The sandbox is an essential tool for the daily hygiene of our felines. We must ensure that the cleaning we do is adequate, with the aim of preventing he alth problems and even behavioral problems that are related to lack of cleanliness. In this important aspect, it is common for caregivers to have doubts when choosing the sand, the sandbox itself, which is the best place to install it or how and how often to clean it.
You may be wondering how often to change the silica sand or the binder, the recommended amount of sand or the frequency of complete sand changes. For this reason, in this article on our site we are going to focus on explaining How often we should change our cat's litter We will see the importance of maintaining the hygiene of the litter box and how to keep it in the best conditions.
The importance of the litter box for cats
From a very young age, kittens learn to use the litter box and, barring behavioral disorders or specific illnesses, they will continue to use it throughout their livesTherefore, it is important that we spend time, before the cat comes home, to study where we will place it, what it will be like and what litter we will use, as we will comment throughout this article. Whatever our choice, it is essential that we keep the sand clean.
Furthermore, checking the litter box daily will provide us with very valuable information, since we will immediately notice if our cat urinates more or less or, for example, you have diarrhea. There is also a parasitic disease, toxoplasmosis, in which the cat will eliminate certain forms of the parasite in its feces. If they remain in the environment for more than 24 hours, they could cause contagion, hence the importance of regular cleaning.
Likewise, keeping the litter box clean encourages the cat to always use it, since some cats refuse to use it if they consider the litter to be very dirty. In the next section we will see how often we should change the cat litter, as it will depend on several factors.
Types of cat litter
To determine how often to change the cat litter we have to take into account some factors, such as the number of cats present in the home and the number of sandboxes they have, since they must be enough for all of them to use comfortably. Even if you have only one cat, it is advisable to offer them a couple of litter boxes. In these cases, it is common to see how one is used for urine and the other for faeces, which also influences the sand change interval, since urine emission always stains it more than solid stools.
The type of sand will also determine the frequency of the change. In the market we will be able to find, basically, the following:
- Absorbent sanitary litter: it is the one present in any supermarket at a cheaper price. It is usually well accepted by cats, but since it does not have a clumping effect, it stains more, urine filters into the litter box, it is more difficult to clean and it retains bad odours. From this sand we are going to have to remove feces and urine daily, even more than once a day. There are scented versions.
- Clumping litter: This type of litter, somewhat more expensive than the previous one, has the great advantage that it compacts the waste, way that cleaning is facilitated, since we will be able to collect the urine in “little balls”, with which the litter box is kept neater. It can also remove bad odors. Requires daily cleaning.
- Pearl or crystal sand: Composed of silica, it is more expensive, but has the advantage that it stains less, as it is very absorbent and compact the faeces and urine, which, as we have said, facilitates cleaning. In addition, this white sand turns yellow on contact with urine, which also contributes to its ease of cleaning. The best thing is that it eliminates odors and, thus, if we extract the waste when it is produced, it can take a long time without changing it, although it will also depend, as we have said, on the number of cats that use the litter box. Some cats reject it.
- Ecological sand: it is perhaps the newest and can also be more expensive. It is usually made up of vegetable fibers and also has the advantage of its agglomerating effect. Its smell can cause rejection in some cats and, in addition, since it weighs less, it can stick to the legs and hair.
What is the best cat litter? Depending on these characteristics and our life circumