Frugal kitty litter alternative?
Ellen Cotter
would be to use something called "barn lime", which he said is used on
farms to neutralize manure odors. Barn lime costs about 75 cents for a
25-pound bag, as compared to about 8 bucks for a 25-pound bag of the
stuff I've been using. The savings would be potentially enormous.
However, I don't know enough about either agriculture or chemistry to
know whether barn lime would be safe to use in a litter box. My friend
said that cows and horses walk around in it all the time, but of course
cats' paws are more tender than hooves; also, with all the grooming
cats do it would be almost certain that some of the barn lime would
get into the cat's mouth. Can anyone tell me whether or not barn lime
is a viable and safe alternative to kitty litter? (Suggestions for other
frugal cat litter alternatives are also welcome!) Thanks.
Ellen
Kathryn J Litherland
sandblasting grit as a *scoopable* cat little (whatta deal--I'd rather
use scoopable since my current cat is a little picky about the state of
his facilities). I don't remember what grade, however, nor do I know
where Joe-Schmoe-Not-A-Contractor would buy sandblasting grit. But I'm
sure someone over on that group can tell you more.
--
Kathy Litherland | People make their own history, |
Dept. of Anthropology | but they do not make it exactly | No hacemos el amor;
U. of Illinois | as they please. | El nos hace.
lit...@uiuc.edu | --K. Marx |
michelle r. tribe
litterbox, and changes it daily. If you have access to an open newspaper
recycling bin, this can be a free type of litter.
Michelle R. Tribe http://chat.carleton.ca/~mrtribe
return for refund where applicable by law
keep refrigerated
Nothing Added, Nothing Taken Away
bow...@eisner.decus.org
> would be to use something called "barn lime", which he said is used on
Don't know about the combo of Lime and Urine on a cats foot. Might be a little
"harsh" also, horses and cows don't lick their feet as do cats, so the large
animals don't have the ingestion problems that cats do.
We use "oil dry" that we get in 50 lb bags at Sam's for, I think, about $2.50 a
piece. It's real hard to tell the difference between the 2.
Bruce
Lloyd Sommerer
ZU0...@uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu (Ellen Cotter) wrote:
(Suggestions for other
> frugal cat litter alternatives are also welcome!) Thanks.
> Ellen
It seems to me that a very frugal idea is to toilet-train your cat. We
bought a book called _How to Toilet-Train Your Cat (21 Days to a
Litter-Free Home_ by Paul Kunkel Pub. Workman Publishing, NY
ISBN#O-89480-828-1.
It takes you through a 21-day training program for your cat, involving
moving the box into the bathroom, and raising it daily until it's at
toilet height. Then you move it over, etc. etc. etc. We haven't done
it yet because our bathroom is very small and there's no room for a litter
box. Once we move to a house with two bathrooms, we'll be litter-free
forever!!!
Lloyd & Lauren
vcla...@mail.eznet.net
(Suggestions for other
>>frugal cat litter alternatives are also welcome!) Thanks.
My mom always used dirt, and/or sand. Cheap - used to dig it out of the
yard. Environmentally friendly, too.
Vikki
Carolyn Capps
: It seems to me that a very frugal idea is to toilet-train your cat. We
: bought a book called _How to Toilet-Train Your Cat (21 Days to a
: Litter-Free Home_ by Paul Kunkel Pub. Workman Publishing, NY
: ISBN#O-89480-828-1.
I think you misspelled the subject title above. Shouldn't it have
been "Laughable products", referring to the book? I would certainly
like to see a blow-by-blow account of some cat owner who has actually
tried this. ROFL.
I have a cat-owner friend who has zero expense for kitty litter thanks
to his smart cat. He lives in a second-floor condo. The cat ripped a
hole in a window-screen. It goes through the screen, jumps down to the
roof, runs across the roof to a nearby tree, jumps to the tree, climbs
down to the ground, takes care of business, and then reverses the process
to come home. Fortunately my friend lives in San Diego where the weather
is warm enough to leave the window cracked enough for the cat to get out
all year long.
