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Litter box

post #1 of 24
9/1/09 at 11:35am
Thread Starter 
Ok I know this may sound stupid, but How often do you change your cats litter? I only have 1 cat and I change mine every Wednesday and Saturday and scoop twice a day in between. My husband thinks I'm nuts, and nuerotic, but I am a neat freak and afraid of litter box smells, and don't want people to come in my house and smell anything....
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post #2 of 24
9/1/09 at 11:41am
Whatever floats your boat.

For all practical purposes, I never change the whole thing, just scoop it. But if it got a "smell," I would change it, for sure.
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post #3 of 24
9/1/09 at 12:16pm
I change my cat litter whenever it starts to get rank too.

But I try to scoop at least once a day. I only have one cat as well and I find that scooping once a day is more than enough and completely changing the pan and washing it at least once a month is mandatory.
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post #4 of 24
9/1/09 at 12:31pm
I have four boxes for four cats and scoop at least once a day. It was twice a day when I had six cats. When the litter starts getting low I add more on top. I only change the litter out and totally clean the boxes about every 2-3 months. The only time I smell anything is occasionally right after one of the cats poops, and that dissipates within 5 minutes. I've even had people say they would never have known I have cats if they hadn't seen them.
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post #5 of 24
9/1/09 at 12:51pm
I use chicken feed crumbles for litter, and the brand I used can't be stretched out too long even with adding extra. So I change the litter out completely every couple of weeks - each box is on a different schedule, though. The bedroom box, for example, gets changed closer to every 2 months and only scooped every other to every third day since the box gets used maybe once a week by one cat.


If you're using a good clumping litter, then yes you're probably doing full box changes more often than you need to. If you're finding that you have to change that often you might need a better litter.
Quote:
Originally Posted by GoldyCat View Post
I've even had people say they would never have known I have cats if they hadn't seen them.
No one will ever say this to me. While no one smells the boxes (unless one of the cats graciously decides to jump in a box in the same room that people are sitting in) my house is covered in cat paraphernalia - toys strung out everywhere, cat furniture, and four litter boxes. Oh well.
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post #6 of 24
9/1/09 at 1:11pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by strange_wings View Post
No one will ever say this to me. While no one smells the boxes (unless one of the cats graciously decides to jump in a box in the same room that people are sitting in) my house is covered in cat paraphernalia - toys strung out everywhere, cat furniture, and four litter boxes. Oh well.
Maybe I should have said they wouldn't know I have cats if they hadn't seen the cats or cat toys.
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post #7 of 24
9/1/09 at 1:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by GoldyCat View Post
Maybe I should have said they wouldn't know I have cats if they hadn't seen the cats or cat toys.
The toys and boxes will give us away every time. There's just no sane way to say "I like the look of a cat litter box, it's the new in thing you know?" or "what cats? I love cat nip toys, balls, and fuzzy mice". It might cut down on the amount of company one gets, and thus the worry about anyone ever smelling a litter box, though!


Err, back on topic. To the OP. It might sound crazy, but even if your litter boxes are clean non cat people can usually smell cats... unless they have a bad nose. Just like how I can walk into a home with dogs and always smell them - or even smell dog on a dog owner. Most people won't mention it.
Do your best, for your kitties, and don't worry about company too much.
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post #8 of 24
9/1/09 at 1:22pm
I have one cat and two boxes... I scoop probably once a day and the whole thing gets changed out maybe every other week or as needed... I use regular clumping clay litter in covered boxes with litter liners... one box is in my room (Oliver's shut in with me at night) and I have a small air purifier, you'd never know I had a litter box in there! Every once in awhile he'll lay a real stinker, but when he has access to the basement, he usually does the smelly stuff down there.
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post #9 of 24
9/1/09 at 6:44pm
It depends what kind of litter you use. If it's the regular non-clumping clay litter, or something like Yesterday's News, then twice a week isn't excessive, IMO, though you could probably go to once a week without it being smelly. But if you're using clumping clay litter, that really is unnecessary (but whatever you like to do, as long as you can afford it). You can usually go at least a month with clumping litter without it getting smelly. As long as you're scooping every day.

One thing that's frequently overlooked is that the litterbox should be washed out whenever you change the litter. Sometimes the box itself stinks, not the litter.
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post #10 of 24
9/1/09 at 8:27pm
I have three cats and three boxes, but they only use 2.
I scoop and clean the boxes walls with a wipe (non toxic) once a day, and never change the litter completely...
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post #11 of 24
9/1/09 at 9:06pm
DH scoops the box morning and night. He just puts the new litter on top of the old. From what people who have been in our place, they cannot smell the box.
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post #12 of 24
9/1/09 at 10:15pm
I use wood pellets with a sieve litter tray, scoop or shake the sawdust through 3-4 times a day.

I put the unused pellets into a new tray once a week and scrub out the used trays. I have spare trays to make the rotation easier.
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post #13 of 24
9/2/09 at 4:34am
Thread Starter 
Thanks for all the reply's...I use fresh step, and I also use litter liners, but when I change the liner, of course he rips a few holes and some of the litter goes through, I still wash down the litter box..I find a 10lb bag will last me a week half on Saturday and the other half on Wednesday...I just get a little worried about smells, ever since I was pregnant I can smell the faintest smell and I drive my husband nuts looking for it ....
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post #14 of 24
9/2/09 at 5:34am
I used to not scoop and dump the whole box once a week.

It's in my living room next tot he TV so leaving it longer is just bad...

