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Litter Box Questions

post #1 of 20
12/20/07 at 3:20pm
Thread Starter 
1) What brand of litter do you use? Skylar and Hudson came with a bag of Arm and Hammer High Performance. The clumping seems good but I think there could be better odor control. 2) How often do you change or scoop your litter box(es)... vs how many cats?
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post #2 of 20
12/20/07 at 3:34pm
1. I love Scoop Away clumping litter. It's a bit dusty but one of the best I've found for clumping and odor.

2. I have 13 cats and 4 boxes. I scoop every time it's needed (usually 4-5 times a day per box), and I completely dump and wash the box once a week.
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post #3 of 20
12/20/07 at 4:32pm
When you have loads of cats it's hard to stick to this, but the rule of thumb is that you should have one more litter box than cats.

We have six cats, three litter boxes and one automatic litter box upstairs (one in each room except one room has two) and three litter boxes and one automatic litter box downstairs.

We scoop once a day, and we dump and bleach the boxes once a month.

When we lived in the RV we had just five of the kitties and only three boxes. We scooped twice a day and dumped and bleached the boxes every week.

We used to use the Arm & Hammer - but it's very dusty. We then tried to switch to the eco- and health-friendly stuff, like Swheat Scoop or The World's Best Cat Litter - but we live in rural areas, and both attracted ants. So we now use TidyCats Crystal Blend - the antibacterial one (small pour plastic box with green label). It clumps really well for the most part, and while there's dust, it's not nearly as bad as the Arm & Hammer stuff was.

Laurie
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post #4 of 20
12/27/07 at 6:39am
I have three boxes, two plain ones and smartscoop. I use Arm and Hammer multicat, and I scoop about every three days (I have three cats)
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post #5 of 20
12/27/07 at 7:35am
We use Walmarts Special Kitty Brand, it works well for our situation.

We have 4 litterboxes for 8 cats but we scoop out their litterboxes more then once a day or as often as needed. We empty & clean them completely on a monthly basis
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post #6 of 20
12/27/07 at 11:45am
We are now using Feline Pine (or Petco's equivalant of it - more litter for less price). I love it, cats love it and its only drawback is the sifting part after it breaks down. Need to get DH to customize me a small screen for the bottom of the pan that I can lift out the pellets and dump the "sawdust" part
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post #7 of 20
12/27/07 at 1:49pm
1) I use Yesterday's News (the brand, not an actual newspaper )

2) I scoop the box once a day, I have 1 cat
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post #8 of 20
12/27/07 at 4:12pm
I use co-op brand , I scoop once a day, I have two boxes, there is no kitty smell and not a lot of dust. cheap too
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post #9 of 20
12/28/07 at 6:54am
1- We're using Special Kitty Scoop. Sometimes I buy Special Kitty Scoop with Crystals. Depends on the budget. I think it clumps well and controls odor great.

We were buying Tidy Cats Scoop, but I never know what formula I'm going to get in the bucket---so no more. My cats HATE the "tidy lock" formula, and the last bucket was that. I think tidy lock formula smells awful when the cat pees in it, the clumps break apart, and it tracks all over.

2- We have 2 litter boxes, for 2 cats. I scoop 2x a day. I also wash the boxes when I change the litter, which is about once a month.
You should have at least 1 litterbox per cat, and if you have multiple floors in your home, 1 on each floor. We have 2 boxes, 1 upstairs and 1 downstairs.
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post #10 of 20
12/28/07 at 8:01am
I have 3 cats and 2 litter boxes (We tried having 3 boxes but they just don't seem to use the third (the kittens simply ended up using it as a play sandbox). We use Fresh Step Free, which is really nice, it clumps well and odor control is decent (I also sprinkle regular baking soda in the box as well due to the extra stinky-ness of kitten poo, and boy do kittens poo A LOT!). Its the best litter I have used so far, unfortunately it's really dusty, but I simply fill the boxes outside with a little mask on. We clean the boxes once in the morning and once at night... or if the cats do something particularly stinky. We totally refill the boxes once a month or so, put a little extra litter in earlier if they seem low. We also clean the boxes in the tub with a diluted bleach/water mixture which was recommended by our vet.

I haven't had kittens in a long time, but it seems like kittens definitely do the bathroom thing much more often then my adult cats. I guess they are so little they can't hold as much lol.
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post #11 of 20
12/28/07 at 1:57pm
3 cats, 1 litterbox (55lt storage container). Scoop twice a day and use Catlux litter.

