How Many Cats is TOO MUCH for 1 Litter Box (No Matter How Big It IS...)

xxpunkkittenxx

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How many cats is too many to use a single litter box? As many may already know my current situation, there are 5 cats using my provided litter box because no one in that house can respect MY PROPERTY!!!!


Sooo... how many is too many, and how can i help the situation w/o causeing a health problem to both his family and the cats... the cats are more of my main concern... as their are five of them... 2 of them are mine, and their litter pan is in the room they dwell in most, but the door to it is constantly left open and everyone and their mother uses mine because my litter is awesome!!!

go figure...

respond and i'll check it later
 

sicycat

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So you have 5 cats using 1 litterbox? I think you should probably have 1 or 2 more litterboxes at least.

I know I should have 2 for Zoey & Saki but I just dont have the space so they've been using 1 but I have not had any problems in the 4 years I've been using it. I am obsessed with scooping.. I scoop as soon as they go.

The rule is usually 1 box per cat.
 

lisasha3

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Originally Posted by xXPunkKittenXx

How many cats is too many to use a single litter box? As many may already know my current situation, there are 5 cats using my provided litter box because no one in that house can respect MY PROPERTY!!!!


Sooo... how many is too many, and how can i help the situation w/o causeing a health problem to both his family and the cats... the cats are more of my main concern... as their are five of them... 2 of them are mine, and their litter pan is in the room they dwell in most, but the door to it is constantly left open and everyone and their mother uses mine because my litter is awesome!!!

go figure...

respond and i'll check it later
From what it sounds like - you all live in the same house? If so, then that means that there are obviously other litter boxes for the other cats, they just chose to use yours. If that's the case - how about switchin the other boxes to the same litter you're using? or - let yours use any of the ones they want as well.
I've got 4 extra large litter boxes (actually rubbermaid storage containers) for my crew and they all switch around and use different ones, but the minute I'm setting up for a foster upstairs and getting a regular size litter box ready - they all feel the need to use it.
I'm not so sure it's the litter - sometimes it's just a cat thing. Same thing happens the minute you clean it - they're there to use it first whether they've got to go or not.
 

littleraven7726

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it could also be that they don't scoop/change the box as often as you. whenever i went home to visit, when i first had raven and nabu, my mom's cats ALWAYS used my cats' box. because her boxes were nasty.
by the time i left at the end of the weekend there was hardly any litter left in R&N's box because i had scooped it all out.
(raven is VERY fussy about his box, he trained me early)
 

jcat

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The general rule of thumb is one litter box per cat, plus one extra box, meaning six boxes for 5 cats. That's not always possible, due to a lack of space, but I should think you'd need at least three boxes, and have to scoop several times a day.
 

lukin28

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I have 3 litter boxes lined up for 4 cats and usually they all use the same one. I think as long as you keep it clean and they dont have an issue with sharing, it doesnt matter
 

phenomsmom

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A general rule of thumb is one box per cat, some say per floor but I have 2 boxes downstairs and none upstairs and don't have any problems.
 

momofmany

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The rule of thumb is 1 box per cat plus an extra. But you mentioned something about a big box. I have a friend with 1 cat whose litter box is probably 2 feet wide by 4 feet long. I suggested that she get a couple more cats so that the box gets used. I don't know how she lifts it to empty it.

Your box needs to be really BIG to handle all of those cats, or get a couple of regular size boxes and place them side by side.
 

chrissyr

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I've also heard it was one box per cat plus one extra. I have 3 of those new Tidy Cat litter boxes in my bedroom for the cat who go in and out. For the rest of the group, we have 4 under-bed storage totes that get scooped once a day and a full change once a week.
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by jcat

The general rule of thumb is one litter box per cat, plus one extra box, meaning six boxes for 5 cats. That's not always possible, due to a lack of space, but I should think you'd need at least three boxes, and have to scoop several times a day.
 

jaycee

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i think one box per cat plus one is total overkill. i have two cats using one box but thats the highest i would go per box.... maaayyybe three.
 

beandip

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Originally Posted by Phenomsmom

A general rule of thumb is one box per cat, some say per floor but I have 2 boxes downstairs and none upstairs and don't have any problems.
Same here basically. I have 8 cats, 6 boxes upstairs and only 1 downstairs. All of their food is upstairs and it seems to work fine. I wouldn't want any less, though. They all eat at the same time, so they all poop at the same time too. LOL
...funny but true. The setup works for me but I do scoop a few times per day.

