Litter Box Training and Types of Litter

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Litter Box Training and Types of Litter

Training your cat to use the litter box isn?t a very difficult task. Cats can have very individualistic personalities, but that doesn?t mean they are undisciplined. This is especially true when it comes to hygiene. In fact, cats are some of the cleanest pets, and spend quite some time to take care of their hygiene. Still, some cats may be hard to potty train, and while it is easy for them to lay their waste the proper way outside, just like they did in the wild when they were undomesticated, doesn?t mean it will be so clean when it comes to peeing and pooping inside the house. Still, with a little patience and discipline, you can train even the most stubborn of cats.

When buying or adopting a cat, try and get them while they are still kittens. That way, the environment you live in becomes the one they live in as well. And since they will be living with you for such a long time, they will naturally try to adapt and fit in. This means that training will be much easier. If the cat is a little older, don?t despair. They might require some time to learn new tricks, but with patience and care, you can make them disciplined when it?s potty time.

Cats are naturally driven to litter boxes. This is because a litter box allows them to mimic the same type of behavior they would have in the wild. When eliminating the waste from their body, cats bury the remains to mask the scent. This is a good thing to know, but since they will be doing it in the same place each and every time, you must be ready to clean after them regularly.

Cleaning a litter box often is much more important than you might think. Cats tend to avoid smelly litter boxes, as they do smelly places in real life. So if the box smells foul, they will do their thing somewhere else. Somewhere not allowed. Such as, say, the kitchen floor, or worse, the sofa. Most cat owners know how horrible cat pee smells in the house. Sometimes you can even feel the smell a room away. Nasty stuff!

The first thing to do, especially when dealing with a kitten, is to schedule its meals. This is done in order to help you anticipate potty time much more easily. Most kittens need to use the litter box between 5 to 25 minutes after their meal. This is an excellent opportunity for you to familiarize your small pet with proper toilet habits. A cat that is 4 months old or younger should eat around 3 to 4 times a day. After 5 or 15 minutes, gently place your kitty in the litter box and let nature do the rest. With older cats, it will be a bit more difficult, but careful observation, combined with lost of patience, will help you succeed.

Choose the Best Cat Litter for Your Fur-Ball

A curious and interesting "historical" fact about cat litter is that in the past, being that there was none of the modern materials that we have at our disposal these days, they used to utilize sand and fireplace ashes. Now you can imagine that it must have been pretty uncomfortable and rather unpleasant for a cat owner to have ashes on the carpet, not to mention the odor was most likely out of control as well.

Yet those days are over, things have come a long way since then, and these days, you have a myriad of differently scented, absorbent cat litters to choose from. Cat litter is actually one of the best-selling products on the pet product market these days, and the variety makes a cat owner's life just so much better and easier:

Clay litter

This is basically absorbent, diverse clay minerals also known under the name of "fuller's earth" and it could actually absorb its own weight in water, providing some odor control as well. The product is rather inexpensive and it has many other uses like traction for ice driveways for example.

Clumping litter

This is a clay-based litter with the main ingredient being sodium bentotite. It absorbs urine and transforms it into solid clumps, thus making it rather easy to remove it from the litter box and afterward dispose of it. The clumps actually help you keep the box cleaner, and of course, they provide odor control. Even if you have more than one cat this type of litter is a good choice, it will work just as well. And another plus, it is dust-free, so most likely healthier for both you and your furry purring friend. Might not be the best idea for kittens though, as they tend to ingest it.

Pine cat litter

It is made of recycled pine and it is a great choice for all people looking to purchase something environmentally friendly in this matter. The product is biodegradable, and it is safe to use even with kittens. Another interesting aspect is that it could also be used for other small animals like birds, or even reptiles.

Recycled paper Recycled newspaper is transformed into pellets or granules and used as cat litter. Again, a product that is biodegradable, dust-free thus safe for kittens as well. It is actually a very good absorbent and also scent free.

Corn cat litter

It is an all-natural product and it perfectly absorbs the smell of urine. The product has a soft texture and is biodegradable; it can even be flushed so you have fewer worries about how to dispose of it. It is also easy to scoop it out of the cat's litter box, as it has a natural clumping ability, still it being safe for kittens.

When it comes to cat litter these days, the choices are numerous, yet there are certain key aspects to consider like the strength of odor control, dust-free formula or not, flushable or not, easy or less easy to remove and so on. After all, you know your little furry friend better than anyone, so your choice will largely depend on this.

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