That second sentence is a bit *r-a-m-b-l-i-n-g*...sorry.

This is not a simple assignment! And I've been there with the feral cat and house kitties -- it was a mean scene. I couldn't block their view. I think everything you said made sense, and is seemingly the best and only solution. Except what does TBDU mean? That was my first thought: how to keep the cats from sneaking behind the shades, which is the very first thing they would do?

Oh, I'm sorry -- top down bottom up, so we could have them down at the bottom but have the top part open. Good point about sneaking behind the shades...hm. There are such things as anchors to hold them down, but then it becomes a little odd to have those things sticking up from the ground...urgh, that's definitely something I hadn't thought of.

Oy. You've thought about this very thoroughly. I suppose your kitties wouldn't take kindly to being barred from that room for a month or so, until the dudes outside lose interest? Or is that both a colossal PITA (for your cats) and overly optimistic (about the ones outside)? Not a cat owner, so I'm just hypothesizing.

Barring a better solution, I'm sure you've looked in the obvious places re shopping: JCP? Smith and Noble? Could a private seamstress make you your shades, or is that TDBU hardware too tricky for the average bear?

...Rats. I just checked the JCP site, and the TDBU custom roman shades only come in one material: bamboo. Very cool-looking, but translucent, and the whole point of these is to block kitty sightlines. Well, there went my only piece of practical advice!

For our sliders we've (fabric and insulated) roman shades, divided in half (but pattern matched) so we can have one half up for the door we use to go out. Ours are for both insulation and winter nighttime privacy (as all the trees between us and our back neighbors are deciduous), but our puppy still needs to go out. So right now, for example (it's nearly 10pm), one half of the sliding door is covered all the way (the shade is down) and on the other (operable door), the shade is halfway (just above the handle).

Anyway, they're working really well for us. When we purchased this house the one slider (we've since added another) had a cellular vertical shade, and I have to say it was pretty terrific. You know how those cellulars fold up so teeny-tiny (thin)? It was a mere sliver. And it was certainly a breeze to use. I know you wrote you don't care for verticals and you want the t.d.b.u. feature, but I still wanted to pipe in about how well that worked. I'd always hated verticals and truthfully, they're still not my favorite (aesthetically), but for function (& insulation) it was wonderful!

Good luck protecting your kitties -- you're such a good mommie!

walkin and rm, thanks for your reply :). They can't be barred from here, because it's our main living area. Smith and Noble -- yep, I looked there. I've also looked other places that offer samples (have several packages of samples now). JCP, at least as far as I remember, didn't send out samples -- have you ever received any from them? And nope, we can't use the woven wood kind, unfortunately, even though they'd look cool.

rm, your situation sounds quite similar! Except you don't have cats who woudl want to get under the roman shades. Do you have that problem when they're down -- does your little guy want to get under them?

I looked at the cellular vertical shades, and it's good to hear that they aren't as iffy as the verticals. I really think I could stand them, but I fear they'd be shredded within a week or two. Our cats, esp. one, were fascinated with the cellular Grabers in our master -- both of them have little kitty rips in them already, just one per shade, but I bet if they were down at floor level rather than up on a windowsill there would be way more ripping.

Would you, um, be averse to posting a pic of your roman shades over your sliders? You're the only person I 'know' who has them and I'd really love to see them in action. Are they inside or outside mounted? It would be *so* helpful...pleeeeaase? :)

(and thanks for the kind words about my feline parenthood :))

Yes that was my thread, about the curtains I'm sewing for my slider. :o)

You could make curtains that are sheer on the top and solid on the bottom third. BUT, what is to stop your kitties from stepping around to the other side of the curtains any time they want to see out? That could be a problem with any kind of curtains.

If I had your situation...

- I don't want kitties tearing up any kind of WT

- I do want to block kitty view

- I don't want kitties sneaking around drapes

- I don't want kitties shredding/climbing drapes

-I do want maximum light coming in...

... then I would do it with Gallery Glass. You can make it opaque, you know.

Look at my window over my front door.

