Breeze Cat System - can it be made more self sufficient?

[DollDoctor]

I just found out about the Breeze Cat System by Tidy Cat. If you aren't familiar with it, it's a litter box but instead of the pellets that you scoop out, they are made of some sort of permanent or semi-permanent stuff. You scoop the poop out every day, and the pee goes through to a pad in the bottom of the box. You change the pad once a week (there's a pullout drawer) and change the pellets once a month.

My question is - rather than throwing the pads away can you make your own reusable pads, like cloth diapers, and just launder them?

And do you have to change out the pellets, or can you wash them and reuse them? The website obviously has no information on this, because they want you to keep buying the stuff!

The whole idea of this system is to make it dust free, which is an admirable goal, but why not make it self sufficient too? (The cats can't go outdoors here.)

Would love to hear from anyone with insight on this.

 

[freemotion]

I just watched the little video they have on their site, and they call the pellets "dehydrating pellets," so I think they are not washable and must be replaced.

However, you could probably make your own washable pads in a similar way that sanitary pads are made, with layers of cotton flannel and cotton quilt batting. As long as they are absorbant enough that there are no puddles, you might be ok. But I would put them in a pail to soak and change them at least once per day per cat, maybe twice, and wash them often. Or at least put something odor-killing in the soak water.

Also, what comes to mind is a small vial of plastic pellets that a vet once gave me to put into the litter box so a urine sample could be collected. I don't know where you could get a quantity of these, but they could be washed.

However, in my world with my two oversized cats.....mmmm...no. I use the expensive corn-based litter and call it a day! But I have cats with urinary issues who are fussy about their litter, so.....

You might compromise with just making the pads, and replace the pellets monthly as suggested. I don't think you would have to use a waterproof layer in your pads, as they would be sitting on a plastic tray. You would want a good, unscented enzymatic pet odor nuetralizer to spritz it with when changing the pad, and you would want to wipe down the plastic tray each time you change it and spritz it with the enzymes. Just my thoughts, no experience here.

 

[FarmerChick]

I am sorry...I don't have a clue on this one. No indoor critters and don't know litter options. Your system sounds great though!!

 

[DollDoctor]

I just had another thought...instead of making and laundering the pads, you could just use yesterday's newspaper and toss it every day.

I suspect that "dehydrating pellets" just means that they have sufficient surface area that any urine that stays on them evaporates. I think I read somewhere that they are ceramic, which would be non-porous and last forever, but now I can't remember where I saw that. I could be wrong.