3 ms·

Was nice not smelling the litter box for a month.

dmix 6y ago
Also nice we all have heavy duty masks for cleaning them too!
smichel17 6y ago
The biggest improvement you can make is to stop feeling your cat dry food. They're often a large % fibrous plant matter, which ferments, causing much of the smell. If you're up for making homemade cat food, rather than canned, that makes their poop smell even less. The other thing you can do is make a litterbox like this: - 30 gallon plastic bin (look for one with flat sides, not a "heavy duty" model with ridges along the side -- if your cat is a side-pee-er, this will be difficult to clean). - Cut a hole in the side with a utility (aka x-acto) knife, 9 inches from the bottom. - Fill with 3.5-4 inches of unscented, clumping litter. I've tried Dr Elsey's and World's Best, and prefer the former, which I found clumps better; I believe other clay-based litters are equivalent to it. - Buy a litter-lifter, it's the best scoop, hands down. After I tried it the first time, I actually placed a bulk order (25 scoops) so that I have a guaranteed lifetime supply (and for gifts), because I never want to use another scoop. - Clean the litter box at least once per day. I know this sounds like a lot, but it's actually not -- with the scoop above, it takes me ~10 seconds per "item" (pee ball or poop cluster) you scoop out (unless your cat is a side-pee-er), plus maybe 30s moving the litter around to find the items and even out the litter at the end. (I've timed this; in total it's around 1 minute if I scoop once per day). Info is sourced from https://catinfo.org https://catinfo.org (specifically https://catinfo.org/the-litter-box-from-your-cats-point-of-view/#Types_of_Litter_Boxes,_Size,_Number_and_Location https://catinfo.org/the-litter-box-from-your-cats-point-of-v... and https://catinfo.org/making-cat-food/#Constipation https://catinfo.org/making-cat-food/#Constipation ) and verified by personal experience.
- opwieurposiu 6y ago
  I installed a cpu fan and some dryer vent hose to exhaust the catbox air to the outside. That worked pretty well except in summer green bottle flies would climb up the vent to get at the poos. Later a fox ate the cat. I think this was unrelated to the venting system, but it did eliminate the smell issue.
  - smichel17 6y ago
    This is the feline equivalent of the metaphor about the baby and the bathwater.

dmix 6y ago

Also nice we all have heavy duty masks for cleaning them too!

The biggest improvement you can make is to stop feeling your cat dry food. They're often a large % fibrous plant matter, which ferments, causing much of the smell. If you're up for making homemade cat food, rather than canned, that makes their poop smell even less. The other thing you can do is make a litterbox like this: - 30 gallon plastic bin (look for one with flat sides, not a "heavy duty" model with ridges along the side -- if your cat is a side-pee-er, this will be difficult to clean). - Cut a hole in the side with a utility (aka x-acto) knife, 9 inches from the bottom. - Fill with 3.5-4 inches of unscented, clumping litter. I've tried Dr Elsey's and World's Best, and prefer the former, which I found clumps better; I believe other clay-based litters are equivalent to it. - Buy a litter-lifter, it's the best scoop, hands down. After I tried it the first time, I actually placed a bulk order (25 scoops) so that I have a guaranteed lifetime supply (and for gifts), because I never want to use another scoop. - Clean the litter box at least once per day. I know this sounds like a lot, but it's actually not -- with the scoop above, it takes me ~10 seconds per "item" (pee ball or poop cluster) you scoop out (unless your cat is a side-pee-er), plus maybe 30s moving the litter around to find the items and even out the litter at the end. (I've timed this; in total it's around 1 minute if I scoop once per day). Info is sourced from https://catinfo.org https://catinfo.org (specifically https://catinfo.org/the-litter-box-from-your-cats-point-of-view/#Types_of_Litter_Boxes,_Size,_Number_and_Location https://catinfo.org/the-litter-box-from-your-cats-point-of-v... and https://catinfo.org/making-cat-food/#Constipation https://catinfo.org/making-cat-food/#Constipation ) and verified by personal experience.

opwieurposiu 6y ago
I installed a cpu fan and some dryer vent hose to exhaust the catbox air to the outside. That worked pretty well except in summer green bottle flies would climb up the vent to get at the poos. Later a fox ate the cat. I think this was unrelated to the venting system, but it did eliminate the smell issue.
- smichel17 6y ago
  This is the feline equivalent of the metaphor about the baby and the bathwater.