How often should I change the litter?

Lucas is my first cat, I'm still learning all about it (and this website is loads of help!)

I read you supposed to completely change the litter once a month. How about with clumping litter? Since you're removing the clumps, isn't it assumed that the litter that stays behind is clean? Should I completely change the litter once a month as well, less often or not at all? Right now I clean his litter everyday and have completely cleaned the box once (but dumped the old litter back in), I've had him 7 weeks, but I'm wondering if I should ever change the whole litter or just continue to put new litter in as needed... Thanks!

I usually scoop out the poop/pee every 2-3 days and add a bit of clean litter, and change the whole litter once a month. Depends on how fussy your cat is too. My last cat wouldn't tolerate anything more than 2 days MAXIMUM for cleaning.

I scoop mine out twice a day, and completely clean and replace the litter once a week. Mine are not using clumping litter at the moment because I'm still using the stuff the breeder did, so it may well reduce when I change litters.

I scoup their clumps out twice a day, and replace with fresh once a week.

We have three kitties and three boxes. Each box gets scooped twice a day and gets completely scrubbed out approximately once a month.

I have three kitties and two litterboxes. I scoop twice and day, add clean litter as needed and completely dump and replace the litter monthly.

two cats, two boxes.

scopp 2/3 times a day and change the litter as soon as it starts to smell.

Scoop as needed 2/3 times a day - add fresh once a week and completely dump litter / wash litter box once a month!!

Wow - you all can go that long?

I scoop everyday, and change it twice a week.
I find often it is easier to empty the box and replace, then to actually just clean the lumps out.

I am meticulous about scooping... I make sure to get any 'bits' that might break off from the clumps. So yes... I can go that long.

Originally Posted by Jillian

I am meticulous about scooping... I make sure to get any 'bits' that might break off from the clumps. So yes... I can go that long.

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Sometimes longer.

Well, I scoop mine 2-3 times a day, and dump the litter, clean the boxes, and put in fresh litter once a week. However, I have four cats, and live in an apartment (so I can't put the litter out of the way somewhere like a basement or laundry room where I wouldn't be able to notice the smell as much), so I would definitely say you don't need to do it quite that much. Not *ever* doing it seems kind of unsanitary, though (the box is bound to get dirty, and after awhile the old litter is just not going to be fresh anymore, and leaving it that way forever doesn't seem like a great idea to me) - I would definitely do it once a month.

i too, scoop 2-3 times a day. As for change of litter, i do a complete clean out and fresh refill every 3-4 weeks. And usually immediately after i clean/scrub his litter pan and everything, Hobbes uses it right away.

i scoop at least 2x daily (and we use scooping litter). i dump and scrub the boxes every 2-4 weeks. it depends on the brand and how dirty it is...if i use petsmart unscented scoop it's 2 weeks, but if i use tidy cats scoop i can go about a month. i also have 4 boxes for the 3 guys, so that helps...they stay a bit cleaner than if we just had 3 boxes for 3 cats.

I think changing the litter depends a lot on the type of litter used and the habits of your cat. When I used non-clumping clay litter, I needed to completely change the litter 2x/week (had one cat). About 1.5 years ago, I switched to World's Best Cat LItter which is a clumping corn litter. I scoop the waste daily and do a complete litter change every 4 weeks. I also wash the litter box every 4 weeks. I currently have 2 cats.

After reading everyone's responses, it probably would help for comparison if everyone would provide the type of litter used (non-clumping, clumping, clay, corn, wheat, pine, etc.). It's just a suggestion.

I'm also a neat freak about those tiny crumbs that break off -- I bought a scooper with tiny whole just for that reason!

Lucas litter doesn't smell bad, even though I live in a one bedroom. I keep his litter box in the half-bathroom, but now I know next time I clean his box to put completely new litter in, even if it is the clumping kind. Thanks!!

I change my out entirely, but I don't have a set time. I just go by what it looks and smells like. I use a clumping litter, Swheat Scoop, and scoop it out twice a day. It stays pretty fresh, and I add to it from time to time to replace what I take out. Eventually, you do get clumps breaking up enough you can't scoop them out and you'll see them around. When there is enough of that, I change it. I only have one cat, and I do his probably once every three to four weeks. He has exquisite litter box habits, and I feel in return he should have a nice litter box too.

i scoop once or twice a day and chenge out every two or three weeks.. I use chn feed

we scoop once a day and completely change ever 2-3 days, that includes scrubbing the pans

Originally Posted by CDubbie

Wow - you all can go that long?

I scoop everyday, and change it twice a week.
I find often it is easier to empty the box and replace, then to actually just clean the lumps out.

Click to expand...

If you use a decent "clumping" litter i find it doesn't need to be fully replaced more than once a week.