cat litter

Same goes for having husbands and children in the house. :hide
 
see my critters get heartworm preventative monthly which also acts as a general dewormer, never had a fecal test come back positve for the dogs or the cats (and i KNOW the cats eat most of the mice and voles they catch) so im not remotly worried about parisites from animal waste which is one of the big concerns...the dreaded "worms"
so that leaves toxoplasmosis (which is only realy an issue for pregnant women and very very young children anyway...but that would easily be destroyed in a normal back yard compost pile...
the way i figure it is...cats, dogs, coyotes raccoons, squirrels birds ect have been pooping lal over the eart for longer than we can care to imagine...so a little cat poop mixed in isnt going to realy do any damage assuming your practicing safe handling teqnicues (wash your hands after playing in the compost pile lol)

I dont think id do cat poop directly onto a vegatable plot, but would have no problem adding it or the dog poop to a good compost pie or directly to flower beds (assuming im not going to be digging around by hand in there...lol)

mabe im too none chlaant about poop lol.

in terms of cat litter options i tried a bunch of stuff and ended up going back to walmarts special kitty clumpable with a sprinkling of baking soda...not exactly environmentally aware, but its the only thing ive personally found that realy works well and ive no idea how to make my own clumping litter lol
 
Hello :)

I'm sorry to drag up an old post but I stumbled across this forum while looking high and low for a cheaper alternative to cat litter. Like some of you I was looking at horse pellets, but here (in the UK) I can only seem to find them where you have to buy in bulk - one bag was over 200! Okay, that was for 16 bags each containing 30 litres, but still.

I need to save at the moment as I am out of work and with having 5 darling cats, their litter bill is 50 a month! I used to use Catsan (even more expensive to buy) and then changed to Sainsbury's own, as it was basically the same stuff IMO, and cheaper. Still, at 48 or so a month (3.99 a bag for 10 litres) this is more than I want to spend! Now I have emailed a seller on a site that stock horse pellets and other products and have asked kindly if they can sell me a smaller bag, I have yet to receive a reply ;)

My cats are indoor cats, with the garden (the garden is cat-proofed with the cat-poof system so they cannot get out) and all their boxes are outdoors. I have three litter boxes, all hooded ones and I scoop these every day and change the whole lot twice a week. Anyway today, I have refilled them using garden soil! :O I read that, being a natural substrate, and cats quite preferring this to commercial litters (that can be dusty and not great on their paws) it is a good move. Also comparing the difference in price is a real bonus (which is my aim). Compared to 48 a month, if the cats are happy with the soil, I can save about 35 a month! One of my cats loves soil and frequently tries to do her business in my flower pots, so I have faith she'll not be too bothered by the change.

I realise this would not be a good move for indoor cat boxes - heck the mess - but as all our cat's toilets are outdoors they can make as much mess as they like! Anyway I'll report back with the verdict! Meanwhile, if you have any other suggestions for a cheaper alternative to cat-litter, please tell me, as this may not be a long-term thing yet - my cats will soon let me know! :)

All the best,

Emma

Since this post I have managed (after hours of rooting the net) to find a lovely old guy who is dropping me off 30 kilos of wood stove pellets tomorrow morning :) This is costing me 15 with delivery and VAT! :O WOW! He said a lady that owns a cattery has 25 bags a month from him, and it goes far! It is apparently 3 times more absorbent than commercial cat pellets! So if the soil fails I have back-up and I am still in pocket :D PS} None of the cats have used the litter boxes yet...they have sniffed around the entrance and walked away disgusted! I am hoping it will be case of 'If you gotta go, you gotta go' and that they will eventually, if not ???? The wood pellets are not being delivered until tomorrow morning so soil or nothing kittys! :)
 
I have an indoor/outdoor kitty. If she's in, she uses a litter box. If she's outside, she uses dirt. So, hopefully, this will work for you.
 
I just recently found out about Stall Dry, which is DE encased in clay nodules, I think... Sounds a lot like kitty litter, but the sample was a lot finer- more like fine sand. I'm wondering if that would be a satisfactory substitute? It didn't seem to be very expensive, either.
 
Hi I wondered too if sand would be an option, and considering it is so cheap! But I figure no, as it is not absorbent enough and contains nothing to break down the odours and bacteria. Also I guess the sand could be harmful if the cats digest it, and if it gets in to the airways :/

Well....the soil totally failed!:lol: I found a small puddle of pee in the shower cubicle today, my bet is on Martha, one of our shy little girls. Martha is extremely posh, fussy and has very high-standards :P Also when I went out to the garden to check for 'soiled' soil...I found that it has been used overnight and I guess that was by Beau (our youngest girl). Beau was raised on a farm and she (as I mentioned before) likes to use the plant pots to pee in (which contain soil) and I saw her going in the box last night. What was a horrible experience was, this morning, when I lifted the hood off one litter box, about 20 flies flew out right at my face :O That was not a pleasant experience. I also found their poop was not covered, so I do not think soil is a good move!

Anyway the wood pellets were delivered this morning, so all changed! :) We'll see what they make of that!

Good-luck with your experiences all!
 
Train the cat to use a toilet? It's not that hard! We took in a stray kitten, she was with us for 6 weeks. She was nearly toilet trained in that time - and it was delayed because we had to wait for her to get big enough to be able to jump up to the toilet.

Or train the cat to potty outside like a dog? I have done that too. It works out slick. Unlike dogs, cat bury their poop so there is no yard clean-up!
 
When I lived in the mountains, we got snow-bound and isolated for a few weeks. I ran out of litter, and was desperate. So, I just tore paper (any type - newspapers, junk/regular mail, old magazines, etc.) and used that. It is amazing how much paper products there are that we can acquire around. The cats liked this new litter. And, from what I've read, the ink that printers now use isn't bad like in the olden days. I just call it my "recycled litter".
Now, I live in an RV fulltime. I still use paper for litter. After all, it is common knowledge that if you are storing things like a refrigerator or freezer, you should put paper inside to prevent odor and absorb moisture - just what you want litter to do. And paper products don't have fragrance in it( litter "smell" gives me a headache).Plus, no litter sticking to the paws to be spread inside the RV. I worried that the litter grains would pack up under my pop-out rooms, and smell.
When I travel around town, I find lots of free newspapers and magazines, and fliers. I just get them. I don't use a paper shredder, as the tiny shredded pieces clung to the cat fur due to static-cling :-(. So, I just set aside an evening while I am watching TV, and tear paper. I tear into about 2" pieces, as they are heavy enough to pretty-much stay in the litter box. The litter is lightweight, works well, and is FREE!! (And it is great in an emergency, even if you prefer regular litter.)
 
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