We are getting a new kitten and want to make sure no bacteria are passed to the kitten via the liter box. Is soap and hot water sufficient? I read a post here to use diluted bleach but other places say that is definitely not to be used. Then I wonder if they use the same liter box anyway....will it really matter?
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What Is The Safest Way To Clean Literbox?
- Thread starter Mocharuns
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I would not use bleach on cat boxes because the ammonia in urine could react with it and create noxious fumes (this is why you never mix bleach and cleaners).
I personally just dump the dirty litter into the green bin and hose the box down outside with plain water. If it's really nasty I use a bit of dawn free and gentle dish soap and a pail of water. Unscented soap is best since strong fragrance can cause aversion.
I personally just dump the dirty litter into the green bin and hose the box down outside with plain water. If it's really nasty I use a bit of dawn free and gentle dish soap and a pail of water. Unscented soap is best since strong fragrance can cause aversion.
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I use hot water, some delicate unscented soap and lots of vinegar diluted with hot water. I wouldn't use bleach on anything my cats touch.
Bleach also can cause some cats to act... oddly, like catnip oddly, so you don't want that smell in a litter box
If you mean a used box that you want to reuse for a new kitten, sure, you can bleach it for thorough disinfection, but it needs to sit for several days for the bleach to dissipate. But if you mean a box your current cat is using and the new kitten will use too, I don't think disinfecting the box will make much difference.
For normal cleaning, dish soap works fine. For deeper cleaning, vinegar works well.
For normal cleaning, dish soap works fine. For deeper cleaning, vinegar works well.
I'd just like to add that sitting it in the sun for a few hours is a cheap way to sanitize the box without having to buy anything!
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
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I'm all for using non-toxic substance for general cleaning as much as we can - vinegar will not, unfortunately, kill bacteria the way bleach will. Especially in an area like a litter box. It simply won't. While vinegar is good - it simply is no match.
The trick with bleach is firstly to follow the dilution instructions, and second to rinse, rinse, rinse once complete. The mistake a lot of people make is not rinsing the bleach off the item thoroughly or deciding "More is better" and it's not. Same as more laundry soap won't better wash clothes.
I rinse, rinse, rinse and then soak the litter box in warm water for a few minutes to be sure it's rinsed well.
The more research I do on Bleach, it's chemical makeup, impact on the environment - both in use and manufacturing - the more I'm coming to see the many misconceptions we are being given about the substance.
While I don't bleach my floors anymore or other things I use to. I do - absolutely - bleach the litter boxes at least once a month - more if one is under the weather, or if one of the boxes had really heavy use.
The trick with bleach is firstly to follow the dilution instructions, and second to rinse, rinse, rinse once complete. The mistake a lot of people make is not rinsing the bleach off the item thoroughly or deciding "More is better" and it's not. Same as more laundry soap won't better wash clothes.
I rinse, rinse, rinse and then soak the litter box in warm water for a few minutes to be sure it's rinsed well.
The more research I do on Bleach, it's chemical makeup, impact on the environment - both in use and manufacturing - the more I'm coming to see the many misconceptions we are being given about the substance.
While I don't bleach my floors anymore or other things I use to. I do - absolutely - bleach the litter boxes at least once a month - more if one is under the weather, or if one of the boxes had really heavy use.
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Why not just use something safer like Dawn dish soap? It's good enough for getting bacteria out of plates and utensils that we use for eating, so it should be good enough for a poop box. I personally wouldn't risk using bleach.
Why yes - for day to day food dishes - absolutely dawn dish soap. (I love Dawn btw) Poop and pee carry different types of bacteria. Especially if one is not feeling well. Raw meats also can carry different bacteria. I bleach meat cutting boards that are used to cut raw meat.
There are reasons why people often have two cutting boards if they are meat-eaters. One for meat and one for veggies.
Cooked food and poop and pee are not the same in bacteria or bacteria types, unfortunately. I wish I could say different but that's not science shows us.
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Meh, I use Dawn Dish Soap to wash raw meat cutting boards and other things that have touched raw meat. I've never had a problem. I don't really think bleach is necessary.
I use Dawn for a lot of my cleaning, including the litter boxes. I agree, if it's good enough for your dishes, it should be good enough for the litter boxes and whatever else you want to clean with it.
There's really only one thing I use bleach for and that's killing algae in the fountain (diluted and rinsed out before refilling) outdoors that gets really slimy and nasty otherwise from the sun (no fish or other critters in it).
Bleach is really not something I touch unless it's absolutely necessary.
