Feline Pine Users

Earlier this week I bought feline pine (non-clumping) and luckily my two kittens used it without any problems even though I didn't really follow the directions on the bag (although at first they smelled it and were looking at me like 'you want us to go here' hahaa). I must say I am so amused by this it. For some reason I find it hilarious because I never thought the pellets would be so large (I was very confused when I opened the bag at first) and it reminds me of the things you feed guinea pigs and rabbits (although thank goodness it doesn't smell like that). I think it's funny that my small studio apartment smells like pine trees.. But I actually don't mind it. I must say that I feel like the air is fresher since there isn't any clay dust etc..but this may be purely in my head.. But I do like that it is all-natural and that I can flush it. But I have some questions:

1. For those who DON'T have the sifting boxes, how do you maintain pine dust and tracking?

2. When the cats pee, doesn't the pee fall through the cracks of the litter pellets and just accumulate on the litter box floor?? I think I can actually hear the pee hitting the bottom of the box.. Gross! I always feel like it doesn't do a good job

3. How many inches of litter do you guys put in the box?

4. Do you use the special scooper?? Does it make the big of a difference?

I'm sure I might have more questions as the week goes along the the stuff starts to breakdown. Thanks for all the help!!

1. For those who DON'T have the sifting boxes, how do you maintain pine dust and tracking?

Either dump the litter when the sawdust begins to accumulate to a level where shaking the box doesn't cause it to all go to the bottom (that's the point when sawdust tracking will become a problem if the sawdust isn't removed), or use a big scoop to sift the unused pellets away from the sawdust and reuse those pellets. I've built one sifting box, but for the others I use two small trash cans with liners, and scoop up some litter and hold it over one of the cans & sift out the sawdust, then drop the remaining unused litter in the other can, until the box is cleaned out, wash the box, and put the unused litter back in along with some fresh litter.

If you own a drill, TCS member Mschauer wrote some great posts about making your own sifting litterboxes: http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=156138


2. When the cats pee, doesn't the pee fall through the cracks of the litter pellets and just accumulate on the litter box floor?? I think I can actually hear the pee hitting the bottom of the box.. Gross! I always feel like it doesn't do a good job

I assume it does go through to the floor of the box, where it is absorbed by the pellets at the bottom of the box. When I scoop out the poop I stir the pine pellets around and find wet clumps of sawdust at the bottom (my cats pee in high volume), and stir those up so they'll dry out and can be disposed of with the rest of the dry sawdust.

3. How many inches of litter do you guys put in the box?

The bag says to use one inch, but I usually use two inches, because my cats pee so much.

4. Do you use the special scooper?? Does it make the big of a difference?

I use a wide-slotted scoop that was marketed for use with crystal pearl litter. The wide slotted scoop means you'll be less likely to pick up & waste as many litter pellets, but if you're careful when you pick up the poop with a regular scoop, you won't waste much.

Hope this is helpful!

I'm using it without a sifter. It breaks down quickly (the wood stove pellets take a little longer to break down).

I "sift" it with my normal scooper that has slots in it. The pellets stay on top (with the poop) and the rest falls to the bottom. Then I take the "clean" pellets and put them in a separate pan. After all the pellets are sifted, I empty the pan into the trash in small bags. Then put the clean pellets back in the litter pan and add about 2 more large cups of fresh pellets. Its probably about 1 1/2 inches deep - I don't measure

I clean it out about every other day.

They don't seem to track much. The litter pan is on concrete and we have indoor/outdoor carpet near by that gets whatever might be in their paws.