I religiously clean out both litter boxes for Misty and Baby Tiger every other day. The boxes are on a small table in our laundry room, which is about 12 feet by 17 feet. I've used many different types of cat litter and switched their food around but still, the room reeks. Dan emptied them and hosed them out not to long ago, and I have a Yankee Candle air freshener nearby as well.

In your opinion, best cat litter out there? Go!

Arm & Hammer.

I use this



and like it.

We also use



We clean it out every 2-3 days with just the scoop, and about once a week change the liner. We also have one of those time-release air fresheners to keep the stinch down.

Tidy Cats CRYSTALS!

Read reviews here:

http://www.petco.com/product/6678/Tidy-Cats-Crystals-Cat-Box-Filler.aspx?CoreCat=IO-_-ProductDetail_1-_-Tidy Cats Crystals Cat Box Filler-6678

It's more expensive but whenever I have bought any other type to save money, I alway have gone back.

By "switched their food around", what are you feeding them? No offense, but I recall you feeding them something really awful, that even friskies would be a step up from. If you are feeding them shitty food, their pee and poop is going to reek and there isn't a lot you will be able to do about it.

When I first posted about this issue, I'll admit, I WAS feeding them Kit and Kaboodle. That was 3 years ago. I've stepped it up to more expensive stuff, but it does vary depending on what's on sale, TBH.

Ok, well switching around their food like that is going to mess with their stomachs. Which = stink.

I do remember now that we've been over this before, so I don't know what to tell you. I don't think any litter is going to cover up what you are doing to your cats, frankly. But I also generally use arm & hammer multicat, or fresh step lavender.

I use Fresh Step with Oder Eliminating Carbon. Seriously the best litter Ive ever used.

Kathleen. My cats get Purina Cat Chow. That's it. The vet told me that anything with color is no good but to stick with ONE brand of food. Purina makes good products so I stick with that. Tht is all Ive ever fed any of my cats and they've never had kidney problems or really any other health issues. If you switch it up too much it can make them sick sick sick.

The dog however gets duck and potatoe limited formula because of food allergies and cant stay away from the cat food. He's had diareah for that last two days because of that. Ugh.

Lea, I almost always buy Purina, I think it's for indoor cats only, and it's all one color. Every once in a while, I'll buy something within the same price range if it's on sale.

The cats never have diarrhea and never throw up. Well, maybe once every three months or so and it's always if they've chewed something they shouldn't have....a small piece of a plant or on the rare occasion that Misty escapes out the back door, grass. So I assumed the issue was with the litter.

I'm going to try the Fresh Step. I can't remember if I have before, but I'll give that a shot.

The main thing for me is something that clumps hard, and fast. And fresh step does that.

BTW, I really wanted to be able able to use Feline Pine or some hippy environmentally friendly litter but with 3 cats it just ain't happening.

Its fairly new to stores so here is a pic:





Here is the cat food they get. Its usually on sale:

The stomach upset caused by switching their food so often ALONE could be enough to stink up your laundry room, but like Ginny said, I'd be more concerned about the effects it's having on the cats themselves.

Think of it this way, if you pick a good food and STICK WITH IT (a sale is not a legitimate reason to switch your pet's food) your cats won't need to eat as much to get the same nutrition, their poop will be, erm.. well formed.. and won't smell like death.

Obviously, not every food is going to sit well with your cats. If you go all out and buy the most expensive stuff out there, even that food could cause digestive upset. That doesn't mean they do better on the cheap stuff, it's just their bodies adjusting to the different levels of nutrients in the new food. I'd say find a happy medium (Nutro, ProPlan, Iams are all relatively decent middle-of-the-road choices), transition them onto the new food properly, and then don't switch again unless you're still noticing a problem with the odor or consistency of their poop.

Day 1-3: 75% old food, 25% new food
Day 4-6: 50% old food, 50% new food
Day 7-9: 25% old food, 50% new food
Day 10+: 100% new food

And remember, the pennies you're saving now, by switching their food constantly, won't make a bit of difference when they start needing to go to the vet for UTIs and tooth extractions because they've been eating junk. An ounce of prevention, blah blah blah.

I don't give a shite 'cause I got my Guinness Stout!

(and yeah, I agree with all that.)