Dawn is actually really great stuff. Auto mechanics use it to clean up carburettors and other greasy parts. If it's good enough to remove oil and gasoline it's good enough for litter boxes.
Hot water also kills bacteria, so hot water + dawn should be enough for cleaning a litter box.
Bleach is really not something I touch unless it's absolutely necessary.
Dawn is actually really great stuff. Auto mechanics use it to clean up carburettors and other greasy parts. If it's good enough to remove oil and gasoline it's good enough for litter boxes.
Hot water also kills bacteria, so hot water + dawn should be enough for cleaning a litter box.
To each his own on how we clean -as long as we are keeping the kitties healthy and happy - this is perfect. Any amount of cleaning I think is absolutely better than nothing.
I don't know how to say this without sounding like a complete jerk, so please take what I'm saying for it's intention and not in any way as mean or anything else, because I think you guys are truly awesome a thousand ways over! We're all here to help and learn from each other - and that's what I'm doing here. I'm simply confused by the logic.
Several people are okay with simply soap and water because it is okay to clean certain bacterial off plates for cooked food. Others are okay with using bleach on water dishes - which cats use to drink out of ... but think soap and water is good enough on a litter box because it can remove oil and gas. Think on that for a moment.
With any of the above logic brushing your teeth with Dawn would be a good idea, or use it for taking off make-up - if you wear it. (Ouch the eyes and the skin!!). Could it - maybe - do I want to test that - not really.
Bacteria on cooked food is different from poop and pea. Grease and oil - also totally different too. All bacteria is not a like and not all things kill all types of bacteria. Vinegar and water would probably be the closest thing but it's not effective against some rather dangerous ones.
All substances have their uses. It's why there are formulations for different things.... and why WD 40 has soooo many unknown awesome uses. For generalized cleaning - dawn - absolutely - hands down. Wonderful stuff! Hot water absolutely cleans as well - but to disinfect it would have to be the boiling+ temperature - which would melt the litter boxes. So not as effective either. Again - all these things are 100% better than nothing.
Consider multi-cat households though where most illness are transmitted through feces. EG: FIP is shed through feces which is why it's seen more often is multi-cat house houses as the illness itself is often triggered by stress. Hot water, dawn, vinegar - none of those things will kill that bacteria - bleach will.
Here is an interesting article that doesn't go into some details I wish it did but it's helpful to learn about what kills what and things that promote resistance to bacteria. Also little known fact not present in this article, and it should be - anti-bacteria soaps are a known carcinogen :
Disinfectants: A guide to killing germs the right way
There is also a link in the article to some eco-friendlier ones, that, which not as effective as bleach but can the job done well enough in MOST cases.
Remember with bleach - it's all in dilution and making sure things are well rinsed before reuse.
XOXOXOXOXOX I love you all! Don't shoot me *hides in a corner*
Edit to add: Here is a good example of murdering bacteria.
When a cat has a UTI - the reason why they have to do a culture and sensitivity test is to sort out what anti-biotic to use to kill the bacteria. If they don't - the anti-biotic they use to treat the poor baby may be ineffective and useless.
Cleaning is pretty much is the same - the wrong tool won't kill the bacteria you are trying to eliminate. "Don't use a hammer (Bleach) when you need a screwdriver (Soap) and don't use a screwdriver when you need a hammer" Pretty much that's all I am really saying and should have simply said it *DOH*- just be sure to use the right tool for the right job. In this case - the right bacteria. XO
I hope this is helpful in some small way.
I don't know how to say this without sounding like a complete jerk, so please take what I'm saying for it's intention and not in any way as mean or anything else, because I think you guys are truly awesome a thousand ways over! We're all here to help and learn from each other - and that's what I'm doing here. I'm simply confused by the logic.
Several people are okay with simply soap and water because it is okay to clean certain bacterial off plates for cooked food. Others are okay with using bleach on water dishes - which cats use to drink out of ... but think soap and water is good enough on a litter box because it can remove oil and gas. Think on that for a moment.
With any of the above logic brushing your teeth with Dawn would be a good idea, or use it for taking off make-up - if you wear it. (Ouch the eyes and the skin!!). Could it - maybe - do I want to test that - not really.
Bacteria on cooked food is different from poop and pea. Grease and oil - also totally different too. All bacteria is not a like and not all things kill all types of bacteria. Vinegar and water would probably be the closest thing but it's not effective against some rather dangerous ones.
