Bing doesn’t want you to read this

Earlier today I’d written a lovely entry about cats, complete with photo, to submit to the weekly Carnival of the Cats.  I worked on it for about 20 minutes or so, and just as I was about to finish, Bing jumped up in front of my monitor, took a big bounce off the keyboard onto the floor, and somehow managed to delete the entire thing.  I’ve been pondering it for 12 hours and I still have no idea how she accomplished it… she must have highlighted the entire entry, then hit “delete” or “space” or “enter”, and did it all in the blink of an eye.  I can’t even think of how to highlight all the text here unless I right-click and do a “select all”, or do more complicated, “Ctrl-A”, so I’m totally bewildered by Bing’s computer magic.  I’d hoped she’d somehow pasted the missing text onto the clipboard, but nope, she just made it vanish.  I’ve taken the precaution of closing her and her siblings in one of the bedrooms while I tackle this, because if she deletes me again I might cry.

Perhaps she was angry at me because I’m using this entry for another photo of her brother, Tie.  It’s not as if there aren’t dozens of photos of Bing in my photo gallery, (she’s very photogenic), so she has no reason to be jealous.  I chose this photo of Tie because I took it yesterday, while he and I were surfing the web together.  He loves sitting in front of my monitor and watching the screen (not deleting anything—Bing, take a note), and yesterday we visited the blog Melange to read about the escapades of the handsome Mr. Rhett.  Tie was admiring Mr. Rhett’s photo and I grabbed the camera to take a picture, but as soon as the lens cap popped off, he turned around to get a closer look at what I was up to:

image

He’s so homely he’s cute, and I mean that in the nicest possible way.  He’s outgoing and cuddly, and has a wonderful personality.  He’s was the first kitten to break the Jackson and Chelsea “paws off” barrier, and the first to become friends with the dogs.  He’s still not sure if he likes German shepherds, but he does enjoy curling up in bed for a nap.  He has a dozen little white hairs on his chest so you can identify him in a police lineup.  Flippy and I wonder if he’s truly a “black Siamese” (one of his siblings is Siamese, one isn’t), or just a run-of-the-mill domestic shorthair, but his head is so angular you could teach a geometry lesson with it.  It’s a sharp contrast to one of our other black cats, Frank, who has a wide, blocky head, like a heavyweight who’s lost one-too-many battles.  We now have three black cats running around the house, which isn’t lucky for any of our light-coloured furniture, but will hopefully be lucky for us smile

Having seven cats isn’t much different than having four, but it’s taking a toll on the litterboxes and our noses.  Right now I’ve got three litterboxes on the go, which I know violates the “one litterbox per cat” rule, but they’re huge, 25 gallon Rubbermaid containers and not conventional litterboxes.  Each container is at least the equivalent of two regular litterboxes, if not three.  They get emptied four times a day on a schedule, but as we work from home, they usually just get emptied whenever I hear a cat using one of them.  My problem is that I can’t find a cat litter that I’m happy with.  I started by using Fresh Step, I think, and dutifully collected my “Paw Points” until I could redeem for a gift.  By that point the perfumed smell of the Fresh Step was making us feel sort of nauseous, and despite the guarantee of it being something like “99% dust free”, it was still pretty dusty.  I put a dust mask on my Amazon wishlist so I’d have it to wear when I scooped, that’s how concerned I became about dust.  I tried another brand, the unscented litter Dr. Elsey’s Precious Cat Ultra, and I liked it because the granules were larger and it wasn’t as dusty.  I found the bags difficult to manage, though—it only comes in 40 lb. bags which I have trouble carrying up the stairs, and trouble lifting to dump in the litterboxes.  I had quite a bit of neck discomfort after a couple of weeks of Dr. Elsey’s.  I then took one litterbox and tried “Swheat Scoop”, which has a totally stupid name, but it’s a good concept and it clumps well.  I noticed that the oldest cat, Chelsea, avoided the Swheat Scoop box and used the other boxes instead, so Chelsea seems to give it a thumbs down.

I’d be really interested in knowing what brands of cat litter other people with multiple cats use.  I do want something which clumps, if possible, but I don’t need it to be flushable.  I don’t mind if it has baking soda or an odor neutralizer, but I’m really not happy with the continuous faux-floral scent of some the of the major brands.  I’m inclined to keep using the Dr. Elsey’s product, even though I can only buy it at Petsmart, and even though I find the bags awkward, but I’m open to suggestions.  I just want something which keeps the litterboxes as clean as possible (i.e., good clumps which don’t fracture and crumble when I remove them), and something which isn’t dusty.  The cats and I are all going to die from some lung disease if we keep using that dusty stuff.  I like the idea of products like Feline Pine, but I’d rather avoid a product which “breaks down” as it would be impractical to have to completely empty the 25 gallon litterboxes on a frequent basis (I wipe them down inside daily, and do occasionally dump out the entire box to start with fresh litter, but I don’t want to *have* to wrangle with doing that frequently if it can be avoided).  I tried the absorbing crystals and just found them smelly.  By the way, in case you wonder why I use the Rubbermaid containers, it’s because Jackson “pees standing up”.  I need to use a box with very high sides or he just urinates over the side… even with these deep containers he still often hits the very upper edge of the box.  It doesn’t seem to be malicious “spraying”, it just seems to be his technique.  In any case, if you have any suggestions or recommendations on the subject of cat litter, I’d love it if you’d post them in the comments.