A lot of that window is opaque -- specifically the part where I mixed white in with either the turquose or the amber/yellow to make it look like slag glass. You can also do a clear that you can only see shadows (no details) through (as in my bath window below). Don't know if kitties would recognize kitties through that but maybe not, esp. if you keep those areas small. You could do opague across the bottom at kitty height (kitties stending on hind legs cannot see through), and do narrow up the sides and across the top, but leave the center wide open to let in light and for you to see out -- something similar to what I did on my bathroom window.

It will take time to do that. But once done, it's done. No paying to dry clean draperies. The GG washes like any other window.

Just another option.

Want a much easier option? Use an opaque window film on your window. If you use a "clear" I don't see why you couldn't just do the bottom third, if you wish. Cheap, quick, and easy. You can "google" "window film" and also see lots on eBay.

This might be the answer...

Click here for frosted.

Or...

Click here for the above.

Or...

Click here for this one.

There are other patterns, of course.

Also, a lot of hardware stores carry the film. So you could maybe solve your problem as early as tomorrow if you can find a film you like.

Here's just another idea especially if this just needs to be a temporary fix until outside cats move on. Is there some sort of way you could have a decorative screen to place in front of the doors that you could still move when you needed/wanted to? Not sure how you could still keep inside kitties from getting around it, but just a thought. The gallery glass is a great idea too. I have used it before and it's really pretty, really easy to do and fun!

You need a dog! I'll be right over with my Tibetan Terror...uh...I mean Terrier! :-)

I have a strong feeling that as you try to reduce your kitties' stress level, yours may increase due to the good possibility of very expensive WTs being munged up by said kitties.

Have you thought of a reflective window film on the glass? Is it possible that if the feral cats can't see in, they won't come around? Or are they already deeply programmed to visit?

Second thought...is there any way to "discourage" the feral visitors? I know that's like trying to herd barn cats, but I am wondering if there is something behavioral (like my doggie!) or chemical (bobcat pi$$ or other wildlife deterrents) that might work.

I'm just trying to save you from MY worst nightmare....that is trying to figure out what to do and how to pay for it!

BTW, I saw the most extraordinary glass exhibit at a museum this week and thought of you. I was not allowed to take pictures and was tailed by the guard after asking! I'll give you a link, but the pics don;t hold a candle to the real thing, of course.

Here is a link that might be useful: Glass

Honestly, I think I would go out after the feral cats like a wild woman yelling with squirt guns of water in hand. I would be more tempted to block them from my beautiful window, especially if they have already sprayed them than change the way we live inside - which was working out perfectly before your unwanted guests arrived. Maybe there is something natural you can do to discourage them too - truly like a dog until they lose interest and move on to another kitty. I wonder if there is something environmentally friendly and natural you can do to discourage them as well. Maybe a call to animal control or a local nature center is in order? JMO. I don't mean to be mean, I too am a cat lover and owner.

I agree that the best solution may be to deter the feral cats. You can get lawn sprinklers that come on automatically when an animal comes around. If they get scared away enough times, they will probably move on. It's just "that time of year," IYKWIM.

If one of the methods posted above doesn't work, try putting something on the outside for a while. Maybe tape cardboard or aluminum foil to the door? Put up a temporary fence so the cats can't get up to the door? Even piling cardboard boxes in front of the door for a few weeks should help.

However, if you do want to go with window treatments or coverings, I suggest a film like oceanna posted.

Oceanna and folks, you all are great! I'm embarrassed to say I hadn't thought of that before, even though we've been doing our downstairs bedroom doors with some Solyx film (french doors to allow as much light transmission as possible while using the film for privacy). We'll try that with some of the leftover Solyx film this weekend. Man. How did I miss that?!

We can't use a screen or boxes or whatever because 1) our weird layout means that it's right behind our dining table and DH would keep hitting them and 2) we use the door a fair amount.

As I'm typing Gus is sitting by the door now, watching out. They do get great joy from looking out the windows, but the spraying is getting to outweigh that particular joy.

A dog would be wonderful--I'm actually craving one, but our oldest cat would be stressed to an early death...we keep saying that when she passes, we'll get a dog. The other two cats could handle a dog, I think.

