Crystal Litter?

[zoneout]

 
How is it with long haired cats?  We tried feline pine to find that it static clings all over our kittens long hair, not even just his feet.

I suspect anything will stick to your kitty if he is full of static.   Maybe it would be easier to remove the static instead of change the litter.   Like antistatic wipes or they make antistatic mats.

 

[rustle]

I've been using Fresh Step Crystals for about a month and am very happy with it, as a cat owner for 40 years.  Here is my question to you all:  Does anyone else just scoop out the soggy pee-soaked crystals rather than mixing them in?  I must admit I've ever even tried mixing them in yet.  After the first time my cat used the new litter I noticed the layer of soaked crystals in one area of the floor of the pan and thought 'Why mix them in? They're ruined, just dispose of them.' So that's what I do. I rake aside the crystals that aren't saturated, carefully scoop away only the layer that is totally pee-soaked, and then re-distribute. 

Any comments?

 

[momto3cats]

 
I've been using Fresh Step Crystals for about a month and am very happy with it, as a cat owner for 40 years.  Here is my question to you all:  Does anyone else just scoop out the soggy pee-soaked crystals rather than mixing them in?  I must admit I've ever even tried mixing them in yet.  After the first time my cat used the new litter I noticed the layer of soaked crystals in one area of the floor of the pan and thought 'Why mix them in? They're ruined, just dispose of them.' So that's what I do. I rake aside the crystals that aren't saturated, carefully scoop away only the layer that is totally pee-soaked, and then re-distribute. 

Any comments?

That is exactly what I did, when I was using crystals. It helped the litter last longer between changes if I scooped out the saturated crystals - they don't clump, but I found that when soaked they do stick together a bit and make scooping possible.

However, I've given up on crystal litter at this point. I've tried three different brands, because I like the idea of them and the lighter weight compared to clay, but there's something about the smell I just can't stand. Having tried different brands, I've concluded that it must be the smell of the silica itself that bothers me for some reason. It's too bad. They do have great odor control, I can't smell the cat pee at all, but I still end up smelling the crystals.

 

[lissab]

I always used the clay litter from pathmark('s brand) BC it was cheaper. The dust got to be way too much for me. The clay getting all over the floor, the idea of it being tracked onto my bed--so totally unappealing.

I then went to try Fresh Step Blue Crystals. I fell in love, so did the 8 cats, 5 of which are hairless. It lasted 6 weeks without changing it, however that is mainly BC I have 6 litter boxes. (You are supposed to have one per cat plus one--I do not have the room~!) 2 of the boxes are for the Crystal Litter, the rest are The Breeze Box Litter System. << http://www.tidycats.com/products/breeze >> It is a pellet and pads system.

As I mentioned I fell in extreme like with the Fresh Step Blue Crystals. The first time I purchased it, it was a 10 pound plastic container that has since stopped being produced. They have now raised the price on the 4 + 8 pound bags. Since I needed to replenish my supply I could not find the Fresh Step Blue Crystals 10 pound container, I tried a brand named Nature's Miracle. It is not as good as the Fresh Step Blue Crystals, but I will buy both and mix them together. The Nature's Miracle brand absorbs almost as well as the Fresh Step Blue Crystals. I an going to also purchase another brand of Crystals sold at Petsmart, which has larger crystals and mix them all together. I am FURIOUS that the Fresh Step Blue Crystals Manufacturer has created the pricing 'Highway Robbery' that they have. If the product was not so good I would boycott them.

I hope what I have written has helped you.

 

[ambailey]

I buy Mimi litter from Walmart. It's a five pound bag for $5 and some change. It lasts my female cat an entire month. When the color changes to greenish yellow is time to change it. It is made in China, so I would think it would be cheaper in Australia? It does track just like any other litter. Instead of switching litters just get a fluffy rug to put under your litter boxes. I'm happy with it. We have a sifting litter box, so we use two bags, but at about $11 a month it's the cheapest litter I've found, and works the best. It is less dusty. I've read the internet posts about silica being a carcinogen. I smoke, and seriously doubt it will be my litter box substrate that does me in! Try it, it's wonderful!

