So this post is just downright icky & that I absolutley HATE to deal with!!! The cat box. Ewwwww! But I love my kitties so having one is not optional. So in the spirit of going green I am blogging about it.
About a month or so after getting my chico bags and putting them to some good use I ran into a big problem. I used to use all those plastic bags that I would bring home from the grocery store for the daily scooping of the cat box. However... the supply had run short. I had no more bags left. Yeahh for the chico bag use..... Boo for cleaning the cat box. I had to BUY! bags....
So I decided to do a little research on greening the cat box and found out that the average cat box is not very eco-friendly. Apparently by sealing all that litter in regular plastic bags it never degrades and the actual litter itself is not very good for the environment. I used the petco store brand litter ( you know the one you can refill yourself) and thought I was pre
tty green because I reused the same plastic container each time... not so much.
Apparently that clay litter is strip mined in a very damaging process to the earth. This means that acres of land that could be used for other purposes are having their top layer stripped off to get to the diatomaceous earth”, (sodium bentonite) clay layer beneath the top layer of the soil. While the clay itself is natural, the land that it is stripped from is destroyed in the process. Also, have you noticed that when you pour your cat litter into the box there is a cloud of dust? This dust is not so great for you or your kitty. These dust particles are silica
derivatives of the "bentonite" molecules in the clay. Guess what? They are carcinogenic!
So what are some better options out there for you & your kitty? Luckily there are quite a few good brands of natural options that will biodegrade over time. Swheat Scoop is made from wheat. Feline pine is made from waste of the lumber industry (I like the feline pine SCOOP not the pellets**), Worlds Best Cat litter made from corn. I have tried all of these and my 2 kittys have made a firm decision that what they want is the Swheat Scoop. They will use the feline pine scoop and the Worlds Best Cat litter, but when given a choice between a litter box full of those or the swheat scoop they always go for the Swheat Scoop. I have found all of these 3 options to absorb & clump well, and have good odor control.
IF you decide that you want to switch your kitties over to a natural cat litter be sure to do it slowly. Cats don't like change too much. First place a 1" layer of your new cat litter in the box then on top of that place a 2" layer of your old cat litter. As your cat uses the box she will mix the two litters together and begin to get used to the new litter. The next time you change out the cat box place a 2" layer of the new litter and a 1" layer of the old litter on top. Again kitty will mix everything together and get used to the new textures & smells. Finally on your next litter change you can only use the new litter. This process should take several weeks and help kitty get adjusted to her new green litter.
Now what about litter box liners & the scooping bags??? I don't personally use litter box liners but a lot of people do. Luckily BioBag has a great biodegradable option. I also use BioBag's large dog poop bags to scoop into. This way the litter is not sealed inside of plastic and both the bag, the waste, and the litter will all naturally biodegrade. **
A couple important side notes:
** I just want to mention DO NOT COMPOST your cat litter or FLUSH your cat litter down the toilet (even if the brand says you can, toximplasmosis cannot be filtered out of the water) Cats can carry a micro-org called Toxiplasmosis that can cause sickness in humans and birth defects in babies. An indoor cat is unlikely to have this but just to be safe do not flush or compost cat waste.
**I haven't tried the feline pine pellets option (the original) because my cats try to dig to china to cover up after themselves & pellets just wouldn't cut it for them. They needed a sandy option. The house cat evolved in an sand environment and the closer the litter option is to sand the more success you will have with your cat adapting to a new litter. They like the feel of fine granules on their paws.