These feral cats are amazing, btw -- running at them with water -- we've sprayed them full on with a *hose* when they were fighting in our front yard and they weren't even slowed down. The main two that are problematic aren't fixed, of course...but even one that is seems to have phantom-gonad syndrome, because he's right up there in aggression.

And Amy, the exhibit looks like it was amazing. So the Dinka Woman's Hearth were all pseudo-anthropological artifacts rendered in glass? Extremely thought-provoking. I could write an article on that one alone :) Think I'll look that person up. Thanks very much for sharing the link--I'm going back to spend some more time there.

William Morris does some fascinating work!

Here is a link that might be useful: what do you know -- connected to Chihuly...

Yes, all those things were rendered in glass. There were many pieces in the exhibit that looked more like ceramic. I was (in my unsophisticated way) attracted to the more traditionally-glass-looking pieces. What surprised me was the wide-ranging taste of the collectors. A broad vision, to say the least.

Fly,
I am the biggest animal lover in the world....but the simple solution to me seems to get rid of the feral cats. Call animal control or a company that will catch wild animals. Even if you put up a blockage for your cats...what to say that will keeps these feral coming back to where they have already sprayed?

Smiles:)

Sorry about the delay in responding -- almost finished with some more projects! (Well, almost finished with one more project but making good headway on the other two. I think it may kill us but we've been removing seventeen v. sad trees from the backyard so we can plant new happy ones. I've also been sanding and painting, sanding and painting a bench [which lives on the front porch] and the vanity in the powder room. The bench and vanity are done [albeit wet at present], but then that means I have to tackle the rest of the powder room. Calling 2010 finish date ....)

In fact, we have three indoor cats and they couldn't care less about the roman shades and they didn't care at all about the vertical cellular shade. They don't care about any of window treatments (drapes with tassel trim, shutters, matchstick shades, etc.); only one of them is interested in playing with the cord bells, but all three are interested in having an open window at which to sit! (all cats are intact, meaning they have their claws so they could do damage but, blissfully on this front, they don't [do not get me wrong: we've had other scratching battles with them, and all three molest to death any live plant in the house ... but we love them!])

Our soon-to-be three year-old is our biggest roman shade nemesis, and that's just because he likes to pick them up to peek outside: I keep a vigilant eye on him because of the cords running up the back of the shades and I am petrified of him getting hurt. (If I had to do it again I would've had the shades made with rods, not rings and cord. Live and learn.)

I only mentioned the puppy because we let her out all day / evening long to use the backyard for elimination, whereas the cats have their litter boxes inside (they only ever go outside in a cat carrier into the car -- knock wood none has ever slipped out!); our puppy was the inspiration for having the divided shades over the sliders. (otherwise I'd been thinking of one big one with a continuous loop)

Ours are outside mount because our (fabric) roman shades, when open all the way, still have a 14" droop or whatever it's called, and I didn't want to lose 14" of natural light. Also, the family room sliders were "custom" because we had a transom added on top (so as to match the height of the surrounding windows), and to have shades mounted inside would've meant forever obscuring those. Since I had to pay extra for the windows I didn't want to lose them! (This wall faces due north, so I want as much light as we can get.)

family room windows in a row:
{{gwi:1646446}}

shades above the familyroom sliders:
{{gwi:1648775}}

breakfast nook slider shades: one on right is down (over fixed door), while one on left is open to allow light and puppy passing:

Totally not on point with your project, but these shades have bothered me. I am mad for the look of inside mount shades with the droopy middle (what is that called? I'm losing my mind), but I specifically chose against both of those so as to allow the maximum of light. Part of last year's remodel did involve adding casing to the windows / doors (we'd lived in a casing-free house), but it isn't such elaborate casing that I felt the need to show it off. Then I think maybe we should've added (and still could, I suppose) some sort of trim around the shades, but then I'm afraid it'll look tarty. I just don't know .... But I do love the fabric we chose, no regrets about that! And I love how easy they are and the privacy they afford.

Flyleft, did you get your film up? Is it helping?