All substances have their uses. It's why there are formulations for different things.... and why WD 40 has soooo many unknown awesome uses. For generalized cleaning - dawn - absolutely - hands down. Wonderful stuff! Hot water absolutely cleans as well - but to disinfect it would have to be the boiling+ temperature - which would melt the litter boxes. So not as effective either. Again - all these things are 100% better than nothing.
Consider multi-cat households though where most illness are transmitted through feces. EG: FIP is shed through feces which is why it's seen more often is multi-cat house houses as the illness itself is often triggered by stress. Hot water, dawn, vinegar - none of those things will kill that bacteria - bleach will.
Here is an interesting article that doesn't go into some details I wish it did but it's helpful to learn about what kills what and things that promote resistance to bacteria. Also little known fact not present in this article, and it should be - anti-bacteria soaps are a known carcinogen :
Disinfectants: A guide to killing germs the right way
There is also a link in the article to some eco-friendlier ones, that, which not as effective as bleach but can the job done well enough in MOST cases.
Remember with bleach - it's all in dilution and making sure things are well rinsed before reuse.
XOXOXOXOXOX I love you all! Don't shoot me *hides in a corner*
Edit to add: Here is a good example of murdering bacteria.
When a cat has a UTI - the reason why they have to do a culture and sensitivity test is to sort out what anti-biotic to use to kill the bacteria. If they don't - the anti-biotic they use to treat the poor baby may be ineffective and useless.
Cleaning is pretty much is the same - the wrong tool won't kill the bacteria you are trying to eliminate. "Don't use a hammer (Bleach) when you need a screwdriver (Soap) and don't use a screwdriver when you need a hammer" Pretty much that's all I am really saying and should have simply said it *DOH*- just be sure to use the right tool for the right job. In this case - the right bacteria. XO
I hope this is helpful in some small way.
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I get what you’re saying and I don’t necessarily disagree with any of it, but I also think that our culture is very germophobic and that we don’t necessarily need to be as scared of bacteria as we are. I mean, a hundred percent our cats step in their own poo and pee much more often than we think they do and walk around the house with us not knowing they’ve been exposed to it. I’m not saying that bacteria can’t be harmful and we shouldn’t be clean, but I’m just personally more uncomfortable with exposing my cats to bleach on a regular basis than using something weaker like dish soap or vinegar to clean. But hey... I also feed my cats raw meat which grosses most people out so what do I know.
I actually use boiling water to pour into the litter box (with 20% vinegar) and it’s not melting.
That's good if it's boiling. Normally Plastics, even hard plastics, end up damaged / warped / melted. If not right away - over time. I'm sure you've seen it before with plastics. I know I have. LOL ruined more than a favorite thing doing that, or putting it in the wrong spot in the dishwasher *DOH*
I agree we are very germophobic as a culture and that we don't need to be scared of every little germ. We need those to help us build up good immune systems! I imagine it's the same for kitties. Without that exposure we're in really big trouble.I get what you’re saying and I don’t necessarily disagree with any of it, but I also think that our culture is very germophobic and that we don’t necessarily need to be as scared of bacteria as we are. I mean, a hundred percent our cats step in their own poo and pee much more often than we think they do and walk around the house with us not knowing they’ve been exposed to it. I’m not saying that bacteria can’t be harmful and we shouldn’t be clean, but I’m just personally more uncomfortable with exposing my cats to bleach on a regular basis than using something weaker like dish soap or vinegar to clean. But hey... I also feed my cats raw meat which grosses most people out so what do I know.
LOl yes they do travel that little with bits of stuff it in all over the place. It's a wonder we still love them sometimes. ;-) *Points to the word "OWNED" on all of our heads*
I completely understand your point too. I think we over use the tools to do jobs that we don't need them for and that's not good either. It's all about balance.
If you aren't comfortable with it - you aren't. I think if I didn't rinse and soak the way I do - I wouldn't be either. I also wouldn't be comfortable washing floor with it unless absolutely needed. In other words that floor best be covered in poop or raw chicken first!
Raw when done right I think is great. Might be gross (I hate when I have to handle raw meat but I will / would do what was needed) but it certainly isn't bad. One day I'd love to learn to cook for the cats, or do raw. One day. :-)
The bleach/soap debate could also come down to how many cats and other pets you own, if you're living with anyone with a compromised immune e, and even if anyone in your house is ill. Before I brought Neko-chan home, I soaked the litter box in bleach and rinsed in hot water multiple times. Now when I do a full clean, I just use soap and water, but I only have one cat.