My friend used to keep the cat's litter-box in the bathtub of the guest
bathroom. I can tell you it is much more pleasant to visit there now
that the cat has trained him to leave the window open.
t...@iamerica.com
>A friend recently suggested that a cheap alternative to kitty litter
>would be to use something called "barn lime", which he said is used on
>farms to neutralize manure odors. Barn lime costs about 75 cents for a
>25-pound bag, as compared to about 8 bucks for a 25-pound bag of the
>stuff I've been using. The savings would be potentially enormous.
>However, I don't know enough about either agriculture or chemistry to
>know whether barn lime would be safe to use in a litter box. My friend
>said that cows and horses walk around in it all the time, but of course
>cats' paws are more tender than hooves; also, with all the grooming
>cats do it would be almost certain that some of the barn lime would
>get into the cat's mouth. Can anyone tell me whether or not barn lime
>is a viable and safe alternative to kitty litter? (Suggestions for other
>frugal cat litter alternatives are also welcome!) Thanks.
Don't use lime. It isn't safe either for you or your cat. The dust
will cause lung problems. It's caustic when handled damp. It makes
a good drain opener, though.
Cows and horses don't walk around in it all the time either. It's
lightly spead over a floor and covered by inches of bedding. If they
stand on lime it will destroy the hoof wall.
Try sawdust or woodshavings. Some cats will use them instead of sand
or clay litters. Just avoid cedar, since most cats don't like the
smell. Try a small amount first, and change over by stages. You can
get compressed shavings in bales at the feed store the horse people
use. It's cheap and effective.
Some people use cheap Alfalfa pellets ($6-7 50lbs) for the odor
control.
Barbara
bpa...@primenet.com
>It seems to me that a very frugal idea is to toilet-train your cat. We
>bought a book called _How to Toilet-Train Your Cat (21 Days to a
>Litter-Free Home_ by Paul Kunkel Pub. Workman Publishing, NY
>ISBN#O-89480-828-1.
> It takes you through a 21-day training program for your cat, involving
>moving the box into the bathroom, and raising it daily until it's at
>toilet height. Then you move it over, etc. etc. etc. We haven't done
>it yet because our bathroom is very small and there's no room for a litter
>box. Once we move to a house with two bathrooms, we'll be litter-free
>forever!!!
I did this once. Made it successfully to the point where I was using
a small washbowl that fit just right on the rim of the toilet, filled
with cat litter. The cat used it just fine. Unfortunately, she never
made the transition of using the toilet without the litter "bowl" in
it. But I know that others have done it successfully.
Bev =^.^= bpa...@primenet.com
John and/or Mari Morgan
> Lloyd Sommerer (LSom...@LTEC.NET) wrote:
> : It seems to me that a very frugal idea is to toilet-train your cat. We
> : bought a book called _How to Toilet-Train Your Cat (21 Days to a
> : Litter-Free Home_ by Paul Kunkel Pub. Workman Publishing, NY
> : ISBN#O-89480-828-1.
>
> I think you misspelled the subject title above. Shouldn't it have
> been "Laughable products", referring to the book? I would certainly
> like to see a blow-by-blow account of some cat owner who has actually
> tried this. ROFL.
>
Try raising this question over in rec.pets.cats - you'll get flooded with
the blow-by-blow accounts you want. I've also seen a similar thread in
rec.pets.dogs - apparently you can train larger dogs to use the commode
as well, with good results. Some of them can even be trained to flush.
> My friend used to keep the cat's litter-box in the bathtub of the guest
> bathroom. I can tell you it is much more pleasant to visit there now
> that the cat has trained him to leave the window open.
>
In many locations it is less than safe to let cats go outside (traffic,
cat-killing dogs, feral cats, lunatics who swipe pet animals - from
yards, even! - and sell them to labs for experimentation). Should those
who do not live in "perfect" conditions for indoor-outdoor cats not be
permitted to have them? Get real, m'dearie - I'd certainly prefer a
well-cleaned litterbox and box-trained cat to a flat cat anyday. And that
is MUCH preferable, IMO, than the twerps who let their dogs shit on the
sidewalks and don't "scoop the poop." (I had the throw out a very nice
pair of suede shoes after stepping in a huge pile of doggie doo on the
sidewalk late at night - hard to see a dark pile on a dark sidewalk in
the dark, you know? Couldn't get the stains off or the smell out of the
suede. Grrrr!) Oh, well, like anyone cares. *shrug*
---Mari
John and Mari Morgan mor...@shore.net Dyrk & Thymeless on IRC
"Keep the nightlight on inside the birdhouse in your soul." (TMBG - _Flood_)
Address change delayed. Please be patient. We'll keep you posted.
