Which litter to pick?

I am getting ready to adopt my future kitty, and I wanted to let you experts in cat ownership help me pick out which litter type to use.

Here are the conditions we are talking about:

~ We will have 1 cat, adult, medium, short haired.
~ Our apartment is 800 sq ft, and the litter box will be going in the dining room, only about 15 feet away from the living areas(open floor plan).
~ We have carpeted floors.
~ The litter box we are going to get will most likely be medium sized and covered with a matt in front.

My biggest worries:
~Odor, Odor, Odor!

I hate to tell you this, but you won't get to pick the litter - your cat will have his or her own preferences. Some like clumping litter, while others want non-clumping. Some will accept the silicon litter, while others won't, e.g., when I tried it, Jamie scratched every bit of the litter out of his box, down the (albeit short) hall, and watched the little "balls" as they bounced down the stairs. When I tried another brand that wasn't round, he went down the cellar and found an opened bag of his old litter on a high shelf, and did his business in the bag. That was the end of the experiment, and we went back to clumping clay litter. Since you're adopting an adult cat, it's advisable to start with the litter the cat is already used to. If you later want to switch brands, get some very small bags of the brands you have in mind, and a few of those disposable litter boxes (or tin-foil broiling pans), and put out a few of the brands you have in mind at once, and see what he/she chooses.
Some cats require two litter boxes, one for #1 and a separate one for #2. Odor shouldn't be a problem if you use a clumping litter and scoop a minimum of once a day.

See this is where being a lifetime dog owner leaves me unprepaired for a cat. With a lab, you pick the food, bedding, toys, etc and the dog will get used to it and completely forget the dog food of the past (at least with a dog whose animal instinct has been bred down to a minimum).

Never before owning a creature that relieves himself inside without the aid of a toilet, I am a little worried about the litter box smelling. With 800 square feet, I figure we are ok, but there really isn't any "room" that is walled off where I can stash the box.

The bathroom is too small for a litter box and me and my husband (and given the choice, I would pick to share the bathroom with someone who knows how to flush and put the seat up-and for now that's the hubby). The kitchen is a walk through with very little floor space for a litter box. The laundry room is more of a laundry closet. But, we have a big breakfast/dining room area that we never use that's about 10 x 12. We are planning on putting the litter box in the far corner of that space, but there is no wall between that and the living room.

Our litter box is in the upstairs hallway (windowless, although right outside our bathroom, which has a very large window), and we have no problem at all with odor. I use clumping litter, and scoop once or twice a day. We have a parquet floor there, and even with a covered litter box, and a litter-catching mat in front of the box, we get a bit of litter on the floor every day. I keep a hand-held, rechargeable vacuum (like a Dustbuster) right next to the box, and use it to clean up the mess. If the cat you adopt accepts a covered box, you might want to get a "Booda Dome" with steps. I live in Germany, where they're not sold, and "drool" every time I see one in a U.S. store (I spend one month a year there visiting my family).

I'm in about the same size apartment. We have the litterbox in the bathroom. If your cat goes for a covered one, it works very well.

As far as litter...I like clumping litter. I once tried the crystals. They were nice because Puppy (my cat) couldn't kick them out of the box when he digs. However, they are expensive and they're hard to scoop because the crystals don't fit through the slats on the scooper.

Actually, if you get a digger, like mine, that's another reason to put it in the bathroom. Even with a covered box, he likes to leave a lovely pile of litter outside the door. We keep a little broom and dustpan in there to sweep it up.

Also, if he lays a stinky one, you can spray air freshener and close the bathroom door!

I think a more private place for the box is important. until the cat sees you as family, they are going to want to use the box in solitude. NYCdogandcat sells covers that look like buildings they are terrific.

http://www.nycdogandcat.com/

Originally Posted by jcat

Jamie scratched every bit of the litter out of his box, down the (albeit short) hall, and watched the little "balls" as they bounced down the stairs.

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omg..

The only private place we can put the litter box is in the laundry "room." I put room in "" because it's really more like a laundry closet. There is a stackable washer dryer the fits flush with the left wall and leaves about a 2 foot square space open. This space usually houses a pile of dirty clothes, but I could see giving this space to the litter box (which is private, far away from our living space, and big enough for a litter box) but I am concerned that it might smell up the laundy.

