DIY Cat Repellent

I have a cat named Batman. He's less than a year old and when we got him as a young kitten, he developed a habit of biting cords. And then he progressed to biting cabinet doors. And window latches. And really anything he can get his little toofers on. I tried the water bottle, that didn't work. I had heard of covers you can put over cords... but they stink up your apartment. Then, I came across this post from LouisesCountryCloset for a DIY cat repellent using orange peels and it seemed too easy not to try. And holy crap, it works! I was 100% shocked because I was 100% sure it wouldn't work. Even if you don't own a cat, I bet you have a flower bed neighborhood cats like to use as a litter box.... you might want to give this a try and save your petunias!

It's easy, all you need are:

1. Orange peels
2. A spray bottle
3. (optional) Cheese cloths or nylon hose to wring out as much as you can from the orange peels. I tried using a cheese cloth and it didn't work, but you don't really need them anyway.

I used 5 oranges and a medium pot and was able to make 12 oz (in a 14oz. bottle).

First, peel your oranges. I found it helped to score the oranges into quarters.

Next, put the peels in a medium pot and add just enough water for the peels to float at the top. Let the water get to a boil and let it boil for 10 minutes, to release the oil.

After 10 minutes, drain out the water and if you want, use a cheesecloth or nylon hose to wring out the peels for anymore liquid.

Once cooled, pour into a water bottle and spray wherever you like!

I immediately started on these open cords Batman seems to be fond of. His reaction?

He sniffed....

And then walked away with his mouth open, aghast I would ruin his fun.

Of course, every cat is different so yours might not react the same way but hey, it's cheap and worth a shot, isn't it? And there's enough to last a long time!

P.S. - Your house will smell ah-may-zing.

TOTAL COSTS: About $5 to make 24 oz. (price from Vons)
$4.99 to buy 10 oranges
Water bottle on hand

TOTAL AMOUNT OF TIME: About 30 minutes
5 minutes to peel oranges
6 minutes to get water up to a boil
10 minutes to boil water
10 minutes to let cool

EASY-PEASY SCALE (1 super easy - 5 very difficult): 1 out of 5
This isn't hard at all (unless you have a problem peeling oranges). Give it a shot and save your cords, door stoppers, or flower beds!