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Litter choice to use with litter robot

ellebutt

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Hi all!
Long time lurker, first time poster. Just got my nekkid baby a month ago and finally picked up a litter robot. In looking at the directions, it says you can use crystal litter or clumping. I’m hoping for feedback about which litter is better. My baby (chyle) sometimes has pretty soft poop which I’m working on so I’d like to use a litter that’s not going to be a total mess if his feces is a little (or a lot) runny.
Does anyone have experience with either type of litter and runny poo with a litter robot? I’m waiting to set it up before I decide which litter is best to use.
Thanks!!
 

Duglynukem

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@ellebutt We use Arm & Hammer Clump and Seal Slide. When Cleo was having runny poop I set the Litter Robot to the longest setting. This allows more time for clumping.

A couple of cautions: the Litter Robot has a weight sensor that starts the timer and also is the safety stop if your cat gets back in while it’s operating. Kittens 5lbs or less won’t trigger it.

Not sure what Chyle weighs but Cleo got her tail caught and wound up in the emergency room. After that we turned the Litter Robot off and only cycled it when we were present. Now that she’s older and 9 lbs the auto function works fine.
 
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ellebutt

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Thanks for the advice! I plan to use it on the manual setting for a while. Chyle is still too small to cycle it. I didn’t think about the clumping time being a factor. That’s a great thing to know.
 

ellebutt

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Clumping corn? I’ve never heard of that. It sounds less messy than the clay. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a litter box but I remember the clay being so yucky. Plus he stinks so it would be nice to use something that keeps down the smell.
 

NinaGato

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Clumping corn? I’ve never heard of that. It sounds less messy than the clay. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a litter box but I remember the clay being so yucky. Plus he stinks so it would be nice to use something that keeps down the smell.
I use worlds best brand. Wolfgang cannot use clay litter because it gives him respiratory infections. I'm not sure if it less messy but I won't go back to clay.
 

Yoda mom

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@ellebutt , so glad you jumped in to post with this fun friendly bunch

Keep us updated on what works or your boy with the litter robot


Do you have pics of him to share with us ?
 

ellebutt

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So I tried wee kitty litter that I found on amazon. so far, I really like it. I cleaned his old box and used it to ease chyle into the changes, as I figured new box AND new litter would be a lot for the little man. Before I could finish pouring the whole bag in the cleaned box, he hopped in and pooped!!
The wee kitty is easy to scoop, clumps well and so far doesn’t stink. Only problem is that I put it in the litter robot and the pellets appear too big to go through the sifter reliably. The whole fresh bag got dumped right into the waste drawer. So I’m still searching for something similar I can use in the litter robot but in the meantime I’ll use wee kitty in the old box and just scoop. Chyle is the only cat that uses the box- the other one goes outside- so it’s not too bad. And so far after several uses, there’s been no smell. I just scoop and flush!
 

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ellebutt

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Sorry I’m advance for the long post. There’s so much to litter than there used to be. Ok, so I’ve become obsessed with cat litter. The last time I had an indoor box, clay was the only option as there were no other clumping types that were corn or wheat based. I had a cat genie for a while which I loved but where I live now I only have 1 bathroom so no place to hook it up to a water source. When I moved here, my cat decided he wanted to go outside so I stopped having a box inside during the summer and used a box with a drain tray and non-absorbing litter in the winter. But this box stinks because of the urine build up and is kind of a pain for daily use with a kitten that had runny poo.
Maybe I should start another threat but I’m interested in people opinions of natural litter. The grain based stuff, ideally a clumping litter. I came across a coconut based product that seems interesting. It’s called catspot. Anyone have experience with this? I’m trying to avoid changing litter too many times but since chyle is young and curious (and so far has accepted all of the litter he’s been exposed to) I think it’s the prime time to do a little bit of experimentation and see what works best for us.
Ideally what I settle on will be small enough to fit through the sift holes in the litter robot (so granular or close to it and not pellets) but I’m willing to scoop a box of it means the house doesn’t smell like a cats toilet.
 

Bailey21

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I don't have much contribution about the natural types of litters, I just wanted to comment how adorable that little bowtie is on your baby!! Very handsome :love:
 

NinaGato

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Honestly, I mis the corn a wheat litter together sometimes depending on what is on sale. I haven't had luck with other natural litter being absorbent enough and some are too light weight for the litter robot to work properly. It has to have at least 7 pounds of litter in the resptical.
 

Condo commando

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@ellebutt I think I share your obsession with cat litter and especially a natural one. The one I use is made from grass. At first I was buying SmartCat All Natural grass litter. Then I discovered Drs Smith and Foster sells their own brand for less money so I tried it. I would swear the Drs Smith and Foster grass litter is just SmartCat rebranded. Anyway I really like it ....but be warned it's very lightweight so maybe it's too light for the litter robot based on what @NinaGato said.
 

ellebutt

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I don't have much contribution about the natural types of litters, I just wanted to comment how adorable that little bowtie is on your baby!! Very handsome :love:
Thank you!! I'm in love with him!!! He's definitely something else. And he's definitely running this multi dog, single human household. Lol.

@Condo commando @Sheldon13 thank you for the information. I didn't know about the weight minimum for the litter. I guess it's an experiment on multiple levels. And I had no idea there was a grass based litter. I didn't see that in my research on natural litters, I'll have to look again.
I ordered naturally fresh walnut based litter as all as world's best corn based litter and okocat wood litter. What ever doesn't work in the litter robot can go in the manual box I bought in case the litter robot didn't work out.
I'm happy to keep everyone posted if there's interest.
 

