Litter reviews

[Tobermory]

No one has mentioned clumping grass litter which is what I use.

SmartCat or Abound (The latter is sold by Kroger stores, and they seem identical to me. Abound is less expensive.)

Pros: clumps well (if you leave the pee clump at least 15 minutes); controls odor; dust-free; lightweight so you don’t strain your back carrying it into the house ; better for the environment
Cons: lots of tracking, especially with long-haired cats; lightweight which freaks the cats out at first

When I first tried SmartCat, I filled one litter box and watched as the cats put their front feet in, only to sink into the litter and back out quickly. They wouldn’t use it. So I started mixing it a bit at a time into the Dr. Elsey’s I had been using. It probably took a month to end up with pure grass litter, but by that time, the cats were used to it. They use it with no problem now.

 

[DreamerRose]

I use Fresh Step in all its variations.

Pros: Doesn't smell at all if topped off every scoop. Clumps well.
Cons: Tracks but falls off quickly, dusty (in spite of what the box says). Febreze in it can be overwhelming.

Two of my pans are in the basement, so the dust doesn't matter. One in the kitchen, dust doesn't go far. I have a litter mat under the pan in the kitchen, which helps the tracking. It's my cats' favorite pan. I only top off with the litter, because a full box of new litter can be overwhelming for a few days.

I like it the best in spite of its drawbacks because it doesn't smell like urine.

 

[Robyn5678]

No one has mentioned clumping grass litter which is what I use.

SmartCat or Abound (The latter is sold by Kroger stores, and they seem identical to me. Abound is less expensive.)

Pros: clumps well (if you leave the pee clump at least 15 minutes); controls odor; dust-free; lightweight so you don’t strain your back carrying it into the house ; better for the environment
Cons: lots of tracking, especially with long-haired cats; lightweight which freaks the cats out at first

When I first tried SmartCat, I filled one litter box and watched as the cats put their front feet in, only to sink into the litter and back out quickly. They wouldn’t use it. So I started mixing it a bit at a time into the Dr. Elsey’s I had been using. It probably took a month to end up with pure grass litter, but by that time, the cats were used to it. They use it with no problem now.

I didn’t even know there was such a thing! Never heard of clumping grass litter.

 

[Robyn5678]

I use Fresh Step in all its variations.

Pros: Doesn't smell at all if topped off every scoop. Clumps well.
Cons: Tracks but falls off quickly, dusty (in spite of what the box says). Febreze in it can be overwhelming.

Two of my pans are in the basement, so the dust doesn't matter. One in the kitchen, dust doesn't go far. I have a litter mat under the pan in the kitchen, which helps the tracking. It's my cats' favorite pan. I only top off with the litter, because a full box of new litter can be overwhelming for a few days.

I like it the best in spite of its drawbacks because it doesn't smell like urine.

I have fresh step still on my list to try. I don’t like scented litters so not sure I’d like the febreeze e thing

 

[Margot Lane]

I don’t like scented either. Am curious as to whether Slide offers unscented as I can’t seem to find one. Someone on another thread recommended using Pam or a cooking spray on the litter box to keep the litter nice and slidey, which Okocat isn’t. The few times I remembered, it helped, tho I don’t know how it effects the cat.

 

[Margot Lane]

Just discovered tofu and GREEN TEA litter, believe it or not: the former extols absorbency, the latter kills bacteria. Reviews say they are cheaper by the case. The next step would be to make our own pellets, if such a handy machine existed.

 

[Robyn5678]

Just discovered tofu and GREEN TEA litter, believe it or not: the former extols absorbency, the latter kills bacteria. Reviews say they are cheaper by the case. The next step would be to make our own pellets, if such a handy machine existed.

I wish I could train mine to use the toilet but they play in it instead

 

[Alldara]

No one has mentioned clumping grass litter which is what I use.

SmartCat or Abound (The latter is sold by Kroger stores, and they seem identical to me. Abound is less expensive.)

