Kitty advice

[Biciclista]

I am surprised that so many of you do not use clay. Since 80% of the earth's crust is clay, why is using clay bad for the environment? I know it's bad for kittens and do no use it with Kittens, but why is it bad otherwise?

[Eden]

I don't like the dust, the perfumes that most clay litters have (though I'm guessing you can probably find brands that don't have this) nor do I like the tendency that it has to get a bit muddy when in contact with liquids... I had a cat who had a tendency to step in it, then track muddy clay prints around the house - icky.. Plus the wheat litter cleans out of the box better and is a better odor controller - without any added scents.

The shelter I volunteer at uses clay. Some of the shelter kitties sit in their litter boxes - they end up with clay all through their fur. It is nasty and I'm betting that it sure doesn't make them more adoptable...

[spokewench]

I used to use clay with my cats when they were younger, but with a 23 year old cat; it does not work. It gets stuck in his feet and creates a health hazard and causes him pain. I have used the pine litter and newspaper litter; both work well; and I'm glad they do not have perfumes in them.

[tctrek]

To train cats to use a scratching post, rub some catnip on the post ... they really love the kind that is sisal rope wrapped around a post. You can make one yourself pretty easily. I don't use carpet scratching posts, 'cause that gives them the idea it's ok to scratch carpet.

I have nine indoor cats, all with claws and none of them scratch my furniture.

[Biciclista]

oh yes, SISAL! if you can find a cheap source of sisal, get some elmer's glue and make sisal spirals on a board. instant kitty scratch post!!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

... they really love the kind that is sisal rope wrapped around a post.

Yes, the sisal rope one can be popular!

[tctrek]

Oh yeah, wrap/glue the sisal around the board and then staple a big loop of sisal at one end. Hang the loop on a door knob, rub a little catnip and stand back and watch happy kitty go to town.

[smilingcat]

Litter:

+1 with Eden. We use Wheat Scoop. Kittens may accidently injest the litter and with wheat scoop, it passes through their system. Clay litter does not. It can potentially become life threatening if they injest too much. For this reason alone, our rescue group recomment the Wheat scoop for kittens and wheatscoop or pine litter for adult cats.

Small amount of Wheat scoop does go down the drain when I wash and disinfect the litter box. The wheat litter decomposes and does not clog the pipe. Clay litter just turns into solid "brick" and clogs the pipe.

Also tried the pine litter but we prefer if the stuff would clump, not turn into dust.

We also do not like the smell of the clay litter with its perfume nor the clay dust it generates. And the clay dust is not good for the cat in the long run. Thinking of Silicosis (similar to black lung disease).

Water bottle:

my cats see that bottle coming out and they are gone under my bed in a nano-second. No need to squirt them anymore.