We have 2 cats who stay upstairs mostly b/c we also have a dog who stays downstairs. It is only 2 bedrooms and a bathroom up there so we have the litter box in a little bathroom alcove. We like it there except the litter gets all over and then we walk on it after showering, etc. We have a small rug and special litter mat right outside but that only helps so much. Any better ways to keep it from spreading? I was thinking maybe a small board they have to jump over to get to the box... Not sure :)
we use Feline pine cat littler and it is MUCH less mess and it helps if you've got a cover for it so when getting out cat can't get out of it any which way they want.
I got a cabinet thing for mine at petco.
My brother solved this problem by buying a large rectangular Rubbermaid box, took the lid off, and set the litter pan inside. It was probably 3 feet long or so, but the cats easily jumped in and out and no litter anywhere!
Well I'll tell you what we did. We took our front closet and turned it into a "kitty room. We installed a small cat door and put inside a covered cat box with a turf (heavy, thick turf) like welcome rug in front of it, food and water. Helped with keeping the kids and our pug out of the box and provided alot of privacy for our older cat. Worked for us but maybe not something you interested in doing. Also don't know if you interested but we stopped using cat littler all together and now use a pine pellet from the feed store that is used for horse stalls. LOVE it. Does not track and smells great. I only have one cat and clean the box out once a week. Dump the whole thing out and put in a new amount of pellets. 50 lbs for about 6 bucks. Last forever and is all natural too.
Best Regards,
C.
Get the kind of litter box with the top lip curling inward. That will help keep the litter inside when they scratch at it. That and get one of those mats to put outside for them to wipe their feet on when they get out. Or you could try an enclosed litter box.
Since cats like to bury their business, it is unlikely you will be able to contain all of their mess! I have never heard of the one with the hole in the top, that sounds interesting. We have use the ones with the lids and the hold in the side. That helps a little bit, but some cats don't like to feel closed in.
Just remember, anytime you change boxes, don't get rid of your old system. If you do, you chance upsetting the cats and they may stop using a box all together!!
Also keep in ming that putting too much litter in the box can result is a big mess. Make sure you are not over filling them. And some cats will make a huge mess searching for a clean spot to go, so make sure you empty the boxes frequently.
It is suggested you have 1 box per cat. Now this is not always feasible. We 3 cats. We keep 2 boxes in the office, one inthe garage in case they sneak out and 1 in the basement in case they sneak down there.
I hope you get some great responses.
I love cats, but the older I get, the more I am done with the cat box and the litter and the whole entire thing. When the cat we have, God bless him, is gone...there will be no more cats. I will enjoy other people's cats and hold and pet them, but I'm just done with it. We have a nice cat box with a lid and you'd think that keeps some of the mess down, but it doesn't.
I hope you find something that works.
At one time we had three cats. It was a mess. Leo would splash dry food and litter all over. The other two not as much. We are now down to one cat and its much better. I would recommend a deep pile piece of rug 2-3 times the size of the litter box, that will trap and retain litter better. Periodic cleaning after that. Good luck.
We have the same problem with our cat. Litter everywhere. We just bought the litter box where he can enter from the top.....like Thea said, it's like a rubbermaid bin with a hole in the lid. It has been great! There hasn't been more than a couple grains of litter outside the box.
Whatever you decide to do, the guy at Petsmart recommended that when you change to a new box to put some of their urine and feces in the new box so they will know that the new box is strictly for potty and not playing or sleeping.
Good luck
My sister has a covered litter box, because they live in an apartment and have two cats. It's kind of like a cat carrier, with a door in the front, but there's a lip they have to jump over. So yes, some littler probably comes out that little door, but mostly it keeps it contained.
They sell litter boxes (and you could easily do this yourself as well) that are basically a rubbermaid container with a whole cut in the lid. The kitties have to jump up and then go down into the box, then jump back up and out. It's supposed to keep them from kicking sand out and also cut back on the occasional accidental pee outside the box (when they forget to bring their butts all the way in). I haven't tried one because one of my cats is both fat and picky and I'm afraid she either wouldn't want to or wouldn't be able to use that style of box, but it might work for you.
HTH
T.
If your husband is handy have him build a wooden box that the litter box can sit in it does not have to be higher then the litter box just wider so the litter falls in to the box . Then have a mat outside the box for the cats to scratch to get the litter off their feet .
I have seen these litter box towers online that are like a cabinet that the litter box goes in the bottom, and then there are a couple of ramps that have those litter mats on the ramps, and the cats come out the top of the cabinet after climbing up which knocks most of the litter off thier paws. And since the whole thing is enclosed, they aren't flinging it everywhere. They are kind of pricey, but much nicer than seeing a litter box in the corner, and they cut down on the mess immensely. I don't know what they are called, but I found them just by googling something like litter box cabinet or something.
I had the same problem and you can try two things... 1-Get a litter box that has a lid that will prevent them from throwing it outside the little box 2 - Change the kitty litter often 3-4 times a week.
If you have a basement or attached garage, you could consider other places for the box (ours is in our basement since we have one with a cat door now). I had friends who used a closet for their cats, too. Our closet (small duplex) is actually our computer "room" with shelves built-in since our kids had a lovely habit of deleting things or turning the computer off anytime you blinked. :)
If you are already taking up space for the mat, try turning the box to the wall or a corner so that cats actually have to step out and turn. Our cat will shake his paws off when he gets out, which sprays litter. That might contain it a bit more. If you also check out a hardware store or something, or even the storage aisle at a regular store, you could try a larger shallow bin or tub (like an under-bed storage tote) that the box can sit in with the rug in front, and the whole thing might keep things contained a bit better with the sides acting as a "splash" guard of sorts. I know when cats have surgery (declawing) they often commend shredded paper for litter--you could always try something else that does not fling quite so easily. I haven't tried the pellets Caroline suggested but they sound interesting.
we went to aldi's and got a box that was pretty much the same size as the cat litter box. it was open on one side so they had to go in and out of that side only. then put a small rug down. the box caught a lot of the litter that they scratched and sent flying. the sides of the box was about a foot taller than the litter box so no excess litter flying around. good luck
We had a cardboard box bigger than the littler box we kept the litter box in when we had cats. I put a plastic liner in there to help keep it clean, but every once in awhile we threw away the box and replaced it with a nice new clean one.
