How to minimize or eliminate litter box smell

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You can’t get rid of the smell. People who say their litter doesn’t smell have just grown used to it.

Dogs are much better.

BS. I have one of those friends who is honest to the point of being rude. She has commented she cannot smell our litter box but can in another friend's home (she wants a cat but her DH doesn't b/c of the smell and she was using our home as the example of what it can be like).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Get rid of the cats. Nasty things.

Cats aren't nasty.

They walk in their pee and poop and then go all over your house, on your kitchen counters, beds. ICK

You came to the pets section just to tell people their pets are nasty. You're not very bright.

[Anonymous]

My litter box is in what looks like a trunk with a hole for the cats to use it. Amazon sells them. Two cats and never a comment about smell. I will not just leave a litter box out in the open.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You can’t get rid of the smell. People who say their litter doesn’t smell have just grown used to it.

Dogs are much better.

Dogs smell too, just differently. You can't bring an animal into your home without taking on some kind of additional smells.

For the litter box, maybe you need to clean the actual container. If you can't get the smell out with cleaning and deoderizing it might be time to buy a new one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You can’t get rid of the smell. People who say their litter doesn’t smell have just grown used to it.

Dogs are much better.

I think dog houses smell worse than cat houses, but I’m a cat person. Yes, litter boxes can be gross, but cats are fastidious about cleaning themselves regularly.

OP, I have top-entry litter boxes that I think help a little bit. Since the opening’s on the top, the smells won’t get picked up in a cross breeze. Other than that, just scoop it out religiously, thoroughly clean with bleach water once a week and don’t use “natural” cat litter. It’s like natural deodorant—it just doesn’t do the trick.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You can’t get rid of the smell. People who say their litter doesn’t smell have just grown used to it.

Dogs are much better.

I agree with you that dogs are better, but cats are OK too. I don't want to get into an argument about indoor and outdoor cats, but I think that where some of the problems with cats arise. Cats by nature, are creatures that like to roam outside. People have decided for various reasons that they need to be made indoor only creatures. The result is they have to poop and pee indoors and can ruin furniture and carpet.

When I was a child, my family has two outdoor cats that never gave me any health problems . A couple of years ago I got two kittens that were indoor only cats. They messed with my asthma and left a strong "aroma" in my house. They were rehomed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You can’t get rid of the smell. People who say their litter doesn’t smell have just grown used to it.

Dogs are much better.

Yes, they just roll around in other animal's poop when outside. Or better yet: eat it!

And if you think your house doesn't smell like dog, you are wrong too.

I don't like either (litter or dog smell) so I have no pets. Only my children cause my house to smell weird.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My litter box is in what looks like a trunk with a hole for the cats to use it. Amazon sells them. Two cats and never a comment about smell. I will not just leave a litter box out in the open.

We had one of these and it was great until one day our aging cat decided she didn't like it anymore and started peeing on the floor instead.

[Anonymous]

You need to change all of the litter once a week at a minimum. You need one litter box per cat plus one (3 for 2 cats). Clean the box twice a day.

[Anonymous]

There is an equivalent to Feline Pine that is amazing. It’s sold at tractor supply and is super cheap. I use that with litter pan liners and dump it out every week. It doesn’t stink at all. You could use one of those sifter boxes too but I don’t bother.

[Anonymous]

Oh sheesh, people on this thread are crazy. Most cat litter box smells can be contained.

My general suggestion, OP, is to consider a Scoop Free litter box. Those crystals really lock in the pee, and contain the smell. I'm an apartment dweller, and that's what I've always had for my cats. And I was super aggressive for a long time about bringing those "too blunt for their own good" friends over and interrogating them about whether they could smell anything. It also cuts down on your work. It says it's fine for 30 days, which it is not, but with two cats, you're probably good for a week.

However - if this is a new problem, which it sounds like it is, my guess is that one of your little guys "missed" - ie, didn't pee outside the litterbox per say, but splashed some outside with some bad aim. Even a small amount of pee in the carpet can cause a bad smell. So, I would do a thorough litterbox clean, and I would get a enzymatic cleaner and do a thorough clean of the carpet around the litterbox, say a 2 ft radius to be sure, with a real focus on the areas right around the edge of the box. I bet that will solve your problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oh sheesh, people on this thread are crazy. Most cat litter box smells can be contained.

My general suggestion, OP, is to consider a Scoop Free litter box. Those crystals really lock in the pee, and contain the smell. I'm an apartment dweller, and that's what I've always had for my cats. And I was super aggressive for a long time about bringing those "too blunt for their own good" friends over and interrogating them about whether they could smell anything. It also cuts down on your work. It says it's fine for 30 days, which it is not, but with two cats, you're probably good for a week.

However - if this is a new problem, which it sounds like it is, my guess is that one of your little guys "missed" - ie, didn't pee outside the litterbox per say, but splashed some outside with some bad aim. Even a small amount of pee in the carpet can cause a bad smell. So, I would do a thorough litterbox clean, and I would get a enzymatic cleaner and do a thorough clean of the carpet around the litterbox, say a 2 ft radius to be sure, with a real focus on the areas right around the edge of the box. I bet that will solve your problem.

I'm the PP - just wanted to +1 a previous poster who suggested a black light. That will show you any "splashes" - and I noticed that you said you cleaned the carpet, but if it wasn't an enzymatic cleaner, that won't do anything.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here. We use tidycats multi cat and have always had the one large litter box. We are very clean people and have never noticed a cat smell until recently. I smell while near the room. We cleaned the carpets and they dont seem to be peeing anywhere but the box. Not sure what has changed. They have 2 water bowls and an open/ clean toilet in a bathroom we don't use regularly.

The cats could be becoming diabetic and/or are drinking less what so urine is more concentrated. Anyhow, the standard recommendation for a multi cat household is to have a box for each cat +1. We don't have the room for that but we do have two boxes side by side for two cats and that seems to work well.