Are cats a problem where you live? If the answer to that question is yes, then you should look into these cat scaring devices right now.
Below we have five cat scaring repellents that work via ultrasonic frequency wave dispersal tech, which is all harmless to the animals themselves, so that you can enjoy a clean and untampered with garden.
By sending the cats running, you’ll not only keep them busy but over time pest animals may even naturally avoid your place.
Each entry below has pros and cons, which have been clearly listed out for newcomers to see what features one product may have over another.
If you are interested in more information about these products, we’ve included a buyers’ guide that breaks these devices down into their basic functions, which we then used to judge each product and rank them.
In a hurry? This is our winner!
- Frequency makes it uncomfortable for cats
- Motion sensor covers 80 degree arc, to a distance of up to 23ft (7m)
- Total unobstructed working area of 184sq ft stops cats fouling your garden
If you’re struggling to purge the feline menace from your gardens and need some quick backup, we’ve described our top cat scarer for you here.
We chose the Pestbye Waterproof Ultrasonic Cat Scarer, a compact but durable and capable repeller box that’s packed with handy features.
These features include the following:
- This repeller is capable of switching settings to target different animals, or as many as it can at once, and does this by emitting frequencies from the box that won’t cause any harm to them.
- The casings of these repellers are watertight, meaning that they don’t suffer from water damage during wet weather like rain or snow. At the bottom of each repeller is a stake that can be driven into the ground for a simple but secure installation.
- This is the most affordable repeller on our list yet it comes with some cool features to guard your garden.
Best Cat Scarer – Comparison Table
Best Cat Scarer – Reviews
Pestbye® Waterproof Cat Repellent Ultrasonic Repeller Cat Scarer with Ground Stake (Battery Powered)
Our number one cat repeller device is the Pestbye Waterproof Ultrasonic Cat Scarer, a compact and cost-efficient option that’s ideal for smaller garden spaces. The fact that it’s an ultrasonic frequency dispersal device means that it’s painless for the cats and causes no short or long-term harm to any of the cats affected by this product.
It’s perfect for small to medium-sized gardens, having a motion detection range of twenty-three feet that spans the width of an eighty-degree angle, providing a large cone to catch any and all movements in your garden. Whatever form those pests take, you can rest assured that one of this repeller’s settings is capable of scaring it away.
The casing is fully waterproof, being built to last through any weather, particularly wet weather like rain, snow, ice, and even fog. You’ll want to wait for warmer weather if you plan on installing this repeller by driving it into the ground with the provided stake. This is great for low-ground detection at garden corners, though you can use a hanging hole to hook or screw this device onto any house or decking wall available to you.
As we’ve mentioned, these are actually the cheapest products on this list by a thin margin, but we feel they’re the best for any one person to get without spending too much or buying more sensors that you need. The sensing range falls a bit short, hence why we think it’s greater for smaller garden spaces, but that’s nothing that can’t be managed by some handy placement.
- Frequency disperses cats with no short-term or long-term harm.
- Multiple settings for different animals.
- Repeller casings are waterproof to avoid water-based weather.
- Easy to install, just drive it into the ground!
- The most affordable repeller on this list.
- Relatively small sensing range.
Defenders STV610 Mega-Sonic Cat Repeller, Motion Activated Cat Repellent, Mains and Battery Powered, Green, 120 sq m
At the second place on our list is the Defenders Mega-Sonic Cat Repeller, an ultrasonic repeller that humanely deters cats. It does this by emitting bursts of variable sonic activity to irritate cats whenever one gets detected in the 120-square meter scanning range that these repellers are capable of. This enables you to cover large portions of your garden within this protection zone.
Your powering options with the Mega-Sonic Cat Repeller vary. You can use two nine-volt batteries to keep the repeller going for about three months, at which point they’ll need to be recharged or replaced entirely. What sets these apart is the ability to, with the help of a universal adapter not included in this purchase, connect these repellers to your household’s mains system, providing a steady stream of power and so eliminating the need for batteries entirely.
The repellents are weatherproof to an IP44 rating, which is good enough to sustain year-round operation, but the unique water ingress encapsulated electronics give these products impressive water shielding, perfect for contending with British weather.
If you do decide these repellers are the ones for you, then you’ll find that they can be set up either in the ground or screwed to the wall, with a soft ground mounting stake and a pack of screws provided for whichever method you choose to go with.
You should exercise some caution in where you set your repeller up, however, since cats need to trip the motion sensor for it to emit waves and scare them away.
- It provides you with a 120-square meter protection zone.
- It is a humane means of dispersing trespassing cats from your property.
- It can be powered by the mains in your house, meaning no battery replacements.
