I’ve used scoopable cat littler since getting my first cat. For whatever reason, probably because I thought fancier/more expensive = better, I continued to do this even though after 1.5 days of forgetting to scoop, the cats started crapping on the floor, and the litter boxes stunk to high heaven unless I changed the litter 2 or more times a week.
I recently switched to clay, simply because I was broke and I wasn’t paying the outrageous price Walgreens wanted for Arm & Hammer litter. And I am amazed. It doesn’t smell unless you stick your face directly over the pan. The cats seem to like it, and haven’t crapped on the floor even though I only scooped the poo out of it once in the past week. This is the cheapo, generic, unscented Walgreens-brand clay litter, and it works better than any of the scoopable litters I’ve tried (Arm & Hammer, Tidy Cats, etc). I’m sold.
My questions for you-
How many cats do you own?
How many litter boxes do you have?
Clay or scoopable or some other kind of litter?
What litter box issues have you had?
My answers-
3
only 2, because one is gigantic and my cats get along well enough so there’s no issues.
2 cats, 2 litter boxes, clay litter, both boxes enclosed. No problems at all. The girls generally use the larger of the boxes (and the original one they had) as a pooper, and only pee in the smaller box. No issues at all so far. Havoc makes it very clearly known when the box needs to be scooped, which is generally twice a week.
None, ever. Unless you count their bizarre mutual habit of frequently preferring to shit in one box and pee in the other ( the last week it has been almost a 100% exclusivity - one box all pee, the other all poop - I don’t get it ).
At any rate the litter mavens always point to the scoopable wheat- and corn-based litters as being the most healthy and effective. I’ve tried the corn ( “World’s Best Cat Litter” or some such ) and found that “low tracking” is a misnomer and the odor control insufficient.
Clay litter, if anything, tracks worse and there is a mild controversy over how healthy it is. Some cats have apparently developed respiratory silicosis from inhaling all that dust. But most cats seem to do fine.
Clumping clay litter in addition to having the potential silicosis issues, can apparently also form a solid mass when ingested, mostly an issue it seems with some kittens.
I use silica gel, because I find it has the best odor control, since it desiccates everything very rapidly. It also is the lowest tracking in my estimation, but what does track is sizeable crystals. Silicosis is apparently less of an issue, since it is not nearly as dusty as clay. It has, reputedly, the same issue with possible ingestion by kittens. It also costs more, but tends to last longer. Some picky cats don’t care for the texture, which can certainly cause some litterbox issues.
2 cats, 1 covered box, scoopable litter (Arm & Hammer), scooped every morning - no litter box issues (kitties are very very good) and I can’t smell the box (boyfriend says he can sometimes smell it).
4 boxes, kept in a back room of the basement, concrete floor
Scoopable – I swear by Tidy Cats with the crystals, for odor and clumping both. I don’t scoop as often as I should, and the boxes have to get pretty dirty before there’s poop on the floor.
Shred your junk mail and use it as cat litter. You’ll never have to buy the stuff again. Also, you’ll get the satisfaction of your cats peeing on unwanted credit card applications and invitations to subscribe to Readers Digest.
The end product is compostable if you remove any faeces and dispose of in your waste bin.
Scoopable and flushable. It’s a wheat-based “sand” that smells really nice when it’s new (I sometimes think when I’m pouring out a fresh pan that I ought to be making cookies with this stuff instead of letting the cats pee all over it). It can get stinky, however, once unscooped urine collects at the bottom of the pan. I check the boxes once or twice a day and scoop as necessary, dump in more littler as needed, and change the whole boxful and liner when it begins to stink.
One of the cats has an occasional peeing problem, but I think that’s behavioral on her part, since it doesn’t seem related to how clean or dirty her litter box is.
I have two boxes, the main one is a Litter Robot and the other one we just use if we have to shut them up in the bedroom. Both scoopable Arm and Hammer unscented. No problems.
I have 2 cats and 1 litterbox and I use Tidy Cats Scoopable with crystals. It’s the best for ordor control that I’ve tried. I scoop daily and never have problems.
One cat. I use gravel from the front yard. It works out fine, much to my suprise. I have to toss it out every day, but it’s just a part of my routine now.
We have 6 cats -
[sup] (it’s ok - really - I’m on a farm and 3 of them are 90% outdoor type cats…)[/sup]
We have 3 litter boxes - all sifting types.
We’ve tried clay, and scoopable clay, even tried a very expensive “auto scooping” litterbox (ugh) - and then we tried the pine sawdust based scoopable litter.
The pine litter combined with a sifting style litterbox has been the best combo we have tried. The pine litter neutralizes the piss smell and sifting the box rather than scooping it, seems to allow the litter to dry. Even though the pine litter is more expensive, it does last considerably longer and the is no odor problem whatsoever.
