Cat litter

Mink

I know this has been discussed before but maybe not conclusively.
For cat owners, what do you find is the best cat litter to prevent smells?

I have two cats & two hooded litter trays.
I've tried silicone litter (two different brands), Tesco wood pellets, Tesco natural clay (supposed to be clumping but it's not & smells horrendous), Worlds Best Cat Litter (fierce expensive) & normal clay clumping stuff - the cheap stuff.

At the moment I'm using the wood pellets and I'm cleaning both trays out twice a week but the smell is still bad except when they are both cleaned out.

When I've used the silicone, the pee tends to pool at the bottom & not get absorbed like it's supposed to.

I keep both trays in the bathroom with the window slightly open but it still stinks, especially when they've just done a sh1te.

I do let them out when I'm home but when I'm at work all day they stay in.

Does anyone have tips on controlling the smell or a litter (that you can get in Ireland) that works well for containing the smell?

Ever2010

Not sure that anything really does contain it to be honest - we found that the Tesco Value cat litter suits ours best (nice and cheap too!), but when they were in I'd clean it out first thing in the morning and then when we got in from work, now they're outside they rarely use it, but when our male cats poos - it gets cleaned out straight away - nothing else stops the smell!!!

Mink

When you say you'd clean it out first thing in morning & in evening, do you mean removing the poo & clumps or the whole thing?

Yes when they poop, you just have to get it out of there straight away, it's nauseating!

anniehoo

What about a scented cat litter?

I minimise smells also by cleaning the tray out daily,not totally changing all the litter, just the soiled bits.

Mink

Hmm scented one is tempting. Anyone try one?

planetX

I've used the scented - you'll spend a fortune!!! I've always gone back to tesco value litter in the end. I've never found smell to be a problem at all, but then I would clean it out as soon as it's used.

Ever2010

I'd just clean out whatever was dirty really - unless they made a mess of the whole box then I'd wash out the whole thing - very rarely though. Our male cat used to love using it when I'd just cleaned it!

MsFifers

I tried that scented litter once and I found the smell more nauseating than the worst of the natural stinks! It doesn't really cover up the poo smell anyway - just mingles with it. PONGY!!

I use a Canadian brand of litter that is for sale in Pet Mania shops and it is really excellent. I can't think of the name of it now though, sorry. It has a Canadian flag on it though, and it comes in both white plastic tubs and in clear plastic bags. I'll try & remember to check when I get home & post back here.

There is a smell immediately after they do a poo but if I'm out for the day & they've used the tray while I'm out, there would be no smell to assault the nostrils when you come back. It clumps very well also, so its more cost effective because you don't have to wash out the whole tray as often.

Mink

planetX wrote: »

I've always gone back to tesco value litter in the end. I've never found smell to be a problem at all, but then I would clean it out as soon as it's used.

Is that one a clumping one? When you say you clean it out as soon as they've used it, you just mean the clump or poo right?

Ever2010 wrote: »

Our male cat used to love using it when I'd just cleaned it!

Tell me about it!

MsFifers wrote: »

I tried that scented litter once and I found the smell more nauseating than the worst of the natural stinks! It doesn't really cover up the poo smell anyway - just mingles with it. PONGY!!

I use a Canadian brand of litter that is for sale in Pet Mania shops and it is really excellent. I can't think of the name of it now though, sorry. It has a Canadian flag on it though, and it comes in both white plastic tubs and in clear plastic bags. I'll try & remember to check when I get home & post back here.

There is a smell immediately after they do a poo but if I'm out for the day & they've used the tray while I'm out, there would be no smell to assault the nostrils when you come back. It clumps very well also, so its more cost effective because you don't have to wash out the whole tray as often.

That sounds gross re the smells mingling. I really don't want to smell that first thing in the morning when I go into the bathroom.

The Canadian stuff - Petmania website doesn't have anything - is it silicone crystals or is it clumping stuff? Do let me know what the brand name is so I can check it out.

The Sweeper

Mink, take a look at Oz-Pet cat litter.

http://www.oz-pet.net.au/

The concept is brilliant. I have no idea whether or not they'd deliver even the trays to Ireland, however, if you look on the site, and I describe it, you may be able to replicate it with something you can get locally.

The litter system involves an inner sieve tray that sits snugly inside a slightly larger solid plastic tray. There is about 1.5 inches clearance between the bottom of the sieve tray and the plastic tray.

The litter itself is wood pellets, made from managed plantation timber offcuts and recycled timber.

You throw a handful of wood pellets into the plastic tray, then sit the sieve in, and fill the sieve tray to the depth of about 2 inches.

When the cat pees in the tray, the pee falls through the litter, through the sieve, into the plastic tray on bottom. The wood pellets on the bottom absorb the pee and turn to sawdust. You clean out the tray by picking poo out daily, and then give the trays a good shake - any 'fines' - sawdust - will fall through into the base. The litter in the top tray stays dry and mostly clean, and every couple of days, you just take the sieve out of the plastic tray, and wash the plastic tray out before throwing in a handful of pellets and replacing it under the sieve.