Odour control is often about what you feed them so you might want to look into that too.
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post #12 of 20
12/29/07 at 11:35pm
Congratulations on your new cats!

1. It varies, I can't stop trying new ones. I've tried Nature's Miracle corn litter, Crystal (Tidy Cats & Dr. Elsey's) and various clay litters (Arm & Hammer Super Scoop Fragrance Free (which I'm using now), PetCo brand in the refillable jugs, and a generic one from Safeway).

2) I have 2 boxes but 1 of them gets a lot more use than the other. I scoop at least once a day, otherwise twice a day or right after they go poop.
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post #13 of 20
12/31/07 at 9:31am
I have 5 cats and 4 litter boxes. I use Dr. Elsey's Precious Cat scoopable litter. I wash out the boxes once a month.
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post #14 of 20
1/5/08 at 8:00am
I use fresh step or tidy cats scoop. Sometimes I'll use the chicken crumbles and mix it in with the scoopable to stretch it or I'll fill one box with crumbles (corn litter) and the others scoopable. I have 4 cats and 3 boxes/totes.

I clean with bleach once every two weeks to a month.
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post #15 of 20
1/5/08 at 5:03pm
Oh..uh.. I have 4 cats and I have 4 boxes..I am going to take away one though as it hardly gets used. The one box we have is a huge rubbermaid loong box and it actually could serve as two.
We use Equine Fresh Pine pellets(..for horses bedding) but a 40lb bag at only $6.00 much better at cost than the other feline pine brands and exactly the same stuff..
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post #16 of 20
1/12/08 at 6:12am
I currently have one box for two cats, and have them contained to save a couch (Italian leather that I found at a great price before I was even considering getting cats) until the younger one finally gets declawed (just the front paws) within a month. Once that happens, I'll introduce another box in the other half of my apartment. I have been using Tidy Cats Small Spaces. I get the 27 lb. pail and it usually lasts a month with the one box cleaning out the clumps twice a day. I also use pan liners, to help control the odor since my apartment is only 700 sq. ft.

I do have to admit that it is a really fine granule, which Beacon and Sox tend to scatter very easily. I seem to sweep the floor at least once a day to get the loose litter off of it.
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post #17 of 20
1/12/08 at 4:21pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by swooshfinn View Post
until the younger one finally gets declawed (just the front paws) within a month.
Are you aware there are alternatives to declawing? You can clip their nails weekly or use nail caps http://www.softpaws.com/

Declawing is inhumane and illegal in most countries except North America.
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post #18 of 20
1/13/08 at 1:47am
Quote:
Originally Posted by swooshfinn View Post
I currently have one box for two cats, and have them contained to save a couch (Italian leather that I found at a great price before I was even considering getting cats) until the younger one finally gets declawed (just the front paws) within a month. Once that happens, I'll introduce another box in the other half of my apartment. I have been using Tidy Cats Small Spaces. I get the 27 lb. pail and it usually lasts a month with the one box cleaning out the clumps twice a day. I also use pan liners, to help control the odor since my apartment is only 700 sq. ft.

I do have to admit that it is a really fine granule, which Beacon and Sox tend to scatter very easily. I seem to sweep the floor at least once a day to get the loose litter off of it.
Also, it's not uncommon for cats who have been declawed to have serious litter box problems after it's done. If you are concerned about a sofa (and it's really easy to train cats to scratch in appropriate places), you aren't going to like it when the cat starts having litter box issues if that does happen.
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post #19 of 20
1/13/08 at 5:34am
Quote:
Originally Posted by swooshfinn View Post
I currently have one box for two cats, and have them contained to save a couch (Italian leather that I found at a great price before I was even considering getting cats) until the younger one finally gets declawed (just the front paws) within a month.
Why don't you just put some blankets over the couch? Even with being front declawed they are still going to run across it. Sticky paws and a well placed scratching post can help train them without resorting to declawing.

You might want to consider selling the couch and going for a microfiber one instead. We have a microfiber couch, and the guys tear across it all the time- no marks in a year and a half.
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post #20 of 20
1/13/08 at 3:59pm
I use the scoopfree box with a forever tray and fresh step crystals from Target. Bootsie loves the box, and will sniff the area where she pooed. She looks at me like "the poo is gone! I can't believe it".

I got this box because I work nights, and work three nights in a row with four off. For the three days where all I do is sleep, eat, work, and pet the kitty for a half hour this is a godsend because I don't have to spend time with the box!

By the way, kitty does get to play with daddy when he comes home from work. She isn't being neglected
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