I’d stay away from the automatic raking boxes, they often failed and clogged up, and they took longer to clean than it was worth.
.
Meek - Are you talking about the compressed extruded pine pellets? Feline Pine, or something? I use the same product, but instead of paying $3.99 for a 7 lb bag, I go to the local feed store and buy a large bag of horse bedding. It’s exactly the same stuff, and I get 40 or 50 lbs for $5.50.
I have 4 cats. Two are outside quite a bit. I have two litter boxes, one seems to be used primarily for pooping. I have one cat who wants to wet on things like papers behind the computer desk, which is a pain.
Scoopable wheat (Swheat) + a bit of Tidy Cats crystals + a bit of Nature’s Miracle deodorizing powder = *fantastic * odor control. Hey, in a <900 sq ft 1BR, stank control is a big deal.
I keep a broom in the bathroom to sweep up all the tracked-out stuff every other day or so, plus a catcher in front of the box. The only stink issues I’ve had is from the dominant cat doing a token job of burying his leavings using the logic of “HEY! I’m BOSS! I’m too BADASS to bother burying my crap!” :rolleyes: damncat. Or toward the end of the cycle (uh, about a couple weeks provided I scoop every day) when the bag gets too holey from the cats clawing it up and urine seeps through to the underneath.
Well, and I have to hit the pet store about every 6-8 weeks to buy 40# of litter. /sigh
How many litter boxes do you have?
Two, but one is dedicated solely to the oldest, most finicky cat
Clay or scoopable or some other kind of litter?
I tend to prefer scoopable, because it gets the pees out as well as the poops. Yes, it does smell sooner, but that just means it need scooping and topping off. If you have a good litter (I actually like the way the cheaper scoopables clump with liquid more than Tidy Cats) it’ll form hard, easily removed clumps, and you rarely have to dump and start over. I like to keep the pan as clean as possible, if only because my cats walk on me after they’ve been in there.
However, if you want a great dry clay litter that tends to be even cheaper than the cheap-o kind, drop by your local auto parts store and grab a bag of oil absorber. Per pound, it’s typically cheaper. Also, no nasty fake scent in it.
What litter box issues have you had?
The oldest doesn’t like to share, and will decide for no good reason that he’s too special to poop in a box.
2) How many litter boxes do you have?
Only one, measures 1 foot wide by 2 feet long.
3) Clay or scoopable or some other kind of litter?
Fine Clumping - I think the brand is “scoop away”. I add additional litter once a week.
4) What litter box issues have you had?
None, as long as I empty the clumps daily. If I let it go to two days, the cats start pawing at the ground as if searching for an alternate dumping area. That’s my signal to go clean up their box.
2) How many litter boxes do you have?
One. I scoop every other morning
3) Clay or scoopable or some other kind of litter?
Tidy Cats with crystals. It works great; the only time there’s odour is right after it was used. I had a friend over who thought my catbox was in the bathroom, but it was in the same room he was - he couldn’t tell. That made me very happy!
4) What litter box issues have you had?
I need to get a covered box - every once in a while kitty will sit in the catbox and poop outside it.
(1) Previously two, now one (the boy died)
(2) One
(3) World’s Best Cat Litter. Clumpable and fully flushable.
(4) I guess we have a few tracking problems (our girl doesn’t like to step on the mat under the box), but no odor problems (even after 2 days) or flushing problems. The Original formula works great! (there’s also a multi-cat formula which we don’t like nearly as much).
How many litter boxes? Several, need more or better ones.
Type of litter? Scoopable but I’m not happy with it.
Litterbox issues: Yes, various. My main problem is that I have yet to find a perfect litter box. Cats tend to spray the sides so if the box doesn’t have high enough sides the pee leeks out where the top and bottom half meet then trickles down and under the box where the pee ferments. Putting wee wee pads or newspaper under the boxes doesn’t help because then the cats think it’s okay to go outside the box. Sometimes they will go all the way inside the box but pee or poop out the door. Some also dig so much that they throw litter out the door, hence why I hate the scoopable since it’s hard to sweep up and I hate pulling out the vacuum all the time. Not to mention it also tends to stick on their feet more and get tracked everywhere, not just around the box. Also, with several cats peeing in almost the same spot the “clumps” end up once huge pee brick that is difficult to scoop.
I started making large Rubbermaid storage containers into litter boxes. The high sides are great but I still have trouble with the openings. I have one with a top opening but I’ve only ever seen two cats use that one. I figured that I need an even larger box and I need to add a step of something inside the box so they have to go past that to start their business so they won’t pee or poop out the door. Also, if it’s longer they will be more likely to go all the way in before starting to eliminate. I also need to put the opening up higher but not on the top, I may need an outside step for the older and fatter cats.
Regarding litter I am considering going back to regular clay and maybe mixing it with pine, newspaper or crystal litters.
).