Kitty litter issue for 5 cats

I have 3 cats of my own, which have been fine with 2 litter boxes, however my new roomates brought 2 cats of their own, which includes a older siamese cat. We purchased 2 more litter boxes because the Siamese would not go upstairs to the regular box.

I currently use either Arm & Hammer Multiple cats brand, or the Tidy Cats Scoop normal clay brand litter.

Now that I have 2 boxes downstairs, ALL the cats seem to use this 1 large litter box almost all the time. Plus, the Siamese seems to urinate a lot more then the other cats.
Because of this, that litter box gets nasty quickly...and smells horrible....it doesnt seem to clump at all where the urine is..I am assuming because so many cats are urinating in one spot it just cant keep up..and instead of a large easy to remove clump...it turns out to be a thick thick nasty wet clay mix that is very hard to scoop and sticks to the scooper and is impossible to remove without scrubbing the scooper itself off.I end up wasting so much litter because of this.

I purchased Tidy Cats Crystal/litter mix, plus a box of Special Kitty and a bag of regular all silica crystal cat litter..I forget by who, its a tiny bag that runs about 4 bucks for a 3 pound bag..not much.

I wanted to try both the crystals and the Tidy Cat Crystal mix and see which works, and put the Special Kitty litter in the boxes that arent used as much.

What can I do and does anyone have any opinions? I try to scoop 1-2 times a day or so, but my roomates are lazy and only scoop every other day.

Thanks!

First - The older siamese cat urinating a lot to me signals something is wrong. Renal failure is common in older cats - I'd get that cat to the vet.

Second - Sometimes with enough cats using the one box no litter can keep up. Have you tried adding another large box exactly like that one (same litter/same type of box) next to the one they use so much? Has worked for my cats before....

Yes, we have 1 jumbo, and 1 medium size box right next to the Jumbo so they have 2 to use, but for some reason they all use the larger box all the time. also have 2 medium sized pans and a small hooded pan up on the 2nd fl, s 5 boxes in all. but because the cats are almost always in the living room, they use those boxes, which are closer.

i wish I could find a way to make they use the upstairs one as well, to spread it out.

I have a small townhouse so dont have much room to hide the boxes.

I am hoping the crystals work better...but I dont have the cash to keep buying it, its expensive. I doubt that small bag of litter will fill both boxes.

I dont think the cat peeing is a heath issue , I think its because she drinks so much water, being older. So that makes her urinate a lot more.

She also seems to eat and eat and throw up what she doesnt eat, so I dont put as much food out now. One of my other cats does that, they will eat until full, eat more then barf. Greedy cats.

I still suggest a vet visit for the older Siamese. Drinking more isn't an age thing - it is often a sign of ill health (I had a 6 y/o kitty start drinking more over time - turned out to be renal failure). It could be renal failure, diabetes, or it could be any of a number of other things.

Can you get another jumbo box & put it in place of the Med box to see if they'll use that one then also?

Urinating a lot AND drinking a lot of water are both signs of health issues. Your kitty really needs to see a vet.

The siamese needs to get blood tests.
My Crf cats drinks tons of water because of her kidney failure.
There are alot of thinks that cause a cat to drink alot.

If they are all wanting to use one box, I would suggest getting a sweater storage box. They are longer and deeper than regular litter boxes - even the jumbo boxes - plus they are much less expensive and easier to clean. I have one of these boxes that 8 cats use without a problem. I can keep lots of litter in there so that no clumps stick to the bottom. I use SWHEAT SCOOP litter as it is much easier to maintain than clay or crystals and it last much longer. I keep between 4 and 6 inches of litter in this box at all times and you would not believe how easy it is to keep clean! Even if they ALL were to urinate in the same spot, the clump stays intact and is easy to scoop out.

Siamese tend to be fussier than other cats about their litter boxes so the bigger box may help there too. I've got a male who likes to go just after the box is scooped out.

I do agree with the others that there may be a health issue here with the excessive water drinking. Better to err on the side of caution....

I have 3 large sterilite bins and 3 jumbo litter boxes in my house. The cats simply prefer the sterilite bins because they are so roomy. They are cheaper than litter boxes, and work better (IMO).

If you have any of the litter boxes side by side, try different litters in those boxes to see if its the location they like, or the actual litter. You can experiment to see which ones they prefer, and hopefully it will be one that is easy to scoop. If you have stand up pee-ers, you might want to clean off the sides of the box with a urine neutralizer (like nature's miracle). I just spray a paper towel and wipe down the inside walls of the box with it.

For cleaning the boxes, I have an extra set of boxes and I have to completely change out the box (not just the litter) at least once a month. The dirty one is bleached in between changes and if that box can't be destinked through bleach, its time to buy a new box. One of the reasons I use sterilite bins (cheapest at Target).

And I do agree with the others. A lot of water intake can be a sign of either diabetes or renal failure.