Michael Lofstead
you know your cat's personality type very well first.
i tried doing this with a male i have when he was younger and he disliked
the lack of the scratching/digging aspect of it so much, he decided that
he would just find alternate spots to do the deed and then would attempt
to cover it with other things like scrunched up throw rugs, magazines, or
whatever else was in the vicinity of his spot that day.
he's mildly inconsistent about the litter box to this day.
i do imagine that it could work with some cats, but this particular cat's
personality should have told me not to try such a thing. it'd be cool if
someone could get it to work, but it's not without some risk and
aggrevation.
-m.
George Succi
>
>A co-worker of mine who breeds cats shreds read newspaper into the
>litterbox, and changes it daily. If you have access to an open newspaper
>recycling bin, this can be a free type of litter.
I do not know about your cats, but mine would paper the halls with it. I say go
with stuff they are not tempted to play with.
George Succi
>>>frugal cat litter alternatives are also welcome!) Thanks.
>
>yard. Environmentally friendly, too.
>
Tina M. Wood
In a previous article, LSom...@LTEC.NET (Lloyd Sommerer) says:
>In article <177139BEDS...@uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu>,
>ZU0...@uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu (Ellen Cotter) wrote:
>
> (Suggestions for other
>> frugal cat litter alternatives are also welcome!) Thanks.
>> Ellen
>
>It seems to me that a very frugal idea is to toilet-train your cat.
[snip]
Does anyone know if this really works? A former roommate of mine got
a cat from a friend of hers who was moving. I think the friend had
been trying to toilet train the cat because the cat would always use our
bathtub for a litterbox! We even tried moving the litterbox into the
bathroom, but she wouldn't go for it. After dealing with that cat, I
for one will never try to toilet-train a cat, but YMMV, of course.
Tina W.
--
Tina M. Wood ____ | If you are against same-sex marriage,
al...@yfn.ysu.edu \ / | then don't have one.
tw...@qrd.org \/ |____________________________________________
Visit my homepage at http://drycas.club.cc.cmu.edu/~maire/home.html
WOODSS
NCR>==========John and/or Mari Morgan, 1/22/96==========
NCR>sidewalks and don't "scoop the poop." (I had the throw out a
very nice
NCR>pair of suede shoes after stepping in a huge pile of doggie
doo on the
NCR>sidewalk late at night - hard to see a dark pile on a dark
sidewalk in
NCR>the dark, you know? Couldn't get the stains off or the smell
out of the
NCR>suede. Grrrr!) Oh, well, like anyone cares. *shrug*
Let me guess, were they Blue?
You really need to let Elvis go! : - )
NCR>---Mari
NCR>
NCR>John and Mari Morgan mor...@shore.net Dyrk &
John Hicks
>In article <4e1746$m...@axe.netdoor.com>, finn...@netdoor.com (John & Suzanne Finnegan) writes:
>>>We use "oil dry" that we get in 50 lb bags at Sam's for, I think, about $2.50 a
>>>piece. It's real hard to tell the difference between the 2.
>>
>> What is "oil dry"? Does it clump?
>Oil Dry is what garages put on the shop floor when they spill oil, it's
>function is to absorb the oil (or cat pee :-). It's not a "clumping" litter
>like the stuff that comes in gallon jugs. It's more like "Tidy cat" or the
>other cement-based litters.
>Bruce
Hi, All
On this matter of cat litter and substituting "oil dry" the Cat's Pride brand
of cat litter is made by the OIL DRY company. My brother has two cats that use
either of the two products. He is a mechanic and the cats live in his garage.
They use either the cat box or the stuff on the floor of the garage. They can'ttell the difference or just don't care.
Thought ya'll might like to know.