Pros: clumps well (if you leave the pee clump at least 15 minutes); controls odor; dust-free; lightweight so you don’t strain your back carrying it into the house ; better for the environment
Cons: lots of tracking, especially with long-haired cats; lightweight which freaks the cats out at first

When I first tried SmartCat, I filled one litter box and watched as the cats put their front feet in, only to sink into the litter and back out quickly. They wouldn’t use it. So I started mixing it a bit at a time into the Dr. Elsey’s I had been using. It probably took a month to end up with pure grass litter, but by that time, the cats were used to it. They use it with no problem now.

Interesting. Where are you located? I'm in Ontario, Canada and the only grass litter I see at PetSmart/Petvalu is VERY expensive. $40 for a bag that would maybe fill one box?

 

[DreamerRose]

I have fresh step still on my list to try. I don’t like scented litters so not sure I’d like the febreeze e thing

As I tried to explain, the first time you fill a pan, you can smell the Febreze, but after that, it doesn't smell. Topping off the pan only stops the waste odor.

 

[Tobermory]

Interesting. Where are you located? I'm in Ontario, Canada and the only grass litter I see at PetSmart/Petvalu is VERY expensive. $40 for a bag that would maybe fill one box?

I’m in Oregon. The SmartCat is pricey—about $30US for a 20-pound bag. It would have been very expensive to fill three litter boxes at one time, but by adding it gradually as the boxes needed more litter, it wasn’t as painful. And I found that it lasted as long as, if not longer, than the clumping clay. The Abound brand is less: about $10US for 8.5 lbs.

 

[DreamerRose]

I’m in Oregon. The SmartCat is pricey—about $30US for a 20-pound bag. It would have been very expensive to fill three litter boxes at one time, but by adding it gradually as the boxes needed more litter, it wasn’t as painful. And I found that it lasted as long as, if not longer, than the clumping clay. The Abound brand is less: about $10US for 8.5 lbs.

I would try the same thing with Fresh Step. Just add a little at a time until it's all Fresh Step. Then the scent won't be so overpowering.

 

[GranolaLouise]

This is a valuable thread.
I had to take my Louise to the vet today because she was frantically itching and biting at her skin. Turns out she is allergic to the scented SLIDE brand of litter.
Does anyone have a recommendation for an UNSCENTED litter that clumps and slides clean like the Arm & Hammer Slide brand?

 

[cejhome]

I loved the Tidy Cats lightweight fragrance free. It worked perfectly with our previous kitty, Nilla. She was a petite dainty kitty. I had to switch litters with Buddy, our new kitty. He is a big enthusiastic litter box user. He is very short haired (Russian blue mix). For some reason the Tidy Cats lightweight really stuck to his paws and he was tracking it all over - from downstairs to the 2nd floor even! As far from point A to point B you could get in our house. I tried tidy cats regular free and he still tracked it a lot. I am currently using Dr. Elsey respiratory. He still tracks, but not near as bad.

TIdy Cats lightweight fragrance free: Excellent for some cats, some will track through your house. Clumps very well, little dust.

TIdy Cats regular fragrance free: Same clumping as lightweight above, tracks same as above. Only difference was the weight.

Dr. Elsey respiratory: Heavy. Doesn't track as bad as the Tidy Cats, but not perfect. I think its a little dustier than the Tidy Cats, but not
bad. If you have a good enough layer of it in the box, Pee forms nice easy to scoop out balls.

World's Best Cat Litter: Used it years ago. Would never, ever use any food based litter again. Ended up with pantry moths from it! Was so gross - went to scoop and the area was covered with the little worms. Took forever to get rid of the problem.

Pine based litter: I haven't used it myself. A friend used it. Figured out it was causing her and one of her cats sinus issues. As soon as she switched to another type of litter her sinus allergies and the one kitty's issues cleared up.

 

[susiell]

Just tried Everclean and I found it WAY too dusty, like a huge cloud of dust arose from the box as I poured it out. Yuck. I've been using World's Best for a long time and wanted to find something that maybe was a little less dusty and won't track--the holy grail of cat litter. Everclean is not the one for me.