This means the litter in the top tray can last up to three weeks before it needs to be replaced totally. The litter is entirely recyclable and can be thrown onto the compost heap or over the flower beds - same deal when rinsing the bottom tray.

I switched to the system at the start of this year, and it's saving me quite literally $1,000 a year in cat litter (six cats). Litter maintenance is also far, far lower - lifting out poo clumps and shaking a tray takes about two minutes, I swap the bottom trays about every three days, and I change the whole litter about once every three weeks. This is instead of using 35 litres of paper pellet litter a week, cleaning out trays fully every four or five days, picking poo out but still feeling like the trays weren't clean after 24 hours.

The strong, ammonia, urine smell is completely gone. The cats use the litter all the time because it's clean and they're far happier than they were digging around in urine-soaked paper litter (with six cats, even with six trays, they can still manage to make the trays seem filthy in one day).

Now the DIY bit - the Oz-Pet trays are large, but some of the maine coon breeders I know have enormous cats and have made their own trays. Head to your local hardware store. Sometimes you can buy 'sieve trays' in the children's storage section - any plastic mesh box with holes in small enough that the litter won't fall through is fine. Find a bigger tray that the sieve fits snugly into, and off you go. Some folks have purchased two plastic under-bed-storage boxes, and spent a load of time drilling lots and lots of little holes, very, very carefully, in the base of one box. (You have to be REALLY careful because if you're not you'll crack the box).

Then use your Tesco wood pellet litter locally and off you go. The system will work with a paper pellet litter too, but not as well. The wood pellets are more robust and they let urine trickle through, but then they're very absorbant if they sit in moisture for a couple of minutes.

Heroditas

Mink wrote: »

I've tried silicone litter (two different brands),

Have you tried the Catsan litter?
We have two indoor cats and one litter tray - I only have to clean the tray once a week because the Catsan is super-absorbent and not too smelly either!
Once there's a bit of a whiff of ammonia I know it's time to clean the litter and tray - typically after 6 to 7 days.

EGAR

I've got four cats and they are allowed outside. However, I do have a cat toilett in the house as they are in at night and have the option to come in during the day.

I've tried everything...

And am now using layer pellets for chicken. Don't laugh but that's the best stuff ever. Cheap, doesn't smell, easy to clean and you can get them nearly anywhere. I buy them in a 20kg bag (got chicken as well), lasts me ages.

anniehoo

Heroditas wrote: »

Once there's a bit of a whiff of ammonia I know it's time to clean the litter and tray - typically after 6 to 7 days.

Interesting to see how often litter trays are cleaned!

Im not a clean freak by any means but the thoughts of him digging around in his poo for 6 or 7 days and roaming around the house is a bit too much for me. I know they do all sorts of other manky stuff but 1-2 days max is enough for me.

MsFifers

Mink wrote: »

The Canadian stuff - Petmania website doesn't have anything - is it silicone crystals or is it clumping stuff? Do let me know what the brand name is so I can check it out.

Its called Simplicity. Its made of natural clay & baking soda, and it clumps. (Not silicone).

Interesting to see how often litter trays are cleaned!

I think people mean different things by "cleaned" - with a clumping litter you can just scoop out all the wee and poo a couple of times a day and only need to "clean" (ie remove all the litter and wash out and disinfect the tray) once a week or so.

Orla K

I haven't tried it but baking soda can trap smells, if some is sprinkled on the tray every now and then, maybe daily.

Another side of it could be the cats diet, with my cat he has a senitive stomach and when I was finding a good diet for him some of his poo used to stick rotten on some food, it still smells but doesn't last.

mymo

What I do is have extra trays, I scoop as needed, but every day(if they've used it, they have access to outside too so sometimes don't use it) I shake all the loose clean stuff into another tray and clean out the dirty one. I use the wood stuff and it generally clumps pretty well.
I have found certain foods make smellier poop, so you could try feeding something else, or if the smell is from wee, maybe check for urinary infections, they are quite common in cats.

Mink

The Sweeper wrote: »

Mink, take a look at Oz-Pet cat litter.

http://www.oz-pet.net.au/

I really like the idea of this. It's a similar concept to those trays for clay clumping litters & you roll the whole unit & then pull out a drawer of clumps.

I may have to go down the road of making our own. Wonder if I can get the other half to be all handy man & make it for me

Mink

Orla K wrote: »

I haven't tried it but baking soda can trap smells, if some is sprinkled on the tray every now and then, maybe daily.

Another side of it could be the cats diet, with my cat he has a senitive stomach and when I was finding a good diet for him some of his poo used to stick rotten on some food, it still smells but doesn't last.

I have them both on James Well Beloved dry cat food & they seem to do best on that. When they eat any cheaper brand of dry food (Purina or Go Cat) or wet food like whiskas, the poop absolutely reeks!

Mink

Heroditas wrote: »

Have you tried the Catsan litter?
We have two indoor cats and one litter tray - I only have to clean the tray once a week because the Catsan is super-absorbent and not too smelly either!
Once there's a bit of a whiff of ammonia I know it's time to clean the litter and tray - typically after 6 to 7 days.