 

[ambailey]

k2-_9ddb4ea0-5c75-4862-8d00-056e9dfb0ea0.v1.jpg

• ambailey
• Apr 21, 2015

This is a picture of what it looks like. I thought it was 5 lbs. But it's only 4 lbs. Better than the 12-32 lb. Boxes of clay litter any day!

 

[ambailey]

I suspect anything will stick to your kitty if he is full of static.   Maybe it would be easier to remove the static instead of change the litter.   Like antistatic wipes or they make antistatic mats.

I've been using Fresh Step Crystals for about a month and am very happy with it, as a cat owner for 40 years.  Here is my question to you all:  Does anyone else just scoop out the soggy pee-soaked crystals rather than mixing them in?  I must admit I've ever even tried mixing them in yet.  After the first time my cat used the new litter I noticed the layer of soaked crystals in one area of the floor of the pan and thought 'Why mix them in? They're ruined, just dispose of them.' So that's what I do. I rake aside the crystals that aren't saturated, carefully scoop away only the layer that is totally pee-soaked, and then re-distribute. 

Any comments?

One comment here- you're wasting money! Just stir it up, the pee will touch the dry crystals and they will absorb the moisture. You must stir it up for it to be absorbed. Try it, you'll see.

 

[katzrunme]

I have two female cats.  Because of physical limitations on my part I switched the girls to crystal litter over a year ago.  I use Fresh Start Crystals.  Love it!  I have three litter boxes set up for the girls.  Scoop the solid waste daily.  The girls tend to urinate in the same spot in the litter box.  Just give the litter box a really good stir to mix up the crystals.  Done.  The boxes need to be changed about every 3 to 4 weeks.  Couldn't be any easier.  I use a liner in the box.  Put a dog pee pad on the bottom of the litter box for any additional leakage.  Just have to lift out the liner with the used litter, change out the pee pad, and pour in new Crystals.

The girls really like Fresh Start Crystals.  They generally don't track the Crystals.  If I let the litter pile higher on the front of the box versus the back half, sometimes Domino might paw the Crystals out of the box when she covers her solid waste.  Just a matter of paying attention when I stir the Crystals on my part.

The Crystals dessicate (dries out) the solid waste and absorb the urine.  There is rarely any odor.  May be a little when the waste is really fresh.  As long as the girls bury the solid waste, there is no odor.  Keep the Crystals stirred daily.  Once a day is all that you really need.

The Crystals get whiter as they absorb the urine.  I can judge the need to replace litter by its color.

The Crystals are really great when I have to leave town and leave the girls in the care of others.  It is a lot easier to get friends to cat sit.  I find the less they have to with the litter box, the more volunteers I get to stop by since they don't mind coming over to play and feed the girls.

Because of my physical limitations, I can't lug 20 pound bags of clay litter around the house.  I can fill two litter boxes with a little left over from a 8 lb bag of Fresh Start Crystals.  When I could find the 10 lb tubs of Fresh Start Crystals, it filled all 3 litter boxes.

An 8 lb bag of Fresh Start Crystals is about $14.50 from Target or Walmart.  The luxury of Walmart shopping is that they will ship to my house.  I generally buy enough bags to get free home shipping.  This is an additional plus for me.  I was lucky to find a Target in the area that sells the 8 lb bags for $13.58, so I make the trek about once a quarter to pick up several bags of Crystals.

 

[nolan robinson]

Fresh Step definitely tracks.  It is fairly low dust and has perfumed crystals.  I have 4 cats and I use 4 Scoop Free automatic litter boxes with hoods.  I also use the permanent litter trays for the boxes.  I have 8 trays.  When I change litter I take 4 clean trays, add a thin coat of backing soda, gently pour in a layer of crystals then gently pour in the rest of the crystals and level them out.  I do all of this outside.