 

[Alldara]

Just tried Everclean and I found it WAY too dusty, like a huge cloud of dust arose from the box as I poured it out. Yuck. I've been using World's Best for a long time and wanted to find something that maybe was a little less dusty and won't track--the holy grail of cat litter. Everclean is not the one for me.

I found Arm and Hammer corn litter a bit less dusty than World's best. Not sure if it's available where you are.

 

[GranolaLouise]

I was using Arm & Hammer Slide which I found GREAT as far as clumping, odor control and great on dust.
However, I got tired of the smell of the litter itself after a year of using it faithfully.
Last week I started using Fresh Step because of the scent and that aspect is great. BUT I have to vacuum EVERY DAY because of the tracking of the litter and the DUSTY POWDER flying all ovre the rooms. It is supposed to be 99.9% dust free...Don't you believe it ! It is one of the worst dust makers around. My light on my sweeper tells the truth!
Thumbs down for Fresh Step.
I will be returning to Arm & Hammer Slide in the Fall.
eta: Up above in a post last year in this thread I said my kitty was allergic to Slide. It was not the slide that she was allergic to at all.
She was new to the home and was a nervous wreck!

 

[daftcat75]

I must be weird. Or maybe it's just that I have one cat. But I love World's Best--except that the bag doesn't have a handle. But whatever. I cut those bags open and empty them into a large screw top kibble drum. I use an old washed out Rad Cat tub to scoop litter into the box as needed rather than a heavy-handed dusty pour. I don't have any trouble with the smell or the clumping. I find the multi-cat formula works a little better than the others even with a single cat. But it does track. I use a litter box enclosure with a pee pad beneath the box. That captures most of the tracked litter. I'll sweep the tracked litter inside and the small amount that made it outside with a hand broom that I keep with my Litter Genie as part of the twice daily scooping I do. I also keep an identical spare litterbox sitting right beneath the working one. This makes cleaning the box as easy as dumping the working box and removing it to the shower to be cleaned. Then filling the reserve box to become the new working box. When the old working box has been washed and dried, it can go beneath the working box and become the new reserve box.

 

[Annieca2016]

I love my World's Best but part of that is because I lived in a third floor apartment and carrying litter trash down the stairs wasn't possible with my back. So I switched to World's Best because I can flush it. Every litter I've used tracks a bit so that doesn't bother me too much. The only thing that does bother me with the World's Best is it can break down over time making it turn into dust instead of little pellets. I also like the idea it's a bit more environmentally friendly than clay litter but I honestly haven't done too much research on that.

 

[IndyJones]

I used to use Maxx scoop and it was the best litter i ever used but then they stopped making it. Clumped well, controlled the oders without smelling like a perfume department just good overall.

Then i tried tidycats lightweight which was an asthma trigger for Indy and the dust clouds from it left stains all over my washer and water heater that still havnt come off.

I then used arm and hammer slide but found a better deal on arm amd hammer double duty in a large value pack. When Kabuto got older I had to clean the litter more often or he pees outside the box.

I have tried the silica litter in the past but it is like stepping on legos when it tracks. No wonder Kabuto prefered the floor to stepping on legos. It also REAKED. Like Porti-potty mixed with amonia floor cleaner. Yuck.

 

[Mailmans_Mom]

I'm really surprised to not see chicken starter / layer crumbles / corn-based chicken feed on this list. You buy it at a farm supply store. Most people recommend layer crumbles but my cats preferred the texture of the chicken starter (finer consistency).

Pros:
If you buy the big 40-60 lbs bags, it's cheaper than any commercial cat litter (clay, grass seed, walnut, whatever)
Clumps.
I found the smell less offensive than unscented clay but I haven't got much of a sense of smell.

Cons:
I left a bag outside and the raccoons got into it, so watch for that.
If insects get in your house easily, they'll go straight for the litter, too.