Question...litter box

What is the best way to maintain the litter box? I have two cats and it seems like scooping is too messy and the scooper gets all gross. I've tried those bags that you pull up and the used litter is supposed to stay in the bag, while the unused litter falls back through the holes. Using that, some used litter seems to always stay and that is messy too. One of my cat's doesn't cover up their poop. Now I have resorted to throwing out all the litter each time I clean it. I also have stopped using plastic (or whatever material they are) litter boxes because the kitties always seem to rip through the liner and poop gets on the bottom of the box. Also, using liners...they always seem to get them off of the box and try to cover their poop with it...making that gross too. Now I use card board box tops. Any suggestions of an easier way to go about doing this?

Okay, so here's how we do ours: Use the scoop to pick up poo, scooping up plenty of litter underneath the poo. Gently shake the scoop, and the clean litter should fall through the scoop, leaving only the poo on the scoop. If the scoop gets nasty, you can always give it a good soak & scrub in some animal-friendly disinfectant. We have two cats sharing a tray, so it gets cleaned out two or three times a day of poo & wee. The litter is topped up as & when required. Every so often the tray is completely emptied & scrubbed out with disinfectant. I wouldn't want to empty it completely every time it was cleaned or we'd have to buy a cat litter factory! We don't use tray liners, as they tend to get ripped, but we do keep the tray inside a sturdy cardboard box, with the open bit at the side of the box. The box is lined with plastic, it provides a bit of privacy for the cats, and stops them kicking cat litter all over the room (they can only boot it out on one side).
As for yours not covering up poo, neither of ours do that either (I think they're proud of what they do!). Milly likes to wipe her paws on the box, Daisy just poops and runs off!

Sue

Originally Posted by millyanddaisy

Okay, so here's how we do ours: Use the scoop to pick up poo, scooping up plenty of litter underneath the poo. Gently shake the scoop, and the clean litter should fall through the scoop, leaving only the poo on the scoop. If the scoop gets nasty, you can always give it a good soak & scrub in some animal-friendly disinfectant. We have two cats sharing a tray, so it gets cleaned out two or three times a day of poo & wee. The litter is topped up as & when required. Every so often the tray is completely emptied & scrubbed out with disinfectant. I wouldn't want to empty it completely every time it was cleaned or we'd have to buy a cat litter factory! We don't use tray liners, as they tend to get ripped, but we do keep the tray inside a sturdy cardboard box, with the open bit at the side of the box. The box is lined with plastic, it provides a bit of privacy for the cats, and stops them kicking cat litter all over the room (they can only boot it out on one side).
As for yours not covering up poo, neither of ours do that either (I think they're proud of what they do!). Milly likes to wipe her paws on the box, Daisy just poops and runs off!

Sue

Click to expand...

Sue, that's a great idea about putting the tray inside a cardboard box. Question: What animal-friendly disinfectant do you use?

I use household bleach when I clean the tray out, which I do 2 or three times a week, depending on need. That's OK isn't it, it's what I've done for 15 years? I always rinse it thoroughly with clean water and dry it with paper towel before refilling it. I have always understood that household bleach is safe to use on the tray - and it's the chemicals that turn white in water that are dangerous.

I thought about getting a cover for the box because they like to kick it everywhere too, and i catch them wiping their paws on the carpet around it... So now I am going to get a plastic mat to put under it. I was kind of nervous about getting a cover for the box because I thought maybe it would be dark inside of there...and they would step on their poop because they couldn't see anything. I don't want to find poopie paw prints on the carpet when I get home...

Get a deep litter box of they kick it out. For the one's who dont cover i have several cats who will cover each others poo up. I even have a few cats who use to try and cover the puppy poo when I use to keep pups in the house(too younge to train). When I go to get Tp to pick it up I can see a few scratching around it to cover it with no sucess, same for pee spots. lol.


Ashley

I often wondered about the covered issue and watched our cats when we used one. Some would stand on the front edge opening facing out of the box and do her business. They didn't have to get their paws dirty at all that way except to give a couple scoops after. Although some do like to play with litter more then others. I have found non covered simply easier to maintain strangely. The few times we failed to notice how bad the litter box got the cats let us know by going outside, having a sick cat and them not able to clean their own boxes I understand, but it was still a mess. Now I find it simply easier to use a "good" litter and scoop their solids, dump the rest when its used up. Much easier to know the condition and get to the litter if there is no cover to mess with and it gets more air circulation so it can help to dry out better.

You might want to try using a high-sided litterbox if they're kicking the litter out - click here for an example. I've read here that you can even try making your own out of a Rubbermaid bin & cutting out a door for your cat, but I haven't been able to find any bins w/a smooth floor.

How many litterboxes do you usually have for the cats? If your kitties are high-volume poopers, it might help to provide a box for each cat. That would keep the box from becoming crowded with clumps and poop so quickly, making scooping less messy.

If you're having trouble with the clumps breaking up, one way to deal with that is to gently tilt the box so the litter shifts to the other side, exposing the clumps, so it's easier to lift them out without having them break up. Another option might be to try a different kind of litter - some brands clump more firmly than others. Look for a clumping litter labeled for multiple cats - they usually are a stronger clumping formula to stand up to kitty traffic.

Another option for litter, if your cats won't bury their poop, is to try using litter crystals (click here) - they work by dehydrating the poop, and absorbing the pee. All you have to do is scoop out the dehydrated poop and stir the crystals every day - it's less messy than clumping litter, but more expensive. There are a lot of store brands available now that are a little cheaper, though.

In our house, we have 4 boxes for the 4 cats. Right now we're using a scoopable litter (Swheat Scoop) in 2 of them, and Feline Pine in the other 2. We scoop every day (2-3x a day for the high-traffic box), and wash the scoopable litter boxes every week or 2 (if the litter is still clean we pour it into another container and reuse it, if it's dirty, we change it). We dump the Feline Pine boxes' litter when it has been used up (turns to sawdust) and wash the boxes before refilling.

I've never had any luck with liners either, my cats tear right through them. Instead, I use this spray (click here) every time I wash out the litterbox - wash the box with bleach & water, rinse thoroughly, dry, then spray. The spray helps keep the box from absorbing odors, and helps keep wet clumps from sticking to the box.

Important note - if you do decide to change litter types, be sure to follow the introduction directions, or provide the new litter in a separate box for your cats to try while you keep a box with their usual litter available - some cats are picky about their litter, and need time to change over, and sudden changes of litter type might cause problems with going outside the box.

Another thought - What are you feeding your cats? If they're high-volume poopers, it might be worthwhile to consider changing foods. A more nutrient-dense food can reduce the amount of poop produced. Pat&Alix, the TCS nutritional adviser, can give advice on choosing a good food if you want to post a thread about it.

hth