I agree with momofmany - maybe put another box right next to the one you have - if that's all there's room for.
 

carolpetunia

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Originally Posted by xXPunkKittenXx

...everyone and their mother uses mine because my litter is awesome!!!

Okay, I've got to know: what brand is this AWESOME litter?


I'm a big fan of TidyCats myself, but if you've found something even better, my goodness, do tell!
 

jen

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Originally Posted by CarolPetunia

Okay, I've got to know: what brand is this AWESOME litter?


I'm a big fan of TidyCats myself, but if you've found something even better, my goodness, do tell!
Feline Pine gets my vote as the best. No odor, and my house smells like pine all the time! I love it. And belive me, I have tried everything under the sun!
 

mzjazz2u

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I think it depends on the cats and the size of your place. With Jake around, 1 box is sometimes too much just for him!
 

jaycee

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Originally Posted by Jen

Feline Pine gets my vote as the best. No odor, and my house smells like pine all the time! I love it. And belive me, I have tried everything under the sun!
i hated feline pine, it smelled really bad, i couldnt stand it!
 

semiferal

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I go by the rule of one box per two cats, plus one extra. So one box for one cat, two for two or three, three for four or five, etc. If any of the boxes are extra-large (larger than any commercial litterboxes, such as Rubbermaid storage containers), then you can reduce the number by 1. Also, if you are able to scoop very frequently - say, four or more times a day - you could probably also drop the number by 1. And a large home will require at least one litterbox per floor.

Personally, I have 11 at the moment in a very small apartment and I have five litterboxes total - two large storage totes, two "extra-large" commercial litterboxes, and one "large" commercial litterbox. I scoop a minimum of twice a day, usually more like 4 times a day.
 
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xxpunkkittenxx

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lol... i was just being sarcastic but it is an awesome litter for my 2 cats who seem to drag all their problems back to it... Tidy Cats Multiple cats ((like u use)) i think it is great but with 5 cats in my bf's room in my litter box... its better than their knock off brand litter i guess, because their 3 use my litter box more!

i don't live there but i really miss my babies...
 

plebayo

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i hated feline pine, it smelled really bad, i couldnt stand it!
Same here! It smelt horrible! I use Fresh Step and I LOVE it.

Back on topic -

I have a bit of a story. I had one cat, and he was using the absorbent crystal litter because with clumping clay he tracked it everywhere, and any other litter I could smell poop [feline pine, the corn stuff, chicken feed, and roganic litter]. Anyway I got a second cat so I bought a booda dome. This cat didn't like the paper pellets we had at work so I bought sand litter specifically for him to ensure his stay in my home. The minute I set it up Napolean was in that litter box specifically because he liked the clay clumping litter! So that being said, the cats have shared a box since. I moved the box to a different room [so the stuff isn't all over my floor!] and filled the booda dome with leftover crystal litter and put it in my room. Both Napolean and the new cat sometimes pee in the booda dome, but for the most part they only use the extra large litter box with the clay litter. I clean the box out twice a day [AM/PM].

Given your situation I would just make it a point to clean the box more. I think it COULD work, it obviosly wouldn't be the most sanitary, but what can you do? I would just stress that it be picked out 3-4 times a day and probably do a full litter change once a week [if not twice]. The main concern for me would be parasites, not to mention them tracking over used litter all over.
 
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