Is that crazy? Does anyone else put their box in the laundry room? I guess I am just a little over analytical of the potential smell since I have never had a pet that used the bathroom inside.

I'd advise against putting the box in the laundry room, because you may find that the noise of the washer or dryer scares the cat away from the box, causing unacceptable elimination (behind the couch, for example). Ditto furnace rooms.

Laundry room is where I keep Hersheys Litter Box.. i've had no problem, and he'll be 2 in Nov.

I guess that I am just very lucky to have made the right choice on litter. I use Worldâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s Best multi cat even thought I only have one cat.

The box is in the guest (now Chesterâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s) bathroom. I scoop it, flush it and have no problems with order. I have physical problems that make it difficult to carry things so making trips to the trash bin are out of the question. Itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s worked out to be the best solution for me.

We have two litter boxes in our laundry room, and we have multiple cats (there are litter boxes in the spare bathroom as well).

It works well... with one cat, I think it would be perfect! As long as you are diligent about scooping it and don't use stale litter, it's fine! It helps to sprinkle the Arm&Hammer Baking Soda cat box mix on top, too. Also, use liners so the smells don't get soaked up into the plastic. My cats prefer open boxes, but you can try a hooded one and if he takes to it, all the better! Good luck! Now you have to show pictures in exchance for the advice.

I did a test between 2 litters. Place 2 boxes next to each other with 2 differnt kinds of litter & let kitty do the picking. Also if you are starting with a kitten you could probably do a covered box, but an adult kitty might not like the switch. I have a 400 square foot apartment (& 4 cats) so litter box space is an issue. If you are able to try this I suggest not only a covered box, but a covered box with a door on it. However, if you are going to use one with a door make sure to get the largest size they have, my cats wouldn't use the smaller one with the door on it.

I agree about using a covered litter box..it'll help contain the litter and the smell. A lot of people here really like WBCL, but I didn't like it at all! It's very expensive, it's dusty, and it doesn't clump or control odors all that great (IMO) and I would NEVER dream of using it in a tiny apartment like yours. Some cats are picky about litter and some aren't picky at all. All the cats I've ever owned have not really had a preference about litter, they were happy with pretty much anything. The best litter I've ever used is Arm & Hammer Super Scoop Fresh Scent...low dust, good hard clumps, good odor control, and minimal tracking. I've never tried the Fragrance Free kind, but I would like to. I've always kept our litter box in the laundry room and it's never been a problem.

I use chn feed which is similiar to WBL but much cheaper.... Recently I started mixing in PPOD litter wow that stuff is great smelling and not half bad in the clumping dept

Originally Posted by MissintheSouth

My biggest worries:~Odor, Odor, Odor!

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Odor has more to do with what you feed the cat than the litter. I use the cheap Walmart brand clumping litter and because I feed raw there isn't really any odor.

Originally Posted by missymotus

Odor has more to do with what you feed the cat than the litter. I use the cheap Walmart brand clumping litter and because I feed raw there isn't really any odor.

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very true with raw ... but canned smells the worst and some drys can cause very very little odor... I have a canned and raw girl who smells far worse than the dry girl

I have to say that at the end of the day, my two make those sorts of decisions. They make it patently obvious which they prefer. Clay based is out: one cat sounds like he's tunnelling to Australia when he uses it. Wood pellets get shot all over the place in total disgust. The crystals were the funniest, we have a litter tray with a hood and filter, one went in, performed the deed and shot out like a bat out of hell when the crystals sizzled! We now use a lightweight litter which technically you can declump daily, we just change the whole tray every day. A bit costly, but they're happy and we have no nasty aromas!

Originally Posted by sharky

I use chn feed which is similiar to WBL but much cheaper.... Recently I started mixing in PPOD litter wow that stuff is great smelling and not half bad in the clumping dept

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Sorry...this might be a dumb question but what is PPOD litter?? I'm looking to switch litters since I've discovered (or i think i have) that some of my cat's eye swelling issues may be due to his litter. I use feline pine pellets and when it starts break down and getting sawdust like he end up with his eye(s) swelling.