John H.
bow...@eisner.decus.org
John & Suzanne Finnegan
>piece. It's real hard to tell the difference between the 2.
What is "oil dry"? Does it clump?
About toilet-training your cat: There was a TV program (maybe "That's
Incredible" ?) many years ago that showed a cat using the toilet and
flushing afterward. (If it's on TV, it must be true. [g] ) One of
my cousins has a cat that trained itself to do this; supposedly it
would insist on sitting in her lap while she was engaged there and
then one day she caught it doing what she'd been doing there. And has
been ever since. Very odd. Wish my cats would do it. Or that
someone would make me one of those Ren & Stimpy "Happiness Helmets"
so I would LIKE cleaning the litterbox.
Kokkarinen Ilkka
A couple of suggestions. The first one's not very responsible, but for
those in rural areas it may work fine.
1. Let your cat do its business outside. My first cat was a stray who
started hanging around, so I adopted him. He was in no way an indoor cat
though, and always went outside to fight/roam/love and dump. We never
spent a penny on cat litter.
2. Train your cat to use the toilet? I've seen this somewhere. Maybe on
that old show "those amazing animals"... You start once it's big enough
to jump to the toilet seat. I remember there was some sort of insert that
hangs of the edge in which you put a layer of litter. Gradually, the cat
gets used to going there, and you "phase out" the litter. It'll then
continue to use the toilet, as poopies going into water are about as
sanitary as poopies going into a sandbox, I guess. (The story I saw even
had the cat flushing, but that may take a bit more work). One thing I do
remember - whoever was presenting this said to "be prepared - your cat
may fall in once or twice, and you'll have to start from the beginning.
But in time it should get the hang of it and have no problems."
I intend to try this when I get my next cat, as I'm not too fond of
cleaning out the catbox. Has anyone here actually tried it with success?
I'd be interested in knowing more specifics!
--
Dani Kokkarinen "I call them `banged grains'. If you put salt
Tampere, Finland and butter on them, they taste like salty butter!"
Alicia Cosgrove
>
>
> In a previous article, LSom...@LTEC.NET (Lloyd Sommerer) says:
>
> >In article <177139BEDS...@uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu>,
> >ZU0...@uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu (Ellen Cotter) wrote:
> >
> > (Suggestions for other
> >> frugal cat litter alternatives are also welcome!) Thanks.
> >> Ellen
> >
> >It seems to me that a very frugal idea is to toilet-train your cat.
>
> [snip]
> Does anyone know if this really works? A former roommate of mine got
> a cat from a friend of hers who was moving. I think the friend had
> been trying to toilet train the cat because the cat would always use our
> bathtub for a litterbox! We even tried moving the litterbox into the
> bathroom, but she wouldn't go for it. After dealing with that cat, I
> for one will never try to toilet-train a cat, but YMMV, of course.
> Tina W.
I worked for a large vet hospital for a couple years, and I remember
a few people coming in terribly enthused about this potty-train-the-
cat book. It was also a popular book in the public library where I
worked. Lots of enthusiasm, no success stories. I even read the thing,
but didn't bother trying to train my cats. My littlest one, the one
who's really really sweet but not altogether brilliant, has to be
kept *out* of the toilet lest she do herself in succumbing to the
curiosity (gee, wonder where that hole goes?). The toilet lids in my
house have to stay down partly because of her and partly because my
boy kitties like to play NeenerNeenerDunkedYa.
I've heard friend-of-a-friend's-brother-in-law type 'testimonials'
but of all the people I know who are kept by cats, no one has been
successful in convincing them to use the potty.
Alicia
Gary Fisk
<ali0...@unccvm.uncc.edu> wrote:
> I worked for a large vet hospital for a couple years, and I remember
> a few people coming in terribly enthused about this potty-train-the-
> cat book. It was also a popular book in the public library where I
> worked. Lots of enthusiasm, no success stories. I even read the thing,
*snip*
>
> I've heard friend-of-a-friend's-brother-in-law type 'testimonials'
> but of all the people I know who are kept by cats, no one has been
> successful in convincing them to use the potty.
