertised) the
spray stuff to keep animals off the furniture or away from plants etc,
but what about automobiles ?

I hope one of you can help me out or I don't see things ending up well
for this cat. I would like to keep her and I don't think she adapts to
change very well...I.E...before this guy moved in Lucy had run of the
whole backyard to herself, then came the dog and I didn't see her for at
least 2 weeks. She must have been under the house or something, and to
the dogs credit, it seems to be more of a 'Pussy-Cat' than both cats are
put together...LOL

Feel free to e-mail me direct.

Thanks in advance.

Chris Mc 3

Lots of Rotties are very sweet. (See the "Good Dog, Carl" books for
reference.)

Your neighbor is a jerk and an ignoramus when it comes to dogs. He is
exactly the kind of a**$#*@e who should never be allowed to own a dog, much
less an intact female. People like him are the reason that kill shelters are
full. You should probably be thankful that this blankety-blank isn't keeping
a pit in the backyard that he is "training" to be aggressive.

Nevertheless, he does have a point, as you say, about it being unacceptable
for a neighbor's animal to scratch up his car. The only things I can think
of are to either a) transform the cat into an indoor cat, b) find the cat a
place to live such as one of the rare rural barns where cat rescues have
arranged for truly feral cats to live in comparative safety, or c) find a
way to be subtly obnoxious so that he chooses to move away but you don't
risk eviction.

Otherwise I'm afraid that he will take matters into his own hands, and it
will be curtains for the unfortunate cat.

sure it is the cats doing it and not squirrels or raccoons


"Chris Mc 3" wrote in message
...

My upstairs neighbor moved out a year ago and couldn't take her 2 cats
with her, so I agreed to take care of them, as I was always just fine
with them here, especially since we used to have a huge rat problem and
I haven't seen (or even heard of one) around here since.

These are both very much outside cats and are not very friendly towards
humans at all, but after 3 years seeing me, they finally are to the
point they actually come up to me and they have become my little
'Buddies.

Okay...Fast forward to now...I live in a duplexe and now have a new
neighbor who is complaining about the cat scratches to his semi-new
Mercedes Benz, and I cant say that I blame him.
He hasn't told me flat-out to get rid of the cat, (I have 2 but only one
likes to lounge on cars) but he gave a strong enough hint. He says he
knows this 'Nice, Old, Kindly Lady' who just LUVs cats, but I somehow
don't believe this is true, I think he would just dump it off
somewhere...I.E...After 5 months of noticing that although his
Rottweiler pup (in the back-yard) is well fed etc...I cant remember him
(or ANY one) EVER going back there to spend time with her (besides me) i
finally asked him..."So, how do you like having a Rotty ? "...to which
his reply was..."Oh Yeah, soon as she's old enough I'm going to start
breeding her, cause I can get big $$$'s for the puppies ! "

Oh Well...his business, but there you have it..I really have become
rather fond of these cats, and this one in particular, so if there is
ANY advice you can offer I would (and I am sure little Lucy, the cat) be
extremely grateful !

Is this a lost cause ? I know of (actually just seen it advertised) the
spray stuff to keep animals off the furniture or away from plants etc,
but what about automobiles ?

I hope one of you can help me out or I don't see things ending up well
for this cat. I would like to keep her and I don't think she adapts to
change very well...I.E...before this guy moved in Lucy had run of the
whole backyard to herself, then came the dog and I didn't see her for at
least 2 weeks. She must have been under the house or something, and to
the dogs credit, it seems to be more of a 'Pussy-Cat' than both cats are
put together...LOL

Feel free to e-mail me direct.

Thanks in advance.

Chris Mc 3

Chris Mc 3 wrote:

Okay...Fast forward to now...I live in a duplexe and now have a new
neighbor who is complaining about the cat scratches to his semi-new
Mercedes Benz,

I've had this issue raised before and here is the answer I found on Flippy's
cat page


CATALOGUE

Cats and Car-Paint

The quick answer is that car duco - if its in half decent condition - is
extremely hard (its baked for at least half an hour at over 300º since it has
to withstand road gravel hitting it etc). And cats claws are the same
hardness as our fingernails. So unless you can scratch off the paint with
your fingernail, there is *no way* a cat can scratch the *paint* of the
surface of a car that's in a fairly good condition. (Paint does weather
though and if its in a really bad state, it can be scratched, but if its that
bad it should be a funny colour of white and be in the junk yard).
However, if the car has been *waxed*, the cat's claws (and your fingernails)
can remove some of the wax, leaving what looks likes scratches in the paint,
but are in fact just places where the surface of the wax has been removed.
But then again a cat just walking across a car doesn't *use* claws, so the
only way that the cat could scratch the car is if it was trying to somehow
get traction on the surface, by either falling off or (dare I say) running
for its life.

The worst a cat can do to in normal circumstances is leave cute little muddy
cat prints - annoying but not inherently damaging.

This article is Copyright © Victoria Chapman, BSc, Paint Technologist,
and printed with permission of the author


Hope this helps

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

--
Message posted via http://www.catkb.com

Is this a rental apartment that you live in? If it, is is the
neighbor entitled to free run of the "backyard" or is it a common area
that he has usurped? The cat has not scratched his car. Dont believe
it. Give him a spray bottle of water and tell him to spray the cat
whenever he spys the cat sleeping on his car if he doesnt like the cat
to sleep on the car. If the rat is not entitled to private usage of
the backyard speak to your landlord immediately. If the dog gives you
the slightest problem, please call the police immediately. How do
your outside cats get into your apartment? Do they have to go through
the yard with the rottweiler in it? hope not. Be brave.