Tracking is primarily determined by the size of the crystals.  Small crystals like  Fresh Step  get lodged between the toes and get dislodged as the cats walk across the floor.  Larger crystals track less.

Dust comes from the rigid surfaces rubbing together.  Even when a cat is in the box and digging, dust is produced.  I use a air purifier ( a small one ) and use a box 3 feet from it tall enough to block the air flow.  On the box is a towel that I dampen with a water bottle 2 or 3 times a week.  This collects and traps most of the dust picked up and filtered by the air purifier.  Every 3 months of so I throw the towel away.

Because I use the automatic litter box, the dried solids are raked into a covered compartment that helps realty with odor.  The liquids are mostly absorbed by the crystals and work to the  bottom on the trays.  The layer of baking soda I add helps control odor.  I addition I keep an automatic air freshener in the room.  Since it is a timed spray deodorizer there is not an odor problem.

My preferred Crystals currently is Just The Crystals from Amazon.  Large crystals, fairly low dust but expensive.  Longevity of the crystals is dependent on so many factors that it  is difficult to gauge.  Just let me say there is no truth in advertising.  Reviews offer little real help either.  And no, not in a bathroom.  The crystals have an affinity for moisture. 

Might I suggest that maybe you want to consider an automatic litter system.  There are so many that it's almost mind boggling.  They setup I use is piece mewled and is somewhat expensive but it works for me.

They make and sell anti tracking mats in various sizes.  It has been my experience that these mats are no more effective than cheap Walmart throw rugs.  This is experience speaking.

I hope this info helps.

 

[nicole vernet]

I was very wary and nervous about using crystal litter at first, but came across the same info about type and harmfulness. I had been using natural litters (corn, pine, walnut), and found that odor control, tracking and dust was an issue. Not so bad when we had two cats. Last year, we fostered kittens and ended up with two more! With four cats (and 6 litter boxes) in the house, I really needed to find something that worked better for odor control specifically. Additionally, one of the kittens HATED anything with a large granule and wouldn't use the box. So, I ended up sampling several different litters, but went with my own custom combo. Crystal litters are GREAT at odor control because they're a desiccant. The ones I used didn't clump (or not well). This was a real problem when one of the kitties had a bout of bad diarrhea (all better now, thank goodness). The crystal litter contained odor, but it was difficult to clean up. It would break apart easily, and fall through the scoop, leaving little bits of poop behind. I just didn't feel like I could ever get the litter box clean enough. And, it works the same way for urine—claiming that you just need to stir it up. I don't know, I like being able to remove as much waste as possible when I scoop. So, I needed something that would clump AND appeal to my sensitive kitten. I tried Dr. Elsey's for kittens specifically. The granules are fine like sand, and ALL of the cats truly preferred it to ANY litter I had ever tried. In fact, I got some on the floor when I was filling the litter box and two of the cats started rolling and playing in it, like it was catnip lol! Best of all, the sensitive kitten took immediately to this litter and solved the issue of going outside the box. I was happy with clumping and cleaning, but not odor. It actually did well to control pee/poop smells, but I just didn't like the odor of the actual litter. It's not a bad odor necessarily, but I'm really sensitive to smells and odors, and I just hated the way it smelled when I was scooping especially. On a whim, I mixed the two litters, and I have found an ALMOST ideal combination. It's GREAT at odor control and it's easy to clean. There is some dust when you first pour the litter in, but no more than any of the corn, walnut, wheat litters I had tried. It settles pretty quickly, and I have never noticed the cats to stir up a lot of dust when using the litter box or to wheeze or cough. The cats love it, and if anyone gets diarrhea, it handles it like a champ. I say ALMOST ideal because I'd certainly prefer litter that is organic, eco-friendly and sustainable. I'm still on the hunt, but I'm happy enough for now. 