Another thought... why not buy some wolf pee to spray in a wide perimeter around that door? That should keep the wild kitties away. Says it works for problem cats. They got yard cover granules for $19.99.

Here is a link that might be useful: Predator pee

fly

I read thru the posts and would agree about doing all you can to rid the feral creatures from your space. Are you sure they don't belong to anyone? Perhaps a GPS implanted would lead you to their irresponsible owners;) -

Maybe a big nasty plastic owl or dog perched high by the slider would help. They just need to be "re-trained" not to visit your space. A motion dectector that would make a loud noise or something may help too.

good luck!

I'm not sure that covering the glass is going to prevent the spraying by the feral cats. Have you considered trapping them and having them neutered?

I agree with others that a WT isn't going to stop the cat problem.
I would try a ScareCrow or the CatStop. Cats won't like the sudden spraying from the Scarecrow when they're wandering outside your house. The experience you had while they were fighting isn't a good example of how well water works on them........when they're fighting their mental state is totally elsewhere! : )

My DM has use the CatStop to keep cats out of her yard and it works. Depending on the layout of your yard you'll need 2-3. If you want to keep them away from the edge of your home, then set one up at each corner and aim them down the side of the house. I wouldn't point them toward your room since you have cats indoors.

Here is a link that might be useful: CatStop

with the outside cats spraying your door, window treatments won't change that..you need a dog !!!!! That is disgusting..are they strays or are they a neighbors unfixed cats? we have all kinds of cats around here..and yeah they taunt, but we don't have unfixed cats spraying..and smelling up our home !.. they would get trapped and sent to the pound at my house...i wouldn't put up with the disgusting habit on my doors

rmkitchen, thanks for those pics of your beautiful WTs! Do you mean 'relaxed' roman shades that pooch out a bit at the bottom in the middle? I think yours are more beautiful, myself. Where did you have them made? So much very useful information in your post. If we ever get roman shades (I'm trying these other ideas first) I'll refer to your discussion of issues around them. Funny, but I've now painted all the trim around windows and doors in the semigloss or satin version of the color of the paint on the wall around them, just to try and minimize the trim! (our house is more modern, though, I think). You could always get a bit of trim and just tack it up there with a few nails to see what you think of it--if you don't like it you could take it down again and fill/paint over the tiny holes...

And wow, such good information in the rest of y'all's responses! We didn't put up the film yet--DH put a cat-away spray (one called "Boundary" and one called "Cat-Away") around the slider (and the front door--did I mention that they do it to the front door too? UGH), but I think because of the rain it wore off, and what do we have greeting us when we get within 5' of the door? More pee this morning. UGH again. I'm going to order that predator pee granules today--thanks oceanna! I wonder how long it will last in the rain--but it's definitely worth a try. We'll look into the Cat-stop too--thanks, annz.

We'll look into the Cat-stop too. I do know where they come from -- one is from a house that belongs to a couple who inherited it from their grandmother, and they are really *not* as caring about anything as much as most other residents in our neighborhood (yard is an eyesore, etc.). When they moved in they immediately let the cat, who's at least fixed, out all day (and part of the night, judging from seeing him out around 11 p.m.). At first he was nice, sweet, a bit timid--now he's a full-on street-fightin' man, one of the ones who got sprayed with a hose and kept on going. Another one (unfixed) used to be fairly sweet, too, when he had a home to go into (the next door house) at night, but when that family moved out of state, they *left him here* to fend for himself. It's unconscionable what they did to him--they displayed just as much of a community spirit by leaving Blackjack (named by the pirate-loving neighbor boys) out as they did in so many other ways while they were here (as in NONE). The little guy's adapted and has survived for --what, 4 years now?--but he's gotten nasty too. Because we know his story, I just don't have the heart to trap him and take him to the H.S., where he'd probably be pts. Not a desirable adoption candidate. Poor little guy. :( There's a third that we don't know at all.

The thing I was thinking about neutering them was that my first cat was neutered, but he still sprayed on things in the house (like a heating vent, very smart...it spread the lovely aroma every time the heat came on) -- it may very well be that with these guys, they're so used to spraying that they will not stop if they're neutered. They'd just have an operation site that might get infected or ripped into before it's healed, which could be really dangerous for them. Maybe I'm not looking at that the right way, I know...

Off to order granulated predator pee...

I have two exclusively indoor cats I call my "Bookends".
They love sitting at the front door, separated from the outdoors by a security screen.

Both Bookends are fixed, have been since they were rescued as babies.

Even with them fixed, I have ferral cats coming up to the front porch, hissing at my kitties, starting a huge and loud growling match, which usually ends in one of the ferrals backing up to the security screen and spraying it.

That smell wafts thought the whole house....it's terrible!
And it's not easy to get rid of that smell onces it's permiated the whole house.

We did buy the Scarecrow and for the most part it works Great!
One exception: The Scarecrow can't differentiate between ferral cats and family members coming up to the front door for a visit.
Yes, family members, friends and even religious solicitors have gotten an unplanned shower a time or two before we decided the Scarecrow wasn't the best option.

We tried moth balls, pepper, you name it.
What worked for us was to put some specially-named plants in pretty containers, mixed with other similar water-needs plants, grouped to the side of the front door.

Looks purdy, has that 'curb appeal' that everyone talks about and I haven't had to go out and scrub my security screen door in a couple months.

We've also tried some deterants that work pretty well at our back window where the outdoor planter just outside the window allows the stray cats to jump up, look in and growl if they see our kitties in that room....starting another war.
Here's some deterants....the sprays have worked the best for us...we spray along the raised planter edges.

http://www.simplycatsupplies.com/cat-repellent-c518.html

My kitties now can sit on the window ledge and outdoor cats don't jump up there to start a war.

{{gwi:1648777}}

Here is a link that might be useful: P i s s -off Plant

Amity, I'm really glad to hear of that. Does it grow in all zones?

amity, I missed your post -- oceanna, thanks for calling my attention to it! We've been spraying a few times since I posted, because of course the darn cat has been back. Which spray works the best for you?

And the plant --I'm going to look for some of those today! I'll just pot them up near the back door. DH was balking a bit at the $$ for the sprayers that may or may not work. Thanks so much for posting. (oceanna, looks like they're hardy only until zone 11, and we're definitely north of that)

I am an animal lover as well, but...
do you live in the country??
Feral cats need to be gotten rid of.
Personally my husband would shoot them with a bb gun.
I KNOW before you all have a fit what you are going to say.
But been there and done that, only our dog went crazy when the feral cats were in the yard.
We live in the country and knew they had been drop offs, did not belong to the neighbors. Called animal control and they said they do not do anything with feral cats...
Hubby got rid of them for me, I did not ask where they went but I knew.
We did not want them in the barn with our steers or near our chickens!
Karen L

Just checked with the biggest garden center around and they'll be getting the plectranthus (it's 'cuban oregano', evidently) in a couple of weeks. The person I spoke with recommended using bulk cayenne scattered around the deck until then.

Think I'll pop out for some of that this afternoon :)

YIKES! If anyone reads my post and considers cayenne, PLEASE DON'T! I just read on my local gardening board (northwest gardening) that cayenne can get in cats' eyes and they can scratch their *eyes out* trying to make it go away! :( :( I'm not willing to be responsible for that.

Back to the drawing board. I can just see DD and DH and me getting hit by sprays of water from the Scarecrow, unless it can be time-controlled...anyone coming to our patio door at midnight *should* get a spray of water...

Feral cats need to be gotten rid of.

You prefer feral rats?

Flyleft, I called a local nursery today and they said they get thim in April and they're annuals. I'm experiencing a similar problem here -- every time I plant something in my garden my bone-headed dog digs it up. She has now dug up 6 blueberry plants, darn her! I put up a shortie fence but she knocked it over. Posts swayed easily in the mud. So I too would love something to make an animal stay away.

oceanna, yep, we have to wait a couple more weeks or get the deterrent spray for the interim. 6 blueberry plants? That's grounds for doggy divorce :) (just kidding) I'll get some more deterrent spray today and spray a bigger perimeter, because guess where I discovered a spray today: on the outside of the *kitchen sink* window. LOVELY.