"Lesley via CatKB.com" wrote

Chris Mc 3 wrote:

Okay...Fast forward to now...I live in a duplexe and now have a new
neighbor who is complaining about the cat scratches to his semi-new
Mercedes Benz,

I've had this issue raised before and here is the answer I found on
Flippy's
cat page


CATALOGUE

Cats and Car-Paint

Thank you! Thats what I was looking for. A cat can damage the *inside* if
he leaves it open, but just the wax coat as far as i know on the exterior.

Chris, ask to see the scratches. If they are on the doors, he's obviously
wrong (they cant hit there, he probably drove the car into somthing and
doesnt realize it or is pretending it's the cat).

Now on the treatment of the dog, that's terrible! These are family dogs and
will not socialize well in a back yard. In fact, in time they can become
dangerous if left in conditions like that. If there is a way to call the
local authorities and warn them, that might be best. It may escallate the
problem with your neighbor, but it's best all around to avoid animal abuse.

On Jul 14, 11:24*am, "Lesley via CatKB.com" u27720@uwe wrote:
Chris Mc 3 wrote:
Okay...Fast forward to now...I live in a duplexe and now have a new
neighbor who is complaining about the cat scratches to his semi-new
Mercedes Benz,

I've had this issue raised before and here is the answer I found on Flippy's
cat page

CATALOGUE

Cats and Car-Paint

The quick answer is that car duco - if its in half decent condition - is
extremely hard (its baked for at least half an hour at over 300º since it has
to withstand road gravel hitting it etc). And cats claws are the same
hardness as our fingernails. So unless you can scratch off the paint with
your fingernail, there is *no way* a cat can scratch the *paint* of the
surface of a car that's in a fairly good condition. (Paint does weather
though and if its in a really bad state, it can be scratched, but if its that
bad it should be a funny colour of white and be in the junk yard).
However, if the car has been *waxed*, the cat's claws (and your fingernails)
can remove some of the wax, leaving what looks likes scratches in the paint,
but are in fact just places where the surface of the wax has been removed..
But then again a cat just walking across a car doesn't *use* claws, so the
only way that the cat could scratch the car is if it was trying to somehow
get traction on the surface, by either falling off or (dare I say) running
for its life.

The worst a cat can do to in normal circumstances is leave cute little muddy
cat prints - annoying but not inherently damaging.

This article is Copyright © Victoria Chapman, BSc, Paint Technologist,
and printed with permission of the author

Hope this helps

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

--
Message posted viahttp://www.catkb.com

you are so right there!

The only thing that I thought of that might be the same in the USA as
it is over here-is, Cats are classified as wild animals. (eg: for
instance, should a cat decide to sit in my garden & crow to females
all night, there is absolutley nothing that anyone can do legally to
stop a situation like that; should the cat belong to me & I had him in
a run, It is possible to get a noise abatement order-however, if I
take the run away & the cat should continue to crow, there is not a
thing that anyone can do to legally, to stop it happening.)

Personaly, I would buy him a bottle of T-Cut, & a new leather to shine
it with!
Good Luck,
Sheelagh "o"

On Jul 13, 10:45*pm, (Chris Mc 3) wrote:
My upstairs neighbor moved out a year ago and couldn't take her 2 cats
with her, so I agreed to take care of them, as I was always just fine
with them here, especially since we used to have a huge rat problem and
I haven't seen (or even heard of one) around here since.

These are both very much outside cats and are not very friendly towards
humans at all, but after 3 years seeing me, they finally are to the
point they actually come up to me and they have become my little
'Buddies.

Okay...Fast forward to now...I live in a duplexe and now have a new
neighbor who is complaining about the cat scratches to his semi-new
Mercedes Benz, and I cant say that I blame him.
He hasn't told me flat-out to get rid of the cat, (I have 2 but only one
likes to lounge on cars) but he gave a strong enough hint. He says he
knows this 'Nice, Old, Kindly Lady' who just LUVs cats, but I somehow
don't believe this is true, I think he would just dump it off
somewhere...I.E...After 5 months of noticing that although his
Rottweiler pup (in the back-yard) is well fed etc...I cant remember him
(or ANY one) EVER going back there to spend time with her (besides me) i
finally asked him..."So, how do you like having a Rotty ? "...to which
his reply was..."Oh Yeah, soon as she's old enough I'm going to start
breeding her, cause I can get big $$$'s for the puppies ! "

Oh Well...his business, but there you have it..I really have become
rather fond of these cats, and this one in particular, so if there is
ANY advice you can offer I would (and I am sure little Lucy, the cat) be
extremely grateful !

Is this a lost cause ? I know of (actually just seen it advertised) the
spray stuff to keep animals off the furniture or away from plants etc,
but what about automobiles ?

I hope one of you can help me out or I don't see things ending up well
for this cat. I would like to keep her and I don't think she adapts to
change very well...I.E...before this guy moved in Lucy had run of the
whole backyard to herself, then came the dog and I didn't see her for at
least 2 weeks. She must have been under the house or something, and to
the dogs credit, it seems to be more of a 'Pussy-Cat' than both cats are
put together...LOL

Feel free to e-mail me direct.

Thanks in advance.

Chris Mc 3

Why don't you offer to have his car waxed by a good detailer?

My cat left scratches on my car when she misjudges distances.
Normally she walks on her pads but if she is slipping off the car she
tries to claw her way back.

Don't believe people who say cat claws can't leave scratches.