Is this a clumping one? I almost bought this the other day in the supermarket, probably should have just to try it at least

planetX

anniehoo wrote: »

Interesting to see how often litter trays are cleaned!

Im not a clean freak by any means but the thoughts of him digging around in his poo for 6 or 7 days and roaming around the house is a bit too much for me. I know they do all sorts of other manky stuff but 1-2 days max is enough for me.

My cats must be super-fussy - I didn't think any cat would use a dirty tray. After one or two uses, they'd find a cleaner place to go:mad:.... I dig out the wet patches at least 3 times a day.

flowerific

I use Lidl CLumping Litter at 3eur for 10kilo and then Sprinkle Tesco's litter fresher about 1.40eur for a tub that last a good while. After I remove the poo at least daily I put a layer of fresh clay on top. I clean out the hooded tray once a week at the mo and no smells

sarahmdunne

I find a make calles Thomas very good. My cat, Minnie, doesn't mind it and it doesn't seem to smell.

It is a yellow bag with red writing and a black and white cartoon cat on the front.

Heroditas

Mink wrote: »

Is this a clumping one? I almost bought this the other day in the supermarket, probably should have just to try it at least

No, it's a crystal one but I've tried all the various clumping and crystal ones and this outperforms the others by some distance.

I hate the clumping ones. They're gross, even if you pick the clumps out several times a day.

The Sweeper

Clumping litters shouldn't be used with kittens - it can cause intestinal blockage if they ingest it. There is no direct scientific study to support this, but there's strong anecdotal evidence that if kittens wash clumping clay dust off themselves (caused by them scrabbling around in the tray), or nibble on the litter because they're playing with it, the litter is designed to be both heavily moisture absorbant, and also clump - so inside the cat it strips moisture and swells to 10 times its size...

Having tried everything - clay litters, crystal litters, sand litters, paper litters, wood litters, covered trays, uncovered trays, big trays, home-made trays, newspaper in trays, liners, no liners, liners with paper, plain plastic trays, litter that tracks, litter that doesn't track, litter that can be flushed, litter that can't be flushed, bins full of litter every week, litter that can go over the garden and into the compost heap, cheap litter and expensive litter, I've never found anything that works as well as the Oz-Pet system. It's not even the litter itself, though that helps a lot; it's the whole sieve tray concept. Cat poo is cat poo - whether or not litter clumps or what, you still have to scoop solids out of the tray and poo is poo so it stinks.

The biggest problem with litter has always been urine - that's what makes the litter stink the worst, that's what makes it seem most unclean (remember, cats will return repeatedly to the same flower bed in your garden and use it as a toilet, so they don't seem to object to digging about in their own dried out poos, as long as the wee has long disappeared into the earth). Find a solution to the urine problem, and you'll be a convert for life.

piskins72

I also use the tesco value brand for my cat, have used other brands and the cat seems more fussy in using them also!! normally clean it out every few days, as hes mostly an outdoor cat in the day time its usually night time tray is used, ocasionally poops in it but not that often, have it a good few inches deep with litter so he can dig right down into it , for sure the diet makes the smells too! he is on a mainly dry diet now of the Royal Canin stuff and there is a difference for sure to the pong in the morning time! there is stuff you can get also to sprinkle on the litter to make it fresh smelling

Xiney

We use a Canadian brand as well which we buy off zooplus called Classy Cat.

They were out of stock (surprise, surprise) last time so we're currently using Classic Cat, which is also very good.

Dr. Loon

I get my litter from www.husse.ie. Top notch clumping litter, and I've never had any problems with odour. I also use a hooded tray, and ensure to change the filter on it maybe every 6 months.

Mink

OP here, just wanted to update as seemed to have solved the problem.

So previously I had the two hooded trays in the bathroom (in the middle of the house) with wood pellet litter from Tescos. Fully cleaning it out twice a week. And it stank something rotten!

So as I said earlier, I picked up a bag of silicone litter with antibacterial agent in it (?) from Tesco. It's a different brand from silicone stuff I got in Pet Stop Blanch. The pee doesn't seem to pool at the bottom of this one at all, it's getting absorbed into the silicone & can't smell it & a week has passed since cleaned the tray. I split 3/4 of the bag between the two trays. I'm shovelling the turds out twice a day as normal.

But the other big change was I put one tray in kitchen & the other on the landing. I think the fact that they were both in the small bathroom & then all the humidity from the shower was making the smell worse & making it seep into the house, gross!

Can't smell them at all & I'd say I'll get another week or week and half out of them before have to change them both.

Other good thing about silicone is that there is no smell off it either. The wood pellets smell funny, clay type litters have a strong smell etc, but no smell from silicone at all.

Graces7

We have never used litter... One breeder when we had Siamese, told us to use torn up newspaper.

Now although both cats go out, in winter one likes a tray still. So still torn up paper..

Spangles

Having tried and tested many different types of litter over the years, I too have found the Tesco Value cat litter to work the best for my cats. Cleaning out any mess morning and evening (or as soon as use occurs) with a weekly full change of litter and cleaning of tray to prevent lingering nasty niffs.