Now that I have 2 cats choosing the right litter has become more important than ever. Before I could clean the litter once a day and leave it at that. Now, even with two litter boxes I need to be cleaning them both at least twice a day otherwise the cats can start leaving their faecal matter in places I don’t like. The past few months have been quite the cat litter journey and I am ready to share what I learned.
My Journey to find the Perfect Cat Litter…
Recycled Paper Litter
This was the original litter I had with my older cat. It was made from recycled paper and was biodegradable so it felt more environmentally conscious using the litter (as long as the litter tray liner was also biodegradable). The main downside is that after a week the smell or urine would be quite strong and could not last more than 7 days.
Due to the fact that I had to change the entire litter out every week this made it more expensive than some other options, but when I had just the one cat it worked well for me. The trouble came with the new cat (a ragdoll cross) who hated the paper litter and refused to use it. I would often find him peeing and pooping next to the litter box almost in protest. We had to change the litter and we had to change it fast.
Crystal Cat Litter
This litter worked fine in theory, however my older cat really didn’t like the crystals and would refuse to poo in it (but was still okay to pee). The newer cat didn’t overly mind it but it was clear he wasn’t comfortable with it.
While this litter may work with your cats it did not with mine so I had to move to the next one. This litter also required a liner so we could easily switch it out after 2 weeks.
Flushable clay clumping litter
This was our first ‘success’. Both cats were happy to poo and pee in this litter (for the most part) and the best part was it was able to be flushed down the toilet. Unfortunately however this litter was quite dusty which is terrible for a cats respiratory health and could potentially cause more issues down the line.
The litter would also stop clumping after a while as all the clumping clay would have been used up and the remaining litter would absorb the smells and v=be quite unpleasant. This litter also was the one that got everywhere and I was constantly getting out the dust pan to sweep it up and put it into the litter box. At least with this litter we were able to remove the litter liner on one of the litter boxes and at the end of the week combine the remaining litter and throw it out in one bag. The pros did not out way the cons for me so we had to find a new litter for us to us.
No-Dust Clay litter
This is the actual godsend that works for both of my cats. No longer do they feel the need to poo and pee in the bath tub or shower. This litter is like the flushable clumping litter but has a higher ratio of clay and cannot be flushed. Despite being unflushable, it clumps like a dream. It is easy to scoop out the remains of my cat’s bowl movements and put them in the poo bin that sits close to the two litter trays. I don’t use a liner at all with this litter and at the end of the month I just need to give the litter trays a wipe.
Even through this litter is more expensive, it actually works out to be cheaper than the other options as I don’t need to completely empty the litter boxes at the end of the week and I can keep using the litter for up to 4 weeks. Like the other clay litter it does tend to get a little messy around the litter boxes and I do need to sweep them up once or twice a day when I am scooping out the clumped remains in the litter box. The biggest plus with this litter is the smell; since I am scooping out both cat pee and poo there is nothing left to stink up the bathroom.
This is the litter that worked best with my cats and I am very happy with the results. If you had an automatic cat litter box this seems to be the best litter to use with it as its great at clumping pee and poo together.
Final thoughts on my search for the perfect Cat Litter
Every cat is different and will have different preferences to cat litter. As you could see there was quite a lot of trial and error when trying to find a litter that worked for both my cats and my lifestyle. I encourage you to try and see what works best with your cat. It will be a lot of work at first (since constantly needing to clean the shower was a pain) but it will be worth it in the end and could even save you money in the long run. Good luck with your cat litter journey!