And if you are going to feed your cat purina - ok if it works but the fact you have a big stink problem tells me it isn't. When I first got joan, the rescue group sent me home with a bag of purina and my god, the stench. It was unbearable. The biggest problem I have now is that occasionally badger will get her ass out of the box and pee on the little mat I have underneath the catch the litter. If it'[s a hot day, by the time I get home it stinks pretty bad. But when they are in the box like they are supposed to be, I have no stink issues.

Milledge had frequent UTI's, so we feed her this

http://ep.yimg.com/ca/I/discountpetsdrugs_2076_1395154

And since we have two cats and they eat from the same bowl, they both get it.

It's pretty freakin expensive.




Good thing they're cute.

Kathleen -- do your cats eat strictly kibble, or do you give them wet food as well? I have never given Punkin any canned food, and never had an issue with her poops.

I use the Fresh Step with odor control for Murray. I've never had an issue with his doodies smelling. He eats prescription weight management cat food ever since I adopted him (6 years ago). The litter box is covered and sits in the laundry room. I scoop it every other day and never seem to have any issues with him.

Maezack gets canned dog food too. Forgot about that. He LOVES it and it doesnt seem to mess with his system. Its purely duck and potatoe though. I should probably put him on weight control formula now that I think of it.

]

Cats usually don't drink enough. That makes their urine smell worse and can make them constipated. Wet food helps them get more liquid intake, especially the really gravy kind. My cats get dry food, but wet food at least once a day too. If not they try and kill me in my sleep.

We feed our cats Nutro, but I just read that there's been some quality control issues with that brand. :-/ DAMMIT!!!!! No wonder they have started peeing RIGHT outside the litter box (one of them has).

!!!!!!

So.... Guess I'll be looking to transition to a better food too.

Here's an opinion I found interesting, and a proponent of wet food for cats....

http://www.homevet.com/petcare/feedingyourcat.html

(it's a longer article, but here's the first paragraph...)

FEEDING YOUR CAT: KNOW THE BASICS OF FELINE NUTRITION
Lisa A. Pierson, DVM

Diet is the brick and mortar of health. This handout lays out some often-ignored principles of feline nutrition and explains why cats have a better chance at optimal health if they are fed a quality canned food diet instead of dry kibble. Putting a little thought into what you feed your cat(s) can pay big dividends over their lifetime and very possibly help them avoid serious, painful and costly illnesses.

Cats Need Animal-Based Protein

Cats and kids. They're individuals, and have differing needs. What works for one isn't so great for another. Trial and error.

I hope you find your cats' happy place!

(PS I was stunned to find out one of my mom's dogs is allergic to beef. Whodathunk something like that??)

When I was growing up we had a kitten that we always fed the same food to. One day we gave him a different flavor of that food thinking he'd like to try something new. He took one smell and did that litter box thing with his paw where he went through the motions of pretending to cover it up like it was a dish of poop. That was the first time I had seen a cat do that and it totally cracked us up. We were like, "Ok, ok, we get the message, you can stop now. We'll give you you're regular food. Just give us a minute." I always thought he was smart cat (and a smart-ass cat) when it came to communicating his wishes but years later we had another cat that would do the same thing. I guess they all get taught that in cat school.

Most canned pet food has little nutritional value and can actually cause your pet to have worse smelling poop. While there are some good quality canned foods, such as Wellness and Natural Balance, ounce for ounce dry food is better. Dry foods tends to have a higher percentage of protein and are better for their teeth.

If you want your cats to drink more water, get them at pet water fountain. Cats instinctively want to drink running water, because it's cleaner. The initial investment of a fountain will be offset by the canned food that you won't have to buy and of course the vet bills that should be lower. It takes a few days for a cat to get used to the fountain, because of the motor that runs the fountain. But once they get used to it, they will definitly drink more than they did before.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss?url=search-alias%3Dgarden&field-keywords=pet+fountain&x=0&y=0

Also cheaper pet food usually contains more bone material, which exacerbates urinary tract problems in cats. If cost is a factor, the costco brand stuff is actually pretty decent.

I had the exact one pictured as number two, and paid a hell of a lot more than 20 bucks for it. It broke within 2 months. The cost was most definitely not worth it.

Our cats have never had canned food. And they don't seem to drink an awful lot, necessarily, but we do turn the kitchen or bathroom faucet onto a trickle for them fairly often and they drink right from there.

