Cat poop in soil bad?

abebob · 09-13-2010, 08:33 PM

Hello, I have a wheel barrow in my backyard where I store kinda all of my conglomeration of soil, leftover potting soil, gravel, etc. I recently started sifting through it to do some repotting and found a bunch of buried cat feces which really annoys me since it's not my cat, it's the neighbors. Anyways, wondering if I try and sift the crap out, if it's bad that some of the soil might have trace amounts of cat scat in it? So gross!

treebeard55 · 09-14-2010, 05:21 PM

Is it possible to remove the soil that was directly in contact with the cat's mementos, discard it, and keep the rest? If so, I would do that.

Otherwise -- you're looking at two questions. The various materials in any animal's poop will break down eventually and become fertilizer. But when some of those elements are fresh, they will burn sensitive tissues like hair roots. And even after they start breaking down, they will still poison the plant if they are too concentrated. (Remember, the difference between medicine and poison is one of dosage.)

It's your call. If you want to know what I would do: I would discard the cat's little gifts, rinse the soil several times, and then use it to pot up something large -- something that calls for several gallons of soil. That dilutes whatever is left of the cats endearments enough that I wouldn't worry.

dankone · 09-14-2010, 07:56 PM

i would be more worried to know wether or not the cat took a pee pee in your soil. that would be worse than poop.

treebeard55 · 09-14-2010, 08:13 PM

Good point, Dankone.

abebob · 09-17-2010, 11:24 AM

Thanks for the info- I will be getting rid of this "special soil" and the cat...just kidding about that last part.

09-13-2010, 08:33 PM	#1 (permalink)
abebob Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: St. George, UT USA Zone 7b Posts: 11	Cat poop in soil bad? Hello, I have a wheel barrow in my backyard where I store kinda all of my conglomeration of soil, leftover potting soil, gravel, etc. I recently started sifting through it to do some repotting and found a bunch of buried cat feces which really annoys me since it's not my cat, it's the neighbors. Anyways, wondering if I try and sift the crap out, if it's bad that some of the soil might have trace amounts of cat scat in it? So gross!

09-14-2010, 05:21 PM	#2 (permalink)
treebeard55 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Warsaw IN, USA USDA zone 5b Posts: 511	Is it possible to remove the soil that was directly in contact with the cat's mementos, discard it, and keep the rest? If so, I would do that. Otherwise -- you're looking at two questions. The various materials in any animal's poop will break down eventually and become fertilizer. But when some of those elements are fresh, they will burn sensitive tissues like hair roots. And even after they start breaking down, they will still poison the plant if they are too concentrated. (Remember, the difference between medicine and poison is one of dosage.) It's your call. If you want to know what I would do: I would discard the cat's little gifts, rinse the soil several times, and then use it to pot up something large -- something that calls for several gallons of soil. That dilutes whatever is left of the cats endearments enough that I wouldn't worry. __________________ Treebeard 55 Steve Moore http://hoosierbonsai.blogspot.com The most important bonsai tool is your brain.

09-14-2010, 08:13 PM	#4 (permalink)
treebeard55 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Warsaw IN, USA USDA zone 5b Posts: 511	Good point, Dankone. __________________ Treebeard 55 Steve Moore http://hoosierbonsai.blogspot.com The most important bonsai tool is your brain.

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09-14-2010, 07:56 PM	#3 (permalink)
dankone bonsai monk Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: huntertown IN zone 5 Posts: 27	i would be more worried to know wether or not the cat took a pee pee in your soil. that would be worse than poop.

09-17-2010, 11:24 AM	#5 (permalink)
abebob Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: St. George, UT USA Zone 7b Posts: 11	Thanks for the info- I will be getting rid of this "special soil" and the cat...just kidding about that last part.

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