Clumping Cat Litter

Clumping cat littler is the most traditional an common in wide use today, and for good reason. Everyone who has used it knows it works - forming a compact clump around urine instead of letting it fester and smell. All you need is a slotted pooper scoop, like a rake, to clean up and manage the litter box. Much easier than dealing with a bucket of sand and cat waste! What's left when you're done? Ready-to-clump litter, of course. Simple!

Since you can clean up more often and more easily, there's no need to take out a huge box of litter all at once and risk getting the smelly stuff all over you. Who wants that? Convenience is the name of the game here, and why clumping litter has ascended to the top of the heap, litter wise, over the last 40 years. As with all things about your pet, make sure you do a lot of research online and check up on various brands and types before making a choice for your cat - they're finicky and you may need to try out multiple brands and types before settling on something he likes.

With traditional non-clumping litter, the waste travels to the bottom of the litter box, where you have to dig for it, a process that is both odious and odoriferous. The clumping stuff, however, will catch the liquid waste and gravitate toward it, while coating the solid waste as well. Pretty soon there are clumped balls sitting at the top of the box just waiting for a passing person to easily clean up. The best part? Smell Control. Under the new clumping regime, since waste doesn't sit in the box nearly as long as before, the odors permeating the room and house are greatly lessened. I actually asked one of my neighbors if she'd gotten rid of her cat, she told me she'd switched to clumping litter and the odor was nearly gone! It also lasts longer, since you don't waste as much of it during the cleanup process, and you only scoop up the stuff that's coating some actual waste. Lasts longer, costs the same, and cleans up easier? Sign me up!

It's not all good news with clumping litter. You're still going to spread litter dust all around your kitchen or bathroom when cleaning up, and that odor and waste is going to be hard to clean up or get rid of. Wear a mask in order to avoid getting litter dust on yourself! Additionally, your cat will be running all over the house with litter on its paws, but that's really nothing new, and part of the package you signed up for when you got a cat! Keep one thing in mind, in rare cases, clumping cat litter interacts badly with cat's genitals and may require a trip to the vet. There are also unconfirmed reports that it is harmful to kittens, so if your cat is young, stay away from clumping litters. The best bet is to make sure your cat doesn't eat litter, and if you notice him doing so, schedule a vet visit!

One more tip - if you can find a clumping cat litter that includes baking soda, get that - it'll help with the freshness and keep mold and odor at bay even longer!