Clumping or non clumping litter

[ssch]

Clumping litter is very expensive my two kittens have gone through 40 lb bags in just 3 wks. I was thinking of switching to tidy cats 24/7 non clumping litter, was wondering if there is much differnce between two. Previously they were using double duty arm and hammer clumping litter. First time cat owner so any advice is welcome. Thanks

 

[Margret]

There are cheaper clumping litters available.  I buy Luvsome's.  It should be available in any Kroger grocery store in the pet products aisle.  It's a store brand, and works just fine.  Don't be put off if it says it's for "Multi-cat" households; that just means it clumps better.

Clumping litters lead to less litter box cleaning.  All you do is scoop out the clumps, and add litter when it starts to run low.  No need to completely change the litter every week.  If the box gets too grungy, then you do a complete litter change and wash out the box while you're at it.

Margret

 

[jrsnyder101]

Any thoughts on clay? TIA

 

[ssch]

Thank you all for giving advice. My cats won't even go to the litter box till I clean it twice a day. I will look into cheaper brands. Thanks

 

[jrsnyder101]

My new cat, a snior from SPCA practically LIVES in her box!

 

[Margret]

Thank you all for giving advice. My cats won't even go to the litter box till I clean it twice a day. I will look into cheaper brands. Thanks

Clean as in scoop, or as in completely empty it, wash it, and put in fresh litter?

Margret

 

[ssch]

Scoop. God knows what I will do if they start demanding full clean.

 

[Margret]

Any thoughts on clay? TIA

Most clumping litter is clay.  Generally expansive clays, like bentonite, the kind of stuff you do not want your house built on.

Advantage -- it clumps.

Disadvantage -- dust.

There are various additives, like baking soda to handle the smell (and you can add this yourself) or fragrances for the same purpose.

Never flush a clay litter.  You won't like what it does to your plumbing.

Margret

 

[Margret]

Scoop. God knows what I will do if they start demanding full clean.

And you've been going through 40 pounds in 3 weeks?!  That sounds seriously excessive.  I wonder whether they need a vet visit.

There are two of them, right?  And they're kittens?  Are they throwing a lot of litter out of the boxes?

Margret

 

[smile123]

What type of litter do you use now?

 

[ssch]

They are two and they are very clean don't throw anything put, but they did have severe diarrhea after deworming and vaccination. They have been to vet and now they are healthy.

 

[ssch]

What type of litter do you use now?

They use arm and hammer double duty clumping litter

 

[Margret]

They are two and they are very clean don't throw anything put, but they did have severe diarrhea after deworming and vaccination. They have been to vet and now they are healthy.

Okay, then, that sounds like a temporary problem caused by the diarrhea.  They should be using less litter now.  Do check on cheaper litters, but I'm pretty sure you want to stick with clumping.  The only way to clean the box with non-clumping litter is a complete litter change.  You do not want to do that twice a day, nor do you want to pay for that much litter.  The only other options I know of are complete systems that use a special box, with special litter that lets the liquid waste filter straight through into a holding tank which you then empty separately.

You may want to get a couple more boxes for them; they may let you scoop less often if they have alternate places to go.  And make sure there's plenty of litter in the boxes -- it will clump better, and there will be less chance of the kind of frantic digging that results in litter being thrown out.

By the way, welcome to The Cat Site.  We're very glad you found us!

Margret

 

[artiemom]

I love the clumping litter I am using: Precious Cats (blue box).

For my one guy, I have 2 litter boxes. I dump and wash out the litter about every 3 weeks.. anything longer and it gets nasty.. I scoop at least 2 -3 times a day...

Oh, and I use a Litter Genie to control odors from the waste...

Good Luck...

 

[ssch]

Thank you all. I am glad I joined this forum. I have like a million questions each day and you guys are so welcoming and helpful. Thank you

 

[Margret]

@jrsnyder101, I used to get a clumping cat litter made of green pellets, like rabbit food (?), that I was very happy with.  No dust, clumped just fine, needed a scooper with slightly wider slits than some, flushable in small quantities.  I haven't seen that in years.

I've just been doing a Google search on "pellet cat litter," and have found the following:

http://www.tidycats.com/products/breeze/   This is for the entire system.  You can probably find it cheaper on Amazon.

  Litter refills for the Breeze system.  I've never used this, and probably won't, specifically because of the need to buy special litter boxes and something to catch the urine.  Also, because it doesn't clump you'll go through litter very quickly.

