Cat Litter

Is there anything wrong using sand, soil or plant shaving as litter for your litter box? Not really, as that's what my grandmother used for her cat. Just that she didn't mind having to wash the cat litter box for half an hour when changing the litter...

 

The biggest problem was that the urine got to the bottom of the litter box, making it a cesspool of bacteria producing the typical foul-smelling ammonia. Even worse for cats, as their urine is very condensed compared to urine from other pets.

 

That's why modern day cat litter was invented: a type of litter box filling that needs to:

 

• absorb cat urine and therefore
   
• isolate the cat waste inside the litter in stead of at the bottom of the litter box.

 

Kitty Litter was the first to manufacture and sell non clumping cat litter.

 

Cat litter training

 

Always buy a cat that's trained to do its business in a litter box.

 

If you happen to have kittens, make sure to put them in their litter box each time they are about to urinate or deposit.

 

make sure your kitten doesn't play around with the litter and especially doesn't eat any litter!

 

Human litter training

 

Always make sure that there is no odor coming out of your cat's litter box. Remember your cat's smell is so much more evolved than yours, so when it's smelly for you, it's hell for your cat. And cat's don't feel like urinating in hell...

 

So keep your cat's litter box clean. that is make sure there is enough litter to absorb urine before reaching the bottom (1 inch). Also if you litter box starts smelling, it's high time to clean the cat cakes or to replace the cat litter all together.

 

Lazy people like me make sure that the litter box is cleaned and disinfected once every month..

 

 

Clumping cat litter

 

 

The most known cat litter is clumping cat litter like "Tidy Cats" and "Fresh Step".

 

The basic idea is that the material - is basically clay that clumps up when cat urine is introduced to it. This allows wastes to be segregated and swept away without sticking to your litter box.

 

And the extra benefit of clumping cat litter is that it has some built-in odor neutralizing characteristics. Cat urine and fecal moisture is quickly absorbed by the clay and only slowly allowed to evaporate into the air. Clean your cat's litter box after each business, and you wont ever have any cat odor in your house.

 

Compared to grandmother's litter, clumping cat litter is instantly cleaned with zero effort and sweat.

 

A negative aspect is that some people blame clumping cat litter for causing diseases and death to many cats. Fair enough: if your cat happens to eat this kind of clumping cat litter, it will absorb the water inside your cat, expand and block your cat's digestive system.

 

So any time you change your cat litter and you find out that immediately after, your cat becomes ill, make sure to get rid of that specific clumping cat litter! Consider to train your cat to use a human toilet instead!

 

Cat litter and cancer

 

Avoid using clumping clay cat litter that contains crystalline silica, or silica dust (don't confuse with silica gel).

 

These 2 products are known as carcinogen or cancer inducing.

 

Although tests show that humans wont be affected by the crystalline silica or silica dust in the cat litter, no such studies are done on cats.

 

Silica gel cat litter

 

 

Silica gel cat litter called like City Cat is a porous granular form of sodium silicate cat litter.

 

It has the highest absorbency of any litter and an excellent moisture and odor control. you do have to stir it daily when scooping the solid waste so no urine can pool in the box.

 

Unlike clumping clay litter of which you remove the cat cakes each and every day, crystal litter will saturated after 1 month or so: when it begins to smell and is visibly saturated.

 

That's when you need to clean your litter box and add new litter.

 

Others dislike that crystal litter gives them no warning when it is saturated; the next cat to use the litter box will leave a urine puddle at the bottom of the pan. Crystal litter is extremely lightweight, especially when compared to heavier clay and clumping litter.

 

Silica gel litter comes in two shapes: irregular lumps and small beads. Sizes range from 0.5 mm to 4 mm.

 

Biodegradable cat litter

 

 

Based on grandmother's knowledge and modern research, biodegradable litters are made from various plant resources like:

 

• recycled newspaper,
   
• pine wood pellets,
   
• barley,
   
• dried orange peel and
   
• clumping sawdust.

 

Each year, over 2 million tons of clumping cat litter ends up in landfills in the U.S.

 

Therefore I prefer biodegradable cat litters due to:

 

• their friendliness to the environment
   
• their superior deodorizing properties
   
• producing less dust than clay based (clumping) cat litters
   
• being non-carcinogenic.

 

A bag of biodegradable cat litter costs more than normal cat litter but:

 

• biodegradable cat litter last longer than the equivalent size of clay or clumping clay litters and
   
• it can be safely composted at home to be used as free fertilizer for your organic vegetables.

 

Can you flush cat faeces?

 

Yes you can, but as long as human waste is dumped into the ocean, your cat faeces can harm dolphins, seals, sharks, sea otters and shellfish.

 

Cat litter summarized

 

• Use biodegradable cat litter when your environment is as important as your cat. 
   
• Use clumped cat litter when you aren't afraid for any health risks involved for your cat.
   
• Use silica gel cat litter when your cat's health is important and you are willing to pay a bit more to keep your cat healthy.

 

Whatever cat litter you use, make sure to clean your cat's litter box every 4 to 6 weeks!