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 03/18 at 09:02 PM

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  1. With seven cats I can certainly understand your concerns.  Personally, I use Pet Valu non scented clumping litter.  Pet Valu is a chain of pet stores here in Winnipeg.  Don’t know how prevalent they are in other areas… but I like many of their products.

    Our situations are quite different.. as I only have to provide for one feline.. my handsome Mr. Bear.  I do find this litter a little dusty but the box is in the basement and this does not cause us much concern. Otherwise it clumps nicely and Bear seems agreeable to it. 

    Wishing you all the best in your quest and will be staying tuned to read the results. Definitely of interest to any cat owner.

    Posted by Simply Coll  on  03/19  at  06:22 AM

  2. Mr. Rhett is not totally Siamese.  He has a patch of white on his tummy and his sister has an even larger patch there.  We too have seven cats and while the litter we use is ok, I’ve noticed that it too has quite a bit of dust.  I think my dad gets the local brand here.  I used to use Tidy Cat for multiple cats and it worked well.  Right now it is nap time and I would love to take one but my bed is taken.

    Posted by srp  on  03/19  at  08:17 AM

  3. Cat’s Pride. I use the clay non-scoopable because I am not a four-times-a-day scooper, and my cats insist on using one box for all their urinary needs (can you say “instant cement?") But my adopters (fewer cats) use the scoopable. It doesn’t stink like pepto bismol.

    Posted by Susan  on  03/19  at  08:39 AM

  4. In case anyone has the impression I’m anal-retentive, the only reason I scoop the litterboxes 4+ times per day is because they’re located in areas of the house we use frequently, like our “TV room” one of our bathrooms, and our “office”.  Nothing says “I don’t have an appetite” like sitting down to eat in front of the TV and having the smell of the litterbox waft in your direction.  So, I’ve got a little routine down, where I scoop when I get up in the morning, scoop again after everyone has had breakfast and has made a potty trip, scoop before the cats have their dinner, and then scoop before we eat our dinner.  I also scoop before we go to bed… you can see how I’m getting well-developed scooping muscles.

    Colleen, for some reason, homes in the southwestern US don’t seem to have basements.  I’ve lived in new homes in New Mexico, California, and Nevada, and there wasn’t a basement to be found.  Part of the reason in Nevada is that the ground in some areas is made of a concrete-like substance ("caliche"), but I still wish they were more prevalent.  Not only would it be a cool retreat in the summer, it would be a perfect location for a litterbox.  I’d happily curb my desire to eat in the basement in exchange for being able to put a litterbox there!

    Posted by Leigh-Ann  on  03/19  at  12:56 PM

  5. Hi, its amazing how cats can use keyboards!  Velvet has sent several emails when I am halfway through typing, and renamed files with random ‘paw-strokes’.

    Posted by Judith  on  03/20  at  01:04 AM

  6. We use Tidy Cat, which is fine but not great. I’m reading the replies with interest. Our litter box is covered, which helps a bit and we only have the one cat.

    Posted by Diana  on  03/20  at  03:27 AM

  7. I don’t have any cats, my sister has 4 and I have heard good things about World’s best Cat Litter. They have two types; regular and extra strength for multiple cat households like yours. You can search for retailers on their website.

    http://www.worldsbestcatlitter.com/

    Posted by Cheryl  on  03/20  at  06:15 AM

  8. Hmmm… the “World’s Best Cat Litter” is pricey, but does seem to be available at Petsmart and Petco, which is a plus.  I may buy a box and see how I feel about it—I’ll try it in just one litterbox for comparison purposes.

    Also, I was reading the website of an animal rescue group today, and they recommended “Cat’s Pride” litter, specifically because it wasn’t dusty.  I’m pretty sure I’ve seen that one at the grocery store, so I’ll add it to my shopping list.

    Eventually, I’ll report back smile

    Posted by Leigh-Ann  on  03/21  at  08:33 PM

  9. Three cats in a small mobile home. It’s quite odiferious here at times…

    We use Tidy Cats Scoop for multiple cats. It’s not perfect, but it’s better than all the rest out there, readily available in rural NH, and not particularly pricey. It doesn’t smell, only tracks a smidge, clumps well (although you have to clean the box every day or it turns into cement on the bottom of the box). The best part is the containers are reusable. We use them for compost, recycling, and rotate in the new container when the old one gets smelly.

    Posted by Nio  on  03/23  at  03:32 AM

  10. Thanks for the litter tip, Nio.  I was going to start with “World’s Best Cat Litter” for my test run, as it got two thumbs up from the woman at the pet store, but I forgot to buy it.  Duh.  I’ll try to get it next week.

    Posted by Leigh-Ann  on  03/25  at  10:11 PM
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