Cat Training

Although kitty is a very clean animal, he can still produce a very distinctive odor, especially in a small apartment. The cat odor emanating from your apartment can lead to complaints from your neighbors, not to mention your significant other if he or she is not a cat lover. In addition, if you move out, you may be required to get rid of the cat odor.

Much of the distinctive cat odor comes from cat urine, cat spray and cat poop. Cat spraying (watch their distinctive posture: they stand straight up and lift their bottoms high in the air to spray a mixture of urine and pheromones) is both the easiest and hardest cat problem to fix. Easiest because neutering kitty will largely prevent the problem. Hardest because trying to discover why your neutered cat decides to suddenly start spraying is an exercise in frustration that can have you pulling your hair out.

The stink from cat poop is pretty easy to deal with. The first thing to do is ask your vet to recommend the best cat food for kitty. Different breeds have different needs, and not all brands of cat food are available where you stay. Feed kitty right, and he will poop less, and what comes out will also be less smelly and easier to clean up.

Litter training your cat will help to cut down on the stink from both cat urine and cat poop. Use the best cat litter and it will absorb the smell when kitty does his business in the litter box. Based on reviews from Amazon customers, Odor Lockers Fresh Scent Clumping Cat Litter and Fresh Step Premium Scoopable Clumping Cat Litter are the best at controling cat urine odor. While some cats don’t like them, using a covered litter box can further reduce the odors from your cat.

Of course, you need to scoop both the poop and pee daily, as well as replace the litter weekly. For some cat owners, this work can quickly turn into a chore. If you feel this way, try an automatic cat litter box. Most cats do not like automatic litter boxes, but if kitty takes a shine to it, your life will become much simpler. These litter boxes will detect when he has done his business, and rake or scoop up the poop and pee into a separate compartment for easier disposal. Many of them claim to be able to last up to one month without the need to replace the litter. Downside is that the litter comes in its own cartridge and is more expensive.

You may also find it helpful to put some kind of odor remover near the cat litter box. Use something based on carbon or activated charcoal. Some cat owners find that the stuff made to get rid of fridge odors also work well for cat odor.

Even when kitty is litter trained, accidents can still happen. In such cases, you need an enzymatic cleaner to really get rid of the cat urine odor. A regular cleaner just isn’t enough. While it will remove the stain, an odor that will attract your cat to pee in the same spot will still remain. An enzymatic cleaner which is often recommended is Nature’s Miracle, although any other enzyme cleaner formulated for cat urine will do as well.

These enzyme cleaners are not as cheap as regular cleaners, so you may not want to use it everywhere. If you turn on a blacklight (or ultra violet lamp) in the dark, it will illuminate all the spots stained by cat urine. This will help you do a more effective spot cleaning.

If you have carpets, remember to clean not only the carpet, but both the backing and the floor underneath the carpet. Don’t forget the air vents either. Even though kitty does not pee or spray there, the smell from the rest of the apartment can still soak in there.

Removing or preventing cat odor can be a chore, but is not rocket science. Follow the tips above to prevent trouble from the other members of your family or neighbors.

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Litter training your kittens is an important responsibility as a cat owner. If you also own the mother cat, and she is litter trained, then your job is much easier. She will teach her kittens how to use the litter box. All you need to do is provide more litter boxes for the growing kittens and scoop up the litter everyday.

Originally, people used sand when litter training a kitten. Sand is easily available, helps to absorb the cat urine and makes handling cat poop much easier. It is still used by some cat owners. Unfortunately, cats often track sand all over the house.

For this reason, clay cat litter is more popular. Clay cat litter is more absorbent than sand, and has a larger grain, so your cats are less likely to track it around the house. Compared to sand, it is also works better to get rid of cat urine smell. Some cat owners use clay-based oil absorbent, which is cheaper and works just as well. Clay-based oil absorbent is actually similar to clay cat litter – except that it is made for industrial use. Both of them make use of granulated Fuller’s earth for its strong absorbent properties.

The next major advancement in cat litter was the invention of clumping cat litter. As its name suggests, it clumps together when your cat pees on it. As it forms a solid mass separate from the other litter in the box, it is much easier for you to scoop up without having to change all the litter in the box. While clumping litter is great for your adult cats, some cat lovers have expressed concern in using it when litter training a kitten. There is some worry that the kitten will eat the litter and be harmed when it swells inside the stomach. There is no scientific evidence at the moment, but as cat lovers it is better to be safe than sorry.

Crystal cat litter is the latest scientific advancement in cat litter technology. It uses silica gel, which absorbs cat urine even better than clumping cat litter. It lasts so much longer than any other litter – you just need to stir it after you scoop the cat poop to prevent cat urine from pooling in the litter box. One problem with crystal cat litter is that there is no warning when it becomes saturated. The next time your kitten uses the litter box, it could leave a puddle behind. Crystal litter is also lighter than clay cat litter and clumping litter – your kitten might track the silica gel around your house. As cat lovers, there is another concern – we can also find silica gel in our pill bottles, where they are labeled “Do Not Eat”. Is it safe for litter training a kitten, especially since even adult cats are very sensitive to poisons.

For cat owners who want to be more environmentally friendly, you can also try biodegradable cat litter. This is usually made from material which naturally decomposes, including wood pellets, recycled newspapers and sawdust. Some brands of biodegradable cat litter can actually be safely flushed down the toilet, unlike normal cat litter. Unfortunately, like many other things which are environmentally friendly, biodegradable litter is also more expensive than the normal kind.

As you can see, you are spoiled for choice when litter training a kitten. You can use clay cat litter, clumping cat litter, crystal cat litter or even biodegradable cat litter. For kittens, clay is probably the best and safest choice.

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