OK OK... I was resisting doing this but annyway... at risk of coming of like a spammer, one of my BFFs quit her big time marketing VP job to take on cats full time. She had been doing this as a hobby, but it became her passion. Ruby and I are fans of her site...

moderncat.net

Has lots of cool stuff for cats, info, etc. Kate, my pal who runs the site, has 7 cats of her own. She researches all the information and tries to provide cool new things and info for people who just love cats.

Kate is major smart, takes this really seriously, and is a self-proclaimed cat lady. I would trust her with my human children, so that goes without saying my cats too.

This is awesome!

Ginny

My pal Kate is all kinds of awesome Ginny She never does anything halfway.

check out her catios... the SO-BOO is great friends with her too and loved the concept. We have a catio for ours now too.

ETA: Doh. The whole thing I meant to say was that Kate is all about integrating cats needs with your personal style and function. I think it's cool.

Well one anecdote doesn't mean the fountains don't work. I used to sell them and when I lived in SF, my roommate had one. It lasted for years and Tom, her cat, lived to 18. while I'm sure there are some that are POS's, there are many that work great. If your cat doesn't drink enough water, it's certainly worth investigating, rather than going to canned food.

Before the fountain, Tom used to sleep in the bathroom sink, waiting for someone to turn on the water so he could take a drink from running water, rather than his bowl. I actually kind of miss waking up to a giant cat in the sink. He was so big (a little fat, but not too bad) that I once saw him chasing a full grown raccoon, instead of the other way around. Of course this cat also chased dogs, so maybe I shouldn't have been so surprised.

I bought this for Murray a few years ago, he absolutely loves it. He drinks A LOT of water. At first the vet thought he had a medical issue because of the amount of water he drinks. He just drinks a lot it turned out. I bought the extention reservoir that sits on the back of it. I fill it up a few times a week. The filter lasts about a month.

My cats drink plenty of water, and I don't feel the need to justify my pet decisions that I go to the vet to ask instead of the internets. And like I said, you have to go with what works for you and in my personal experience, those fountains don't work.

Thanks for sharing modern cat with us, Anny! I have it bookmarked!

You're welcome Amber! Kate will be excited to hear that

no more additional advice on the boxes.

Our two boxes are covered ones that stay in the basement, we use regular gravel litter.

I've always fed my cats wet food and they have dry as back up for nibbling on throughout the day.

We have water 'stations' throughout the house. Seriously, one in the kitchen, living room and one which used to be upstairs until Desterey kept tipping it over, like 4x a day.

Ashe has a new trend of sitting in the bathtub until I run the faucet with a light stream. HE LOVES THIS! And yay, I've found him sleeping in there a few times just waiting for me to turn it on.

My cats like to lay in the bathtub or sink when it gets hot, but they get seriously irritated if there is water involved. I've never seen them try to drink out of the faucets (I had a roommate whose cat did that, which is why we bought the dumb fountain. I wasn't in charge of that cats water, since it wasn't my cat, so maybe she wasn't getting enough). Actually Nibbler gets in there and jumps as high as she can and meows. She does the same thing to the bedroom door when it is halfway open. Because she is a freak.

My mom's cat, Fritz, is CRAZY about drinking water out of the upstairs bathroom tap.

If he hears anyone just walking down the hall that leads to the bathroom, he tears through the house so that he can get there, and then as you walk by the bathroom, he looks up at you all sad like.

Tato - I spilled a scalding hot plate of spaghetti and marinara sauce on the carpet a few minutes ago. I went to get towels and carpet cleaner, and had t wait a minute because it was too hot to touch. Badger came over and sniffed, then tried to cover it up like a turd. That may be the most insulted I have ever been about my cooking, ever.

Lol!!
They can be so obnoxious sometimes, right?
I swear, if they had the ability to give us the finger they would totally do it sometimes.

Well I use Freshstep Kat litter with the JohnYcat bags ! .. AND for food HE loves ....( Deli.cat ) FOOD from PURINA ! :D

He loves Deli Cat because they spray it with fat during processing to make it palatable. Just saying.

I don't give a shite 'cause I got my Guinness Stout!

Best cat litter (in my opinion)... was some cracked corn stuff that is no longer made. No, the kind you find in petsmart labeled the "world's best cat litter" is not it nor close.

What we use now... Feline Pine or the generi-brand pine litter. Never smells like anything other than pine. We scoop the boxes a few times a week and dump the litter about once a month.