My suspicion is that it would be very hard to train a cat to reliably use
the toliet instead of the cat box. The reason is "instinctual drift" from
psychological learning theory. Put simply, instinctual drift means that
it will be difficult to teach animals anything that runs counter to
instinct. It seems to me that using the toilet would conflict with
instinct for cats, making it a difficult behavior to train.
Just my $0.02.
GF
--
Gary Fisk, Ph.D.
University of Alabama at Birmingham
** I am not a spokesperson for my employer or anyone else **
cper...@kean.ucs.mun.ca
>
> A couple of suggestions. The first one's not very responsible, but for
> those in rural areas it may work fine.
>
> 1. Let your cat do its business outside. My first cat was a stray who
> started hanging around, so I adopted him. He was in no way an indoor cat
> though, and always went outside to fight/roam/love and dump. We never
> spent a penny on cat litter.
Yeah, rural areas, OK. Anywhere that the lot size is larger than the cat's
home territory, fine. I love cats & gardening. I live in a urban area, I
don't let my cats dig holes in my neighbour's property. I wish those cats
from several streets away were as well-defined.
> 2. Train your cat to use the toilet? I've seen this somewhere. Maybe on
> that old show "those amazing animals"... You start once it's big enough
> to jump to the toilet seat. I remember there was some sort of insert that
> hangs of the edge in which you put a layer of litter. Gradually, the cat
> gets used to going there, and you "phase out" the litter. It'll then
> continue to use the toilet, as poopies going into water are about as
> sanitary as poopies going into a sandbox, I guess. (The story I saw even
> had the cat flushing, but that may take a bit more work). One thing I do
> remember - whoever was presenting this said to "be prepared - your cat
> may fall in once or twice, and you'll have to start from the beginning.
> But in time it should get the hang of it and have no problems."
>
> I intend to try this when I get my next cat, as I'm not too fond of
> cleaning out the catbox. Has anyone here actually tried it with success?
> I'd be interested in knowing more specifics!
>
> --
> Dani Kokkarinen "I call them `banged grains'. If you put salt
> Tampere, Finland and butter on them, they taste like salty butter!"
It can work. Check out rec.pets.cats. But most cats seem to like covering
their .. er .. deposits in cat litter. However, there have been cats who
have been trained this way.
I don't think it is common, though.
Cheryl
nobody@nowhere
>>
>>
>> In a previous article, LSom...@LTEC.NET (Lloyd Sommerer) says:
>>
>> >In article <177139BEDS...@uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu>,
>> >ZU0...@uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu (Ellen Cotter) wrote:
>> >
>> >It seems to me that a very frugal idea is to toilet-train your cat.
>>
I wouldn't try toilet training. I think it's probably close to
impossible. However, I have trained both of my cats to go outside (I only
have one now). If she's in when she needs to go, she lets me know. I
make sure she spends at least a few minutes outside if she's going to be
in for the evening. It works for me. It works for her. If I had a cat I
couldn't train this way, I'd probably get rid of it. I can't stand the
smell (or expense) of a litter box no matter how clean it is. I've only
had one 'accident' since I got my last cat and I've had her for 10 months
now. I think that's pretty good.
-mats
Allyn Weaks
aho...@iastate.edu (Aimee Houser) wrote:
> I prefer the clumping kind of kitty litter. But convenience doesn't have
> to be costly: At walmart, you can get TWENTY pounds of Hartz kitty
> clumping litter for 3.00$.
But never use clumping litter for kittens! Kittens end up eating a lot of
it, and it will harden in the gut and kill them. There have been many sad
stories over on rec.pets.cats. And if your cat scratches a lot, it may
not be so great either, if they end up breathing much dust. Some on r.p.c
called one of the companies who make the stuff to ask what they were doing
about the safety problem, and the answer was basically, "We sell the
stuff. The consequences are your problem and nothing to do with us."
--
Allyn Weaks
al...@u.washington.edu
PNW Native Wildlife Gardening: (under construction)
http://chemwww.chem.washington.edu/natives/
George Succi
aho...@iastate.edu says...
>
>If you don't like the mess or smell of cat shit, don't get a cat. Its as
>simple as that.