- Weatherproof to an IP44 standard, suitable for all-year-round use.
- It can be staked into the ground or mounted on a wall with provided screws.
- It requires the cat to trip the sensor to work.
Vannico Fox Cat Repellent, Solar Battery Power Ultrasonic Animal Repeller, Outdoor Waterproof Cat Fox Dog Scarer Deterrent with 2 Speakers for Garden Yard Field Farm (AR 1)
At our number three spot is the Vannico Solar Power Ultrasonic Animal Repeller, one of the most powerful repellers on our list when measured in pure square feet. That’s because it can cover 5,000 square feet thanks to its dual speaker design and powerful passive infrared motion sensor that radiates with a wide 210-degree angle, making it great for covering larger gardens.
It’s great for long-term pest dispersal since it maintains an irregular and variable frequency that animals can’t get used to, meaning that it’ll keep working until the local pests learn that your areas are a no-go zone. When it’s activated, it sends a mixture of ultrasonic and sonic waves that are accompanied by flashing LED strobe lights to scare the pests away.
It maintains its high level of performance by having two power sources, those being a USB charging cable and the sun. The USB is intended for full charges when the repeller sees a lot of action, meanwhile, the solar panel passively charges it throughout the day, which can cover some sporadic, day to day use. With that said, some have expressed disappointment at how often it needs charging for how long it’s used.
The casing that houses the repelling technology is watertight to resist rain and other moisture-based inclement weather like snow and ice. The casing also features a hang hole so it can be mounted on the wall or planted into the ground with a stake that’s also provided with this purchase.
- Dual speaker design and motion sensor extend acoustic coverage to 5,000 square feet.
- Maintains an irregular frequency to keep driving animals away.
- It can be charged by both solar and USB cable connections.
- Waterproofed to withstand some rain, snow, or ice.
- Easy to install and able to be planted into the ground or mounted on a wall.
- Requires charging quite frequently.
VOLADOR Animal Repellent, Waterproof Ultrasonic Cat Fox Repeller, Solar USB Powered Pet Dog Deterrent, Rabbit Rat Scare for Garden Yard Field Farm
Our next cat scaring product is the VOLADOR Animal Repellent, a general repellent system that can get rid of racoons, rats, cats, squirrels, owls, and even hogs. It does this by employing a two-step dispersion process that involves sending out waves of uncomfortable ultrasound and, during night hours, flashing a light to scare away nocturnal pests.
The casings for these repellents are rated at 44 on the IP rating, an admirable score for products this small that guarantee they’ll keep dust out and won’t be bothered by rainfall. Whilst very waterproof, we will say that there’s a USB charging port on the repellent that needs covering, otherwise the interior of this repeller can get damaged.
What’s that USB charging port for, you ask? These repellents can be charged through both solar power and traditional cable means. Solar power is great for passive recharging when there isn’t much animal traffic in your gardens, but it won’t suffice for frequent animal activity.
That’s where the USB comes in, where you can charge it fully to keep it working. Since you’re here, we’re assuming you’ll be breaking the USB cables out more often than casual users, so we’d recommend covering that USB slot with tape or another temporary, removable barrier.
The device features a motion sensor that works up to thirty feet which is ideal for catching roaming pests like foxes and cats in the act of trespassing. It’s marketed as the fox deterrent part of this multi-faceted product but can work with cats too. We say “part” because this product has multiple settings based on different sensor ranges and angles, meaning you can tailor this to your target animal.
The downside of this is that the installation process can be a bit more complicated. This is because each setting can require a different setup, particularly if you have a larger garden, and setting it to its all-in-one mode only adds more complications to the mix. If cats are your only worry, then there’s a mode for common pests like cats and rats, but you may need to wrestle with some logistics if you want to cover your garden against all manners of pest.
- Multiple settings to keep away a wide variety of animals, from rats and cats to wild hogs.
- Uses a two-pronged dispersion tactic involving ultrasound and light flashes.
- Includes motion sensors for the fox deterrent that work up to 30 feet.
- Rated at an IP44 waterproof standard.
- Requires some different installation processes depending on what you’re deterring.
Rentokil FC78 Cat and Fox Deterrent
The last repellent product we have to show you today is the Rentokil FC78 Cat and Fox Deterrent, a small and handy ultrasonic repeller from a household name with an established pedigree. It markets itself as being the bane of all types of animal pests with the main ones featured in its marketing material being foxes and, you guessed it, cats.
With that said, one of the consistent criticisms that have been brought up is the fact that these repellers are very hit and miss in their fox-scaring performance. Now, this is a flaw with the product but, given why you’re reading this article in the first place, we’re assuming cats are more of a problem at the moment. At any rate, it’s something to consider if you were expecting a versatile repellent product.
