Air Deodorizer With Asthmatic Cat

There's a smell in my apartment; it's not urine or poo, but maybe the litter itself. I've been using Dr. Elsey's Respiratory Relief Clay litter, and the smell smells like the clumps (again, not urine, but the clay itself). I started mixing it with Dr. Elsey's RR silica gel, but it hasn't helped. I'm in the process of transitioning to the Breeze system with pellet litter. I'm hoping this will help, but in the meantime, how do I get this lingering smell out since traditional air fresheners are out of the picture?

I have 4 air purifiers, 3 of which are in the living space where the smell is, and though they are supposed to help with odors, it lingers...

I have a mason jar of baking soda with a plastic covering with holes poked in the top by the front door, and one in the bathroom where the litter box is, but I don't think it's cutting it. Actually, I smell it more in the living space than the bathroom...

Also, my window only opens 1-2 inches out, not up. But there's a smoker below me anyway, who without fail, always has a cigarette outside as soon as I open the window.

Any suggestions?

Thank you

Have you tried adding soda directly to the litter? It may help... I also use the carbon filter attached to the litter box.

I feel for you, I don’t like the smell of most litters either. Clay is absolutely the worst for me, but the natural litters that I’ve ever used were not much better. But maybe you’ll find some of them acceptable? (walnut, grass seed, corn - but I think corn is not recommended for asthmatic cats, pine isn’t as well, wood I think was the best smell wise but too much dust)

Hi. You could also place a shallow bowl of white vinegar in the room(s) where the smell is the worst. It works the same way as baking soda, but obviously without the dust. In your case, you might have to put a lid with holes in it on top of the bowl - just to prevent the cat getting into by chance.

Or, you can use pure, essential oils - put a few drops of pure oil into a spray bottle filled with water, and spritz it on the cardboard tubes of paper towels in the kitchen or toilet paper in the bathroom. You can also dip cotton balls into the mixture and place in a bowl overnight in the affected room(s).

FeebysOwner said:

Hi. You could also place a shallow bowl of white vinegar in the room(s) where the smell is the worst. It works the same way as baking soda, but obviously without the dust. In your case, you might have to put a lid with holes in it on top of the bowl - just to prevent the cat getting into by chance.

Or, you can use pure, essential oils - put a few drops of pure oil into a spray bottle filled with water, and spritz it on the cardboard tubes of paper towels in the kitchen or toilet paper in the bathroom. You can also dip cotton balls into the mixture and place in a bowl overnight in the affected room(s).

Or, you want something commercial wise - I have found Renuzit Super Odor Eater to be effective in removing a lot of smells. It does smell itself (even though I don't think this particular one is supposed to, oh well...) but it's not terribly overwhelming. This product can be found just about anywhere - grocery stores, Walmart, perhaps even drug stores - or at least down here in Florida.
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For some asthmatic cats, especially if their allergen is not known, any fragrance is out of question, especially strong ones like in essential oils. I used to love them but unfortunately we needed to get rid of them, as well as any perfumed cosmetics (face creams, body lotions etc). Hence the challenge with the air fresheners and odor eaters in asthmatic households.

Well, you certainly can tell, I don't have asthmatic conditions...So, then would the vinegar idea be out of the question too?

FeebysOwner said:

So, then would the vinegar idea be out of the question too?

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Frankly, I don’t know, that’s interesting. It has a strong smell, but on the other hand, my vet has told me to ditch all chemicals and use vinegar instead. But maybe it’s because it’s simply better than chemicals but not ideal itself? Or maybe diluted vinegar I was told to use is not that bad because it doesn’t smell as bad? Also when cleaning the smell vanishes rather quickly.

But to be honest, as I hate vinegar smell myself, I think I’d still prefer litter smell than vinegar smell in my house

You could try activated charcoal as an odor remover. It acts the same as baking soda but I've heard it works better. You could get the charcoal and put some in little sachets and place the sachets around the house and especially near the source of the odor. Basically use it the same as you would potpourri.

mayabear - are you in an apt building? Are you sure that it is related to your litter clay? (I use that same clay, and have not smelled it like you might be smelling it)

The reason I ask is that I live in an apartment building, top floor, and sometimes any smells from the units below will drift upwards through the air spaces behind the walls, or cracks along along the baseboards or behind built-in wall cupboards, etc., and we smell things that have nothing to do with our apartment.

PushPurrCatPaws said:

mayabear - are you in an apt building? Are you sure that it is related to your litter clay? (I use that same clay, and have not smelled it like you might be smelling it)

The reason I ask is that I live in an apartment building, top floor, and sometimes any smells from the units below will drift upwards through the air spaces behind the walls, or cracks along along the baseboards or behind built-in wall cupboards, etc., and we smell things that have nothing to do with our apartment.

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I do live in an apartment building, and there's definitely weird smells permeating through my apartment, but I think this is different. Either way, I want it out!