Umm, sometimes the cat is sick. I was ready to drill a hole through the wall
and store the cat litter box in a heated shed outdoors until a friend pointed
out cats do not smell this bad. Wormed them for a week, changed the diet, and
the smell disappeared.
Sheri Stritof
Have also heard of kittens having it "clump" over their noses (due to moisture
there) and they suffocated. Adult cats it is not a problem...but kittens,
yes, the clumping can be dangerous.
DigitalMP
>I wouldn't try toilet training. I think it's probably close to
>impossible. However, I have trained both of my cats to go outside (I
only
>have one now). If she's in when she needs to go, she lets me know. I
>make sure she spends at least a few minutes outside if she's going to be
>in for the evening. It works for me. It works for her. If I had a cat
I
>couldn't train this way, I'd probably get rid of it.
I feel that bringing an animal into your life is the same as having a
child. If your cat needs to have a litter box than you should provide one
and be thankful for it's love.
Michelle Plunkett
Mats White
digi...@aol.com (DigitalMP) wrote:
> If I had a cat
>I
>>couldn't train this way, I'd probably get rid of it.
>
>I feel that bringing an animal into your life is the same as having a
>child. If your cat needs to have a litter box than you should provide one
>and be thankful for it's love.
>
>
>Michelle Plunkett
Yeah, I thought someone would say something like that. If I lived in an
apartment it would be different since she (my cat) wouldn't have the
outside priveleges she deserves. My main point is that it's not hard to
train them to do their business outside. I'm two for two now and I hope to
train any and all of my future pets to do the same.
Also, I'm curious. *Nobody* has a litter box for their dog. Why does it
seem so natural to have one for a cat? When your new puppy soils the
carpet, you take steps to discourage the behavior. That's all I did with
the cats and I'm certain that's easier than toilet training them.
Try it. Your house, nose, and pet will thank you for it. Plus you'll save
the time and money it takes to keep up the litter box.
-mats.
Jo Ann Hill
>Also, I'm curious. *Nobody* has a litter box for their dog. Why does it
>seem so natural to have one for a cat?
Not true. I have several friends whose small, apartment-dwelling dogs are paper-trained. Most puppies are paper-trained, at least =
intially. The only reason no one sets up a litter box is that dogs, unlike cats, will not do you the favor of covering it up, so th=
ere's no point to providing litter.
Everyone I know who provides a litter box for their cat does it to suit their own preference, not the cat's. They have cats that ar=
en't allowed outdoors, long absences when they aren't home to let the cat out (another convenient arrangement a dog won't allow), ap=
artment lifestyles, and so on.
Jo Ann Hill
bow...@eisner.decus.org
> Also, I'm curious. *Nobody* has a litter box for their dog. Why does it
Simple (he says, donning his nomex underware)... Dogs are too stupid (on goes
the reflective suit) to be trained to use litter pans (and finally the helmet
and gloves)
Bruce - confirmed cat lover.
Amy Junge
> Also, I'm curious. *Nobody* has a litter box for their dog. Why does it
> seem so natural to have one for a cat? When your new puppy soils the
> carpet, you take steps to discourage the behavior. That's all I did with
> the cats and I'm certain that's easier than toilet training them.
I always look at the owners of small dogs that have to stand shivering in
the cold 3-4 times a day and wonder "Why don't they box-train their
dogs?" Since dogs don't have the need to scratch, you could line the box
with old newspaper and pitch it once a day.
Steven J. Kroeger
|> In article <4forcc$a...@news.ori.org>, ma...@ori.org (Mats White) wrote:
|>
|> > Also, I'm curious. *Nobody* has a litter box for their dog. Why does it
|>
|> the reflective suit) to be trained to use litter pans (and finally the helmet
|> and gloves)
|>
|> Bruce - confirmed cat lover.
Bruce,
Do you know how to make a cat sound like a dog?
Place the cat in a 4'x4' closet, spray charcoal lighter on it then flip
Ohio blue tip matches at it, once the fur catches it goes "whooof", sounds
just like a dog. 8`)
Steve Kroeger - Confirmed animal lover, now if they would just declassify cat's
from animal to statuary I would have it made.