I like the environmental aspects of this one: http://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcos...ws-original-paper-pellet-unscented-cat-litter, but it also is non-clumping.

I found this article about wood pellet litters: http://www.tejascats.com/Wood Pellets/wood pellets.htm   I note that this is written by someone with a cattery, which means they have a lot of cats and expect to go through litter quickly.

And then I found this one: http://www.onlynaturalpet.com/products/OKOcat-Natural-Wood-Clumping-Cat-Litter/635007.aspx   Unlike the wood pellet litter being referenced in the Teja's Cats article, this one is supposed to be a clumping litter.  See this thread for more information: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/187148/use-of-fiber-based-clumping-litter#post_2558515

You may also like World's Best Clumping Cat Litter: http://www.thecatsite.com/products/worlds-best-cat-litter-clumping-formula   I'm not sure, as the price has kept me from trying this one, but it may be a direct descendant of the green pellets I used to buy.

{Edit:  Aha!  I just did a Google search on "rabbit food cat litter," which (surprise!) led me back to TCS

.  http://www.thecatsite.com/t/116894/anyone-else-use-rabbit-food-alfalfa-pellets-for-litter}

Blue Buffalo also has a pellet litter, made of walnut shells.  It's listed as non-clumping.

The other option, if price is a problem, would be to get a face mask (what we used to call a "SARS mask") and wear it while adding litter (which, in my experience, is the time that you get the most dust in the air).

Margret

 

[jrsnyder101]

@Margret
Wow, thank you sooo much!I love the idea of a clumping pellet...gonna dive into this info!
Thanks again!!

 

[Margret]

@Margret
Wow, thank you sooo much!I love the idea of a clumping pellet...gonna dive into this info!
Thanks again!!

You're welcome.  However (ships passing in the night

) you posted this while I was re-editing my original post.  You may want to re-read.  Look for the line with a smiley.

Margret

 

[jrsnyder101]

@Margret
Looking into OKO, not sure about pricing, rabbit pellets are next.
Did you say you needed a different type of box with certain litters.
Yes, getting masks as well. My husband put large bag and poured it into small buckets for my use in the house. Do we think a scoop or pour method would make a difference?
One last question, sorry its 2. How do I save this? And how do I start a new thread?
Thank you, thank you, thank you!

 

[Margret]

@Margret
Looking into OKO, not sure about pricing, rabbit pellets are next.
Did you say you needed a different type of box with certain litters.
Yes, getting masks as well. My husband put large bag and poured it into small buckets for my use in the house. Do we think a scoop or pour method would make a difference?
One last question, sorry its 2. How do I save this? And how do I start a new thread?
Thank you, thank you, thank you!

The Breeze litter system requires a special box with a tray underneath for the "Cat pads" (urine absorption pads).  The tray holds their special litter; you scoop the solids out, and change the pads every so often.  The litter is non-clumping, but using pads for the urine means that you don't have to completely change the litter every time you want to clean the box.

Scooping clay litter into the box should cut down on the amount of dust in the air as you put it into the litter box, yes.  It won't remove it entirely, but anything that reduces the amount of, um, chaotic clash of clay on clay should reduce it.  If you can scoop it in without actually dropping the litter through the air (i.e. put the scoop down in the litter box and then turn it sideways) that should eliminate it entirely, except for the dust you get when you move it from the bag to the bucket.  You can easily make a scoop to do this from a 2 liter soda pop bottle; just cut the bottom and one side off and remove the label.  Keep the lid on; use the neck of the bottle as a handle.

Saving.  Two methods:

1. Mark  the entire message, copy to your clipboard, paste it into a text editor, save as a file on your computer.  Some editors (Apache OpenOffice and Libre Office spring to mind -- both free, both for Windows) will save the links as links.  Simple text editors like Notepad will save them as text, which you can then copy and paste into the address bar of your browser.
2. Here is a direct link to my post: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/327347/clumping-or-non-clumping-litter#post_4115615.  (For future reference, I got it by clicking in the top right corner of the post, where it says "post # 16," and then marking and copying the address from the address bar to my clipboard.)  You can bookmark the post in your browser.

Starting new threads (and other useful information): http://www.thecatsite.com/a/how-to-use-the-forums.  You may want to bookmark this article.

You are entirely welcome.  Cat litter is a major issue for all of us here.

Margret