Never changing cat litter

sarahp

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An email thread is going around work about new kittens and basic care of them, and someone just said they use clumping litter and NEVER change it!!

She said she scoops twice a day, tips the litter out every 2 weeks, cleans the box out (and cleans it in bleach every 2 weeks, I'll mention in my email back to her why bleach can be bad), and puts the litter back in, and just puts extra litter in when it gets low.

To me this seems bad because of the nasties that could be harbouring in damp litter that never gets fully cleaned out. Is it ok to NEVER completely change litter? Is there proof on why it can be bad?

Your help is appreciated!
 

anakat

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Why is bleach supposed to be bad? I always wash out the litter boxes with dilute bleach.
 

jenny82

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I just thought it was common sense that bacteria will eventually grow in something that stays damp or wet. Doesn't her litter smell pretty funky if she never fully cleans it?
 
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sarahp

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Ahhhh sorry - it was Pine-o-Clean/Pine-o-Sol type stuff that was bad I think, not dilute bleach... My bad


Originally Posted by Jenny82

I just thought it was common sense that bacteria will eventually grow in something that stays damp or wet. Doesn't her litter smell pretty funky if she never fully cleans it?
That's what I was thinking!! And she uses Swheat Scoop which I found horribly stinky, and only has 2 litter boxes for 4 cats! She HAS to be having stinky issues... Either that or she has no sense of smell....
 

jcat

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I came across somebody like that at another site.
It's impossible to get all the waste out, even with a very good, fine clumping litter, so naturally bacteria can be a problem.
I clean the litter box with steam every week, sift the clumping litter (literally - I use a sieve) before putting it back in, and completely replace all the litter every 2 to 4 weeks.
Even producers of clumping litter who advertise how far theirs will go recommend completely changing the litter once a month.
 

tuxedokitties

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I think it depends how thorough she is in her cleaning and sifting. But, I still would think she'd need to do a complete change occasionally - I can't imagine NEVER changing the litter.

This page gives great advice on how to maintain the litter box to cut down on litter waste:

http://www.catinfo.org/litterbox.htm...he_Litter_Box:
 

littleraven7726

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i have a family member who does this.
my sister and i have *tried* and *tried* to convince the person they need to change the litter and scrub the box with soap & water. all i can say is this person's cats are 1000x more tolerant than mine. after 2-3 weeks, if the litter smells stale and i haven't changed it i can guarantee raven will leave a postcard in front of the box.
and i scoop the boxes 2-3 times a day.

i can't even imagine the nasties in a never changed, never scrubbed box. dumping in new litter is NOT the same as changing and washing.
 

urbantigers

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It definitely needs changing completely once in a while, even if it's litter that clumps really well. It's hard to get out every single granule of soiled litter by scooping. I chuck out and start over with new litter about every 6-8 weeks but I also empty out and scrub/disinfect the tray every week or so (then put the scooped litter back in).
 

2dogmom

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How about those plastic bags you can put in the litter box? I have been using those because frankly, you can never get all of the chemicals that are in urine (or any other liquid for that matter) out of the polymer litter box.
 

urbantigers

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Originally Posted by 2dogmom

How about those plastic bags you can put in the litter box? I have been using those because frankly, you can never get all of the chemicals that are in urine (or any other liquid for that matter) out of the polymer litter box.
Good point. I forgot to mention that I buy a new tray approx once a year as I'm not happy using the same plastic tray for much longer than that even if it is disinfected regularly. It holds onto odours for one thing. I don't like liners.
 

epona

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How weird! Yes, when training a cat to use a litterbox (if they've been used to going outside for example) it is useful to retain some used litter to mix in with the new while they are adjusting to using a litterbox so that there is some scent there, but not longterm, that's just disgusting!
 
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