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And while the bags won't completely stifle the smelly notes of used cat litter, they do make a noticeable impact. One box contains 90 bags which typically lasts for three months with daily use. This is one of my favorite types of DIY litter boxes as you can get a nice, big box that’s easy to clean and has high walls. Many clients feel like their only option to get their cat to not fling litter everywhere is to use a covered box. If their cat isn’t thrilled about covered boxes, this creates trouble. Turning a storage tote into a box is a great alternative as it helps keep the litter contained and can be left uncovered. It also can be used as an outer shell for another type of box to prevent your cat from urinating over the edge or flinging litter everywhere. Supplies Our testers were each assigned a litter box to be used and evaluated for several months. Ease of cleaning, mess prevention, design, and overall value were all considered as their cat (or cats for many!) handled their business, with our participating humans tidying up after them. Testers documented their cats' and their own initial impressions of the litter box assigned to their home. You’ll need to scoop your cat’s litter box daily, at which point you may want to sprinkle a cup or two of fresh litter to top off the box to your cat’s preferred depth ( here are tips on how deep litter should be to avoid waste or litter box problems). The Litter Champ is very similar to the Litter Genie, but has one clear advantage: a foot pedal for lifting the top lid.
We've tested 44 popular and highly-rated litter boxes, both in our New York lab and in the homes of testing volunteers, where dozens of cats put our roster of litter boxes to the test. Testing was conducted over months, with our volunteer testers taking notes on how well their cats adjusted to the design, how easy the litter box was to clean, and other features. Once you’re satisfied, you can go ahead and cut using a heavy duty utility knife. Don’t go for a wimpy box cutter for this part! It should be sharp and easily able to cut through the plastic. It’s an extremely good idea to wear knife protection gloves and safety goggles so you don’t injure yourself should your grip slip or a blade go flying. Make sure curious cats are elsewhere for this part!You also don’t want other animals or insects to be able to get inside the container and potentially contaminate your cat’s litter. This system isn’t airtight, but it’s an effective enough seal that we have never noticed bad odors coming from the receptacle. More airtight waste receptacles may allow less odor to vent into the surroundings, but can also accumulate stink, so that a terrible smell awaits you every time you empty it. This puts the Litter Genie in an optimal middle ground—the spring-loaded door closes the bag enough to tamp down odors, but doesn’t create an airtight seal that retains moisture and smells.
Many cats, especially senior cats, cats with arthritis, or long-haired cats, may prefer a low-sided box as they are easier to get in and out of the box. They also allow the cat to get in and out without rubbing against the box. There are many options out there that are targeted toward senior cats, but they may not actually be a great option as the walls are still too high. If your cat has mobility issues or arthritis, you’ll want to choose the easiest box to get in and out of for your cat. Trays Galore While scooping litter should be considered a daily task—providing your cat or cats with a place where they can do their business without having to dig around other piles of their own waste—complete litter changes are not needed nearly as often. While full litter change timing can vary from household to household, typically you should be completely refreshing your cat’s litter and cleaning the interior of their litter box about once a month. This will ensure that smells won’t accumulate and that litter will continue to effectively clump and seal in odors. That’s it! Not too hard, right? You can even use the lid of the storage bin as a tray to catch wandering litter as your cat exits the box. What do we do in these cases? Get crafty! Your cat won’t know if the litter box you provide them wasn’t marketed as a litter box so you can easily make a DIY litter box. The best choice of litter box may be one you make yourself. For some boxes, it’s as easy as just filling the box with litter. Others require a bit of work on your part. Regardless, there are many great options for your cat to get a custom litter box that they’ll happily use. A different kind of box. Photo by Jiawei Zhao Storage Tub Litter BoxHere’s why it’s not: a full bag of waste in a Litter Genie Plus is already an unwieldy burden, and can weigh as much as ten pounds. The Plus provides a decent maximum for the amount of cat waste we want to handle at any one time. Also, it’s polite to bag cat waste in with an outgoing trash bag, so your garbage collectors don’t have to deal with your cat poop directly. The big bags that come out of our Litter Genie Plus are already enough to put a serious strain on our standard kitchen garbage bags. Other options are to add a nail or small hook to the wall next to the litter box and hang your scoop. Almost every litter scoop on the market has a hole at the end of the handle or a loop to hang it. Thankfully, as you may expect at this point in the blog, you have options of things you can try instead of a commercially available box! A great choice is an under-the-bed storage tote. These tubs tend to be very wide and flat to fit under most beds. They have plenty of room for your cat to turn around in and bury their waste. Plus, for cats that tend to pee over the box, your cat is more likely to land in the box!
The Petfusion Portable Cat Litter Disposal lets you use bags of your choice, clipping each bag on to an inner basket that then nests inside a utilitarian receptacle with a convenient carry handle. While not a complete “litter disposal system” like our favorite, the Litter Genie Plus, the Petfusion receptacle is an excellent alternative to keeping a small trash can next to your litter box. While there are many things that can drive a cat to not want to use their litter box including the location, the type of litter, or a medical problem, one of the biggest problems I see with clients is the box itself. In many cases, they haven’t found a box that meets their cats’ preferences while balancing the human needs of keeping a clean home. The system comes in two sizes, Original and XL, and we recommend the latter option for most adult cats. For homes with one cat, a pee pad can last up to a week (less so in homes with multiple cats), and to replace the pad, a tray easily slides out. The litter box has three and a half walls over a foot high to prevent splatter, and it comes with a scoop for expediting the removal of solids. A variation you could try would be cutting a circle in the box to keep the wall intact. Make sure the circle is wide enough that your cat can easily get in and out without having to squeeze and that the entrance is low enough for easy access. Same as before, make sure you sand the entire edge of the circle entrance and cover any rough parts with duct tape. One downside to these storage tubs? They usually have taller edges so they’re not quite as great for cats with mobility issues. There’s an easy fix, however, if you follow the same procedures listed in the storage tub litter box to lower the sides. You can easily bring the edge of the box down a couple of inches so your cat can get in and out without problems. Repurposing The PoolMy favorite low sided box is a boot tray. As they’re made for dirty boots, they’re usually water proof and easy to clean up. Some may even have anti-slip features! The lip is usually a bit higher than some of the other suggestions I have, but not too high to defeat the point of being a low sided box. This helps keep the litter where you want it! Lunch Trays This will allow you to store litter in a sealed container and scoop enough litter at a time that it won’t take too long to fill up a litter box, but also won’t be too heavy. For cats that really like a wide amount of space (or, if you’re a client of mine and we’re testing out a variety of litters at once), you can really go big with a kiddie or pet pool. These are nice and wide so your cat will have a lot of room to move around and decide where to go in it! Yes, they take up space, but if your cat really wants a nice, big area to do their business in, you don’t get much better than a pool.
For any of these ultra-low-sided litter boxes, you may run into the litter getting flung out if your cat is a digger. Besides creating an outer shell, you can also buy a litter shield. This gets set up outside the box so your cat doesn’t lose any valuable litter space. Just make sure you get a mat for under the box. Large Litter Boxes Handle and spout make it easier to lift and pour litter than when pouring from bags that allow litter to shift and more to pour out than intended. A large plastic storage tote (bigger is better and one with a flat bottom and straight walls is best)Whisker Litter-Robot 4 is a technology-powered litter box that takes away the need for daily scooping. The price tag is significantly higher than other litter boxes, but its ability to provide a fresh bathroom experience for multiple cats is unmatched. However, the Modkat Litter Keeper has a number of compensations. For one, you can use either Modkat’s Type H liners or bags of your choice—including grocery bags. There’s also an integrated filter compartment, and it comes with two charcoal filters.
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