This ultrasonic deterrent box emits waves that are inaudible to humans, so you won’t hear or even feel the presence of this box as it works its magic, leaving you undisturbed to go about your day. The casings that the repellers are housed in are weatherproof to withstand the cold nights and harsh rains of British weather, so you can rest assured that they won’t break during most weather conditions.
Overall, the Rentokil FC78 is a very easy product to set up that can keep cats away from your house on a budget, even if they struggle with ousting foxes. This product does come with a reminder, however, that it can take about four weeks for pest animals to learn that they should stay away from your area, so you should be patient with the FC78 if it is the one for you.
- Deters a lot of a variety of different animal pests.
- The deterrent is inaudible to humans, and so it won’t disturb you.
- These little casings are weatherproof.
- Very simple to set up and activate.
- It may take as long as a month for pests to learn to stay away.
- This product’s performance at keeping foxes away is hit and miss.
Best Cat Scarer – Buyer’s Guide
How to find the best cat scarer
If you’re new to these devices, it can be confusing to judge one repeller against another, especially when their properties don’t line up. This buyers’ guide exists to help those who want a breakdown of what these repellers can do and which features to prefer over others if you’re looking for the best quality product.
We’ve separated the repellers by the quality of repellent, their power supply, their weatherproofing, and their ease of installation, and elaborated on each category below.
Quality of Repellent
This is of course the most important factor when buying a repeller. Having a higher-end repeller with all of the bells and whistles won’t do you much good if it doesn’t succeed in its one main function, to repel pests from your property. So, how do repellers work?
Ultrasonic repellers work by emitting wave frequencies across their area of effect. Though called ultrasonic repellers, the waves are often a combination of sonic and ultrasonic waves since this lessens the chance that animals will become accustomed to them, meaning they won’t, in essence, develop an immunity and ignore the repellers. Some repellers also have a nocturnal function whereby they flash powerful lights when tripped by motion, but these are better against nocturnal pests like foxes, racoons, and owls.
That’s right, some repellers are tailor-made for certain animals whereas some can ward off anything from rats and cats to hogs and pest birds like seagulls and owls. With repellers that can deter all of these animals from lingering on your property, they usually operate by having several modes that are directed at certain animal groupings, though they usually have an all-in-one setting that keeps all pests away at once.
We mentioned the area of effect, which is dictated by two measurements that you need to pay attention to when buying your product. The first of these is the range, the distance in square foot measurement of how far the repellers throw their signals and is important for getting a repeller that’ll fit well in your garden.
The second is the angle of the signal emission and is usually expressed with an angle, such as 80-degrees or 120-degrees, though some repellers can emit all around them. This affects the positioning of your repellers, especially if you have smaller repellers in a larger garden and need to use some strategic positioning to get maximum coverage.
Power Supply
There are three main methods of charging your repellers, those being through solar power, through USB cable, or batteries. The first of these is one of the rarer features to find but a welcome one nonetheless, as it means your repeller devices can passively charge throughout the daytime. Solar panels are almost always used in tandem with batteries and/or USB ports for actual charging when the power starts to dry up. The efficiency of these solar panels varies, with some not working as much and requiring more actual charging, whilst others are sometimes able to survive with very little manual input.
We’re assuming if you have a problem, your repeller devices will require more charge from batteries or USB cords. Batteries are fairly self-explanatory, and a good set can make your repellers last for a few months before requiring any change. USB cords, on the other hand, charge very quickly but require a direct connection to an electric source, which can be the mains. USB charging ports, in some more poorly constructed devices, can present a weakness in the repeller casing where water damage is concerned, so you may want to cover these up when they’re not in use.
Weatherproofing
Speaking of the casings of these repellers, since they’ll be outside, you want them to be as sturdy against the weather as possible. Whilst dirt and dust resistance are great to deal with muck and natural debris, you should mainly be concerned with water-resistance, especially when you’re based in Britain.
You’ll most commonly see IP44 as the standard IP rating of repellers though you can find some higher rated ones out there. The IP44 models should suffice since it’s protected against knocks and water splashes, which should be fine for the punishment that it’ll take from the weather.
Ease of Installation
Repeller devices are generally quite easy to install and can be installed in two main ways. The first of these is where you drive a stake into some soft ground, the repeller device being mounted on the other end of that stake. This allows you to monitor ground-level infractions and helps you to get the most out of your sensor angles.
The second are hanging holes which can be screwed or hooked onto a wall or decking. This means that they can be further from your actual garden, so wall-mounting is great for longer-range devices that are capable of sensing further outwards, and they can be installed under some form of shelter to avoid having to contend with the weather.