Purs, snuggles and warm cuddles make being a cat parent rewarding. Cats can be quite independent and therefore prove to be great pets. Felines, in general, have adapted well to our hectic modern lifestyles, adjusting to minimal time available, due to our busy work schedules. However independent of our kitty, we still have to look after it, as this adorable bundle of joy can turn into a source of very unpleasant cleaning issues when it messes up the litter box. If there is no good litter box strategy in place, your house can reek of cat toileting, in no time particularly when things get warmer with the heat and humidity in the summer. It helps to keep a few points in mind to breeze through the summertime keeping your cat and your house pleasant, clean and fresh.
THE LOCATION MATTERS!
Determining where to place your cat's litter box is one of the most crucial details to consider when you become a parent to a feline. Choosing to locate the litter box in an unsuitable spot can prompt your kitty to develop litter box aversion – the most prevalent reason cats are surrendered and sometimes abandoned to pet shelter houses. Understandably, cats are quite private with toileting, and if you are not considerate in regards to your cats toileting need for privacy, you can have unpleasant deposits in unacceptable places. When the weather warms up, you need to ask yourself a question. Is your cat's litter box placed in a well-ventilated area? It is particularly important when the weather changes, and the temperature needle goes up into the warm zones. While the litter box may be well suited to be placed in a garage or in the laundry room in winters, it needs to be put at an airy and ventilated place in the summer warm temperatures to avoid a lingering smell or inappropriate depositing elsewhere. Although it is tempting to place the litter box out of plain sight, in the remotest spot in your house, it is not the best idea to do so. You should keep in view some certain factors while choosing a place to put the litter tray. These include Access, Noise, Smell, Temperature, and Traffic. You should place your cat's litter box in a quiet and peaceful location away from the noise-producing sources. Irregular and loud sounds can cause frightful responses in felines, and you sure do not want them connecting the fear with the litter box. It can cause litter box dilemmas and aversion. A quiet place in the basement next to a boiler may seem like an out-of-the-way spot to place the litter box/tray but the disrupting noise from heaters or a boiler can be perturbing and unsettling to your fur-friend. Car traffic sounds can also trigger fright responses in your cat, therefore, always place the litter box in a quiet tranquil place to help your kitty go about its business with ease. To distinguish which spot is the most suitable for your feline friend, install several litter boxes around the house in multiple locations and let your kitty decide.
SCOOP DAILY
Cats are generally quite low maintenance and can act independently for themselves. Nevertheless, as a cat master, you will need to attend to several chores included in the responsible care of your feline buddy. It involves everything from clipping their claws to making sure that they are consuming the right type of food, to cleaning after them when they go about their toilet business.
Cats are inherently clean animals and a dirty or soiled litter box is one of the most common reasons pet cats stop using the litter box or litter tray. It can cause an absolute litter box aversion, with alarming and indelicate depositing in inappropriate places. Cats, like humans, have an innate characteristic of avoiding odorous and muddy places. They do not want to skip through clumps of urine and fecal matter to locate a clean spot to do their business. For this very reason, it is advised to clean after your feline at least once or twice (recommended) a day to ensure your kitty has a clean litter box to use. Image Source: Google Images You should scoop the litter box more often in the summers, as heat and cat-body waste quickly create unhealthy and smelly problems. Make sure that you are wearing gloves as a precaution against the bacteria or viruses that may be culturing around the warming up waste. After scooping up, bag the waste. Tightly knot the bag to confine in the odour. Wash the litter tray afterwards and fill it with one of your cat's favourite litter types. To mask the odour, you can sprinkle some of the baking soda in the litter box or place charcoal filters. This task does need to be completed more often in summer as the hot and humid conditions make the litter tray unhealthy and smelly faster than in cooler temperature.
REPLACE THE LITTER EVERY TWO WEEKS
If not weekly, the litter should be replaced every two weeks in summer, with the tray needing thorough washing. Most people prefer using scented cat litter. It is quite understandable because it has odour masking properties and keeps the surroundings fresher with a less unpleasant lingering odour. A scented litter may be appealing to you, however, it is olfactory overpowering to your feline companion. Many cats have shown a sense of detest towards scented litters, particularly citrus and floral scents. Image Source: Google Images As a matter of fact, a profoundly perfumed litter tray or box may just push your kitty to manage their business away from their litter box. For this reason, it is always best to fill the litter box with unscented litter. Apart from this several other factors should be kept in mind while opting for a specific type of litter:
- It should be odour absorbent: No one fancies smelling cat pee or poo! You can add odour masking ingredients into the litter if they are not readily present in the composition of the litter. Baking soda or activated charcoal can be quite helpful to you as they are very beneficial in soaking up bad smells. These can benefit from keeping ammonia and other litter box odours in control.
- It should be fast and hard clumping: Fast and hard clumping type of litter will help reduce mess and make it more manageable for you to scoop and clean after your cat, not to mention lessening the risks that urine-soaked clumps of litter will adhere to your cat’s paws or tail particularly if they have a coat of long fur.