Yoda mom

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Great info shared !

Head smooches to your baby Chyle ..soooo adorable
Keep us updated what litter you find world best
It will be helpful to all of us
Thanks!
 

ellebutt

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So chyle and I have made our way through a 20lb bag of world's best. I think it would have lasted longer if I'd used less initially and not refilled it so often as extra gets poured into the waste drawer during a cleaning cycle, but 6 weeks isn't bad at all for 1 bag of litter. It controlled odor well and worked perfectly with the litter robot. My only issue is that it didn't settle to the front after a cleaning cycle and chyle likes to pee at the edge so there were clumps not dislodged during a normal cearning cycle. This may have been partially due to the internal shield which I removed so he would crawl all the way into the box. So, I am loving the litter robot and I like the world's best litter so far. It tracks more than I'd like and sometimes it sticks to chyle's rear end (he's still intact so his "grapes" often get shoved into the litter when he squats) but it doesn't stink even sitting in the waste drawer for a week and I like that its natural and not dusty like clay. If this were the only litter I had, I think I'd be satisfied overall. Today I dumped out the little bit remaining and filled the bottom with walnut litter called naturally fresh multi cat. It was 19.99 for a 20lb bag on chewy.com so about 5 bucks more than world's best for the same size but so far I like it better because it seems to spread back out better after a clean cycle. Since I just started using it today, however, it has a long way to go so we will see how this one does.
 

ellebutt

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So Far, the walnut litter is about the same as world's best corn litter. And chyle is still peeing at the edge and the walnut has the same problem as the world's best corn in that it sticks to the bottom if he doesn't pee right in the middle. I think the litter will dry out and eventually come off during a cleaning cycle. But we shall see. So far, this litter does not seem to stick to him.
If others have suggestions for clumping non pelleted litter they would like me to try, I'm game. Chyle accepts new litter like a champ and I'm willing to try them all if it means finding the perfect litter for us.
 
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ellebutt

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Ok, I’m reviving this for an update. The walnut litter didn’t work as well as it seemed to at first. The problem was that it would clump to the bottom of the litter robot and then hang there when the globe was upside down. Furthermore, this tracked everywhere and didn’t clump well. The clumps fell apart and made a mess if I had to scoop manually and filled the litter drawer with walnut powder. I found this litter to be suboptimal for us even in the manual box I have as a backup.
After this we went to the oko , the wood litter and it’s too big to be sifted by the litter robot so into the manual box it went. Not terrible overall, but not able to use for the purpose for which it was purposed- my litter robot.
Most recently, I purchased a bag of Frisco grass litter and I like this the best next to the worlds best. It clumps well, doesn’t track terribly and doesn’t stink as much as other natural litters. It’s very lightweight and I think I found my next litter. The best two in my opinion are the worlds best corn litter and the Frisco grass litter.
If we are talking natural litters for a manual scooping box, I stil like the wee kitty the best. It’s a corn based pellet and clumps beautifully and control odor the best. For litter robot it’s too big so worlds best or Frisco would be my recommendations.
I encourage people to share their own experiences here as there are so many natural litters out there and choosing one can be challenging , especially if you’re dealing with an automatic box such as the litter robot
 

Condo commando

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Welcome to grass litter. About a month ago I bought 200 lbs of it to last me through the year, and then a couple of weeks ago I adopted a 3rd cat so now I wish I had bought more.

I'm always talking it up because I feel like there needs to be more competition so the price goes down. I think that's the only thing that holds some people back is the price. Chewy's got smart and came out with their own brand (Frisco) when they saw how the SmartCat one was selling.

I don't know Wee Kitty but I've tried World's Best before I discovered grass litter. WB was OK but I don't trust corn, which we know is an allergen to cats so much so we avoid it in cat food, so I decided I wasn't going to risk my cats walking in corn to do their business.
 

Sheldon13

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I agree! SmartCat litter is the best stuff. Ever. I would love it if there were multiple brands making the grass litter so it would be more affordable. My favorite thing about it is that it actually is dust-free.


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oolahappi

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After reading all of these great posts, I'm thinking about changing the type of litter I use with my robot, which is non-clumping crystals. I started using it with my furred cat because the clumping, clay stuff would get caught in her furry toes and get tracked up to my bed :/. But I like the idea of trying clumping again - a natural and flushable option.
 

Condo commando

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@oolahappi I don't think the grass litter is flushable. Some clumping litters say they are but be careful because the whole idea is that it clumps and that's exactly the opposite of what you want it to do inside your sewer line. But you can flush the solid deposits, just not the pee clumps.

I think I was like you.....I used non clumping clay for a long time because the first clumping litter I tried was awful, but now I wouldn't go back.
 

Sheldon13

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@oolahappi I don't think the grass litter is flushable. Some clumping litters say they are but be careful because the whole idea is that it clumps and that's exactly the opposite of what you want it to do inside your sewer line. But you can flush the solid deposits, just not the pee clumps.

I think I was like you.....I used non clumping clay for a long time because the first clumping litter I tried was awful, but now I wouldn't go back.

I always flush the poops because I don’t want those sitting in my trash. The pee clumps go in the waste basket under the sink.


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