BTW, the sensitive kitten is over a year old now. I weaned her off the Dr. Elsey's kitten litter because it's a little more expensive. I switched to Dr. Elsey's regular Precious Cat litter, and this works just as well. I gradually added the regular Dr. Elsey's since it's a larger granule. I did this over the course of a month, adding more with each change. It was a fairly seamless transition for her. 

 

[queen astrid]

When my young adult daughter and her cat moved back home, the smell of the cat litter seriously grossed me out.  I was either smelling the overpowering perfume of the litter or cat pee.   Maybe I became more sensitive to the smell when they were both out of the house, but it got to be a real point of conflcit between us.  I did some research on the web and found a post recommending a combo of 7/8 cedar and pine with 1/8 blue crystal.  This has been the best ever!  If I smell anything at all it's a really light fresh cedar smell.  I am using the arm and hammer healthy home solutions cedar and pine fibers with the Mimi litter blue crystals.  The blue crystal dries up the poo and absorbs the moistur/smell in the urine. . I started off trying to scoop the urine and poo into the toilet.  The urine didn't clump very well  with the blue crystal added though. After a few weeks I discovered that I didn't have to try to scoop the urine.  Now I just scoop the dried up poo into the toilet, stir the litter with the scoop to keep the urine off the bottom once a day, and the silica absorbs the moisture/smell.  No smell even after more than a week.  AMAZING RESULTS!   I highly recommend.

 

[4cats1parrot]

I know this is an old post but people still read it so Ill put in my 2cents. I had heard that some silica crystal litters were not safe but Dr Elseys is supposed to be different. I do not have the respritory one available in my petsmart in canada but as my senior was peeing soo much Cat Attract was getting used too fast. So I bought the seniors cat litter which is finer crystals. Went good st first, you only put 2" deep and I had a scoop (actually a fine metal slotted serving spoon with less space between than litter scoops) and was able to slowly & carefully pick up the urine spots but it did tend to smell eventually and you replace it in a week or so. It did last longer. My cat has hyperthyroid & is prone to uti,s so this enabled me to watch the color of the urine. If it god deeper in color or orangish I knew she was on the way to a uti.
However, I don,t always remember the little green scent pellets in it. She started pulling her hair out and it got worse and worse. I also came accross a post somewhere where several people were having their cats pull hair out and when switching to unscented litters it stopped, so this alerted me to try switching litters. Sure enough, I switched to Worlds Best Cat litter and she stopped pulling hair out and bald spots grew in. She also has less UTI problems though at the same time I started giving 1/8 of a cranberry cap in her wet food and probiotics.
Worlds best is expensive, but again I use 2 scoops one metal serving spoon with less space between to get the clumps out scrape from below and try not to break it up, slow and careful, then I use the other one to finish, u know the plastic type. Also worlds best can be used in those automatic littermaids. I love the littermaid as it kept the smell down, but it only lasted so long before it crapped out, about a year and a half.
I make a habit of taking a bag with me every time I feed them and do the litter at the same time, I have 4 litter boxes! You should always have one more litterbox than cats. Twice a day emptying seems to keep smell down. My other cats use Dr Elseys cat attract litter, it is definately smellier than worlds best but low dust, I may just switch to worlds best completely.
It does come with coupons in every bag though and great information about how to wash urine out of things and other cat issues, Dr Elseys cat attract is my stand by. But will never use the crystals again, not happy that they disregarded my email when telling them that their senior crystal litter caused my cat to pull her hair out! There were no other changes in her med,s or foods. Hope this helps someone.

 

[cycloprof]

FYI- silica is a carcinogen but so is sunlight. The dangers of silica dust only apply to people that work in industries that mine and manufacture these products and might inhale large amounts of silica dust. It is just like being outside in direct sunlight everyday 40+ hrs/wk. Your skin will get worked over and you are at much higher risk. This basic concept is the same for most "carcinogens" in consumer products i.e. most "carcinogen fears" perpetrated on the internet are fake news conspiracy theories. If they were true we all would have cancer or be dead by now.