Then Aya started having urinary issues. So, now we have 2 boxes (how I found one that would fit in the only other possible location behind the toilet was a challenge) Now I dump each one on a once a week schedule alternating sunday and weds night and scoop the hooded box she prefers to poo in (Mon and thurs are garbage days, there is no place to put the trash till garbage day you have to live with it in your apartment!).

I get whatever litter is working ATM. I'm partial to these clay-ish pellets, lion litter. Its got a pic of a cat holding its nose on the bag. It really does better to control smell and in a small studio apartment that's great. I guess it clumps, but they turn the pee into one giant clay clump along the bottom of the box (shes a rim pee-er) so I line the box with a pet pad. It also doesn't clump the poo but makes it into hard poo rocks that don't smell after a few hours. Its kind of pricey though about 500yen or $5 USD for 5kilos which last me a week!
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post #15 of 24
9/2/09 at 5:36am
I use Tidy Cats scoop (red bucket) and have 5 litter boxes for 3 cats. I think I've gotten more neurotic since we bought a house. When we rented we just had 3 boxes.

I scoop 2x a day and change them completely every 3-4 weeks or if they smell sooner than that I change them then. I've found some of the cheaper litters smell faster. And in humid weather unscented litter goes rank really fast.
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post #16 of 24
9/2/09 at 5:49am
Quote:
Originally Posted by gfygrl71 View Post
Ok I know this may sound stupid, but How often do you change your cats litter? I only have 1 cat and I change mine every Wednesday and Saturday and scoop twice a day in between. My husband thinks I'm nuts, and nuerotic, but I am a neat freak and afraid of litter box smells, and don't want people to come in my house and smell anything....

I am the same. I have three cats and four boxes. I scoop at least three times a day (morning when I get up, when I get home from work, and night, before bed.) and any time it is used when I happen to be home.

I dump and scrub once a week. the plastic holds odors and needs to be cleaned.

My cats are very picky about their boxes. Tolly will sit down there and howl if the boxes aren't clean enough for him. I hurry down and find that out of four boxes, three are clean and one has a pee in it. I point out to him that he has a choice of three clean boxes, but he is adamant that I clean out that pee.

So I guess he just wants that particular box, so I scoop it out, put fresh litter in and step back. He jumps in, sniffs around to make sure I didn't miss any of the pee....then gets into one of the already clean boxes to use!

Mazy has been known to drag the doubled grocery bag I put dirty litter in up the stairs to remind me of my duties. That happened once when I was sick and couldn't keep them clean for a few days!
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post #17 of 24
9/2/09 at 7:07am
Thirteen cats, thirteen boxes. I scoop the most used boxes daily, the other four every other day and top off as needed. I use corn litter, so in cool months can easily go 4 to 5 weeks without a dump and scrub, in the summer it's about 3 weeks.
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post #18 of 24
9/2/09 at 7:17am
Quote:
Originally Posted by littleraven7726 View Post
I scoop 2x a day and change them completely every 3-4 weeks or if they smell sooner than that I change them then.
That's my routine, too. I usually sift the litter (a very fine clay with small crystals called Golden Grey Master) into a large planter every week and steam clean the litter box before putting it back in. All the litter gets thrown out and replaced at least once a month.
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post #19 of 24
9/3/09 at 5:48am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by gfygrl71 View Post
Tolly will sit down there and howl if the boxes aren't clean enough for him. I hurry down and find that out of four boxes, three are clean and one has a pee in it. I point out to him that he has a choice of three clean boxes, but he is adamant that I clean out that pee.:


OMG I laughed so hard about this...I can actually see him looking at you saying "hello I need to pee"...
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post #20 of 24
9/3/09 at 6:36am
I have two litter boxes for three cats. I check it every day and just do what needs done. If it isn't too bad, I scoop, and if it is bad I change the whole thing. It usually boils down to at least one box getting entirely cleaned/changed every other day.
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post #21 of 24
9/3/09 at 7:07am
Three boxes for two cats (because the boy is so darn picky!) - Cat Attract litter (again, the boy!) - scoop twice a day (sometimes more if I'm home and one has been used) - and completely empty, wash out, and replace litter once a month. I usually buy new boxes once a year, because I think the plastic does end up retaining the odor by then. I used to use the liners, but even with declawed cats (they came that way), they ended up ripped.

But, it does get down to whatever makes you, and the kitties, comfortable.
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post #22 of 24
9/3/09 at 10:51am
I also have one cat and I scoop every other day and there is no smell at all. By scooping we are losing litter and that can't be helped so for me every other day works for me and Autumn.
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post #23 of 24
9/3/09 at 12:38pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by gfygrl71 View Post
Ok I know this may sound stupid, but How often do you change your cats litter? I only have 1 cat and I change mine every Wednesday and Saturday and scoop twice a day in between. My husband thinks I'm nuts, and nuerotic, but I am a neat freak and afraid of litter box smells, and don't want people to come in my house and smell anything....
I have 1 cat and your schedule is exactly the same as mine!! seriously, even the days. So I guess we're both "neurotic"....If the box isnt perfect, Boo will go right next to the box, so I have serious incentive to keep the boxes pristine!
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post #24 of 24
9/3/09 at 5:32pm
I have two cats and two boxes, scooped twice a day. I use Yesterday's News litter. I find that by the end of a week they really need changing. However, when I used clumping litter in the past I only had to change it once a month or so. Basically, I change the litter when it smells bad even after being scooped.
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