- It should be low dust: Dust from the litter can be quite a problem for you or your feline - asthma or related respiratory issues can develop or be triggered with very dusty litter. Low dust litter not only keeps your floor and furniture clear from a layer of litter dust, but it also assures that your cat’s and your lungs are not affected. It spares you both from the allergies possibly due to the litter dust.
- The litter should not leave any tracks: It is harmless to state that you want your fur-friends litter to stay in their box and not get tracked all around the house (or apartment). You should try to look for and find an anti-track litter that befits your cat’s needs and your own requirements. One thing that can help you keep the traces of your cat's litter from around your house is to use a cat mat just beside the litter box. It functions as a doormat does and can help minimize tracking while you search for a suitable kind of litter.
Most cat litter producers recommend filling up the litter box with two to three inches, or 4 to 6 cms of litter. If your kitty is a scratcher and loves digging you may want to use three to four inches or 6 to 8 cms. But it is recommended to initially start with 4 cms or two inches and experiment until you attain the preferable depth for your cat. After filling the litter box up with the litter, level off the top with a spatula so that your cat has a smooth surface to dig its paws it. Scrub Thoroughly Once a Month Scooping, scrubbing and now cleaning the litter box, you need to come up with a good washing routine. It sometimes seems one of the most worrisome and dreaded jobs to kitty lovers all over the world. If you cannot stand the stench of the litter box, your cat cannot either, so it's important you are timely with cleaning it. It's essential to routinely clean your cat's litter box for two main important reasons: First, no one wants a house reeking of cat waste, and second which is more important than the first one, you would not want a sick cat. As you have to get the job done, you may as well get it done through safe methods. It's crucial to remember that the cat's waste is a favourable place for bacteria and viruses to culture and thus can be harmful to the person handling it. That's why it's essential for you to use the right tools for the job. Before you get to the cleaning part, wear a pair of rubber gloves and a mask. It helps to reduce and minimize the chances of contracting any viruses such as toxoplasmosis which is a dangerous virus and can be present around the cat's faeces. Particularly, if you are pregnant, you should not handle or clean the cat litter tray your self and ask another person to do it. To help save yourself from these ailments, you should consider investing in an automatic litter box, as a hands-free option, and it can relieve you of your worries and do the scooping part as well as reduce cleaning! Cleaning of the litter box necessitates tossing out the old litter, scrubbing the box till its clean of all debris, and adding fresh, new litter. Make sure you are using the type of litter that your cat prefers. Before initiating the cleaning rituals, wear rubber gloves. If you prefer lining the litter box, loosen each corner of the liner carefully and place the excreted contents in a trash bag. Liners around the litter box make the cleaning process easier but if your feline is particular and does not like litter liners, do not line the litter box. The last thing you will want is an annoying pet! If you have a digger and scratcher, you may also find the regular liners are not robust enough for your cat's claws. You might need to utilize a scraper to scour the dried litter off the walls of the box. Open the trash bag wide enough for the litter to drop inside. You can spread a plastic sheet on the floor to avoid dropping litter on the floor. Wear a mask as the litter dust may scatter and be breathed in and cause allergies. Tightly tie a knot on the bag. You need to ensure the trash bag is tied properly, and all the litter is mopped off the floor too. Remember to throw the trash bag with the litter only in an outdoor wastebasket. The next step is to thoroughly wash the litter box. It is recommended to use an unscented soap for this purpose. Thoroughly wash the litter box inside and out using warm water and soap. You can use a sponge to scrub off the remaining litter from the walls of the box/tray. If the litter box is covered, wash out the lid too and the scooper you used to scrape off the litter. DO NOT wash the litter box in a kitchen sink or bathroom tub! You can use a laundry sink or take it outside in the backyard. After scrubbing and scrapping off the litter, wash well with soap with warm water. You can scrub, rinse, repeat till you get satisfied with the cleansing. It is considered to be a good practice to let the box/tray dry in the sunlight. Add two to three inches, or 4 to 6 cm of new litter in the litter box and place it back to your kitty's favourite spot.
REPLACE THE OLD LITTER BOX!
Wear and tear are common and within reason no matter how clean and spotless you keep your cat's litter box. Over time, the surface of a litter tray is scrapped due to cat scratching and scooping making tiny scores on it which can encourage breeding and culturing hotbeds of bacteria. It is profoundly advisable to get a new litter box or a litter tray once a year and summer is the perfect time to get one. The principal idea here is to buy a new litter box of the equivalent area and depth as the previous one as such changes can be unwelcomed by your cuddle mate. Today, we live in a bustling world with boisterous work lives. Taking time out seems a luxury and as such, it gets quite a task to regularly scoop out your cat's litter. For people with hectic schedules and routines, an Automatic Cat Litter-Robot is just the thing. It scoops the litter for you and keeps the litter box clean for the next visit. If you make the investment to buy it, it will resolve all of your litter dilemmas. It makes the dreaded task of scooping a breeze and conveniently provides for multi-cat families. It is an exceptional self-cleaning system that will provide you with a no scooping and pleasingly odourless summertime, and throughout the year. It will also repay you by reducing your litter use and waste, which makes the investment in a better lifestyle for you and your cat an excellent idea.