Choosing the Right Cat Litter for your Pet

Choosing the right cat litter is getting harder as cat litter changing – and kitty litter boxes in general – are not the most glamorous of things. But, our poor pets need a clean litter box in order to – ahem – do their business in peace, and in order to stay healthy. Choosing the right kind of cat litter really is necessary in order to keep your pet healthy and happy. (Oh, and according to Wikipedia – a cat litter box is a place where urine and feces are collected and then disposed of. Ugh. Am I the only cat Mommy who chooses to call it ‘cleaning out the cat poopies?’ Right, I likely am! But you probably have your own super cute phrase to make cleaning out the cat litter a lot easier to tackle. Whatever makes it happier work, am I right?)

Thankfully, there are so many kinds of cat litter to choose from! We’ll discuss a few types you might decide on for your kit cat.

Behold! The mighty litter box.

Choosing the Right Cat Litter – The 5 Best Types of Cat Litter

1. Clay – this is the most typical litter available on the market. Clay cat litter is available in both clumping and non-clumping varieties. With regular (non-clumping) cat litter, litter box changing is a bigger chore! You’ll have to dump out the entire contents of the litter box, and scrub the box out. With clumping cat litter, you can very easily use a specially designed scoop to scoop out the clumps of poop and pee, and dispose of it. Far easier! New formulas are virtually dust-free, so far healthier for your cat.
2. Walnut – I am a big fan of Naturally Fresh walnut cat litter. As far as I’m concerned, there is no other litter that as safely and naturally absorbs cat litter odor. With our newest pet – Milo – we use a combination of this crushed walnut shell litter and clumping clay litter (very low dust variety). We find the combination allows for effective clumping – and easy removal of those clumps – and also the best odor absorption of cat litter on the market. Awesome!  
3. Pine, corn cob or wheat cat litter – These are other natural alternatives to clay cat litter. Each claims to absorb odor and effectively contain the mess of litter boxes. If you have tried these varieties, please leave a comment and let us know which is your favourite.
4. Recycled paper cat litter – A variety of companies are using old newspapers to create litter! I absolutely love this idea (it’s a great visual of reading the paper one day and the next – voila! Cat litter box filler!) The reviews on such products are getting better all the time -many of the brands Amazon carries, for instance, receives a minimum of a 4 star rating. Some of the brands that are currently available are Purina Yesterday’s News, Fresh News, and more. Apparently, newspaper cat litter is more absorbent than traditional clay litter – since these cat litters are often made of little compressed pellets of old newsprint.  Newspaper litter is also far lower in dust, AND this type of litter is lightweight, making it easy to carry and move around. (Great if you find the typical cat litter just too heavy to carry.)
5. Silica crystal cat litter – Now this is a new one for me! And in fact, this variety of cat litter is still one of the newest types to come onto the market. Ooh, high tech cat litter for your kitty! Again, this is a very low-dust option. And, this cat litter has an amazing trick up its sleeve! You never again have to scoop out clumps of urine – it is absorbed and just goes away! (Don’t ask me how – this is not a science blog. But it’s fascinating nevertheless.) So, every day you’ll just need to scoop away the feces in the litter box. Silica is also highly odor absorbent – another plus, especially when you have a litter box in a small apartment.
6. Soy bean cat litter – This one is brand new to me, and I find it fascinating! Branded as I Am Tofu Cat litter, it is made of dehydrated, dried and sterilized soya beans, mixed together with a small amount of corn starch. This litter is 100% biodegradable and is even safe to flush in the toilet! (If you try this one out, please leave a comment to let us know what you thought of the soy bean litter.)

Cat litter is changing and evolving all the time! From one old fashioned option of clay litter, you as a responsible pet owner now have a variety of choices of the best litter to choose for your cat. Please always keep in mind the recommendation of your veterinarian – certain cats may have health concerns that will help you determine which litter to choose. Otherwise, we’ll keep searching to give you all the cat litter options available to make life a little more pleasant for you and your felines!

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