Our beloved dog, Toby, views our garden as his territory to be guarded from enemy invasion at all times.

So when a neighbour’s cat had the nerve to pay a visit recently, a noisy battle of meowing and barking erupted. The cat, of course, was the victor. I swear there was a smirk on his ginger face as he strolled nonchalantly along the fence, while Toby, feet on terra firma, was left incensed with rage, having failed miserably in his number one duty.

Of course, mogs vs dogs has been going since time immemorial.

And neighbours are allowed to keep pets, subject to the Dangerous Animals Act, which does not list (at the time of writing) ginger toms and black labradors. Cats have preferential treatment under the law, as they have the ‘right to roam,’ which means that they are not expected to be restrained or managed at all times when outside of your home or property.

So, in the battle for the Patterson garden, it’s quite clear that ginger tom has the law on his side.

Cats visiting your garden is one thing, using it as a public convenience is another, and a problem faced by many of our town clients. But there are ways to deter feline visitors.

Try planting the herb rue in and around your garden. It’s easy to grow in most soils and has attractive bluish foliage with yellow flowers in summer. Cats hate the stuff. Other herbs known to repel cats are citronella, lemon grass and lavender – which all smell lovely to us.

Cats also dislike the smell of citrus fruit peel, coffee grounds or tobacco. Another trick you might (not) want to try is sprinkling old fag ends on the ‘toilet’. It does the trick, but even I draw the line at taking up smoking or using the garden as an ash tray. Cats hate spiky things. Here you can be as imaginative as you like but I hasten to add that I am a cat lover so wouldn’t want to see any cat gruesomely impaled.

However, strategically placed prickly plants such as berberis or ones with thorns such as pyracantha or holly make excellent deterrents to unwelcome visitors (including humans). And, small rocks laid out where soil is exposed might deter cats from disturbing the area. Naturally, there are some commercial anti-cat devices available, including ultra-sonic cat repellents, motion activated water sprinklers and my personal favourite – pellets soaked in authentic essence of lion dung. I guess it would have to be a pretty brave cat to enter the lion’s den! All this may sound a bit brutal on Oxford’s cats, so if you are a cat lover I would advise planting cat mint (nepeta) and watch the feline orgy that ensues. Called ‘catnip’ in the US this herb, from the mint family, can have an amazing reaction on some cats. They roll around in bliss on it, kick it around and generally go crazy for a few minutes, but men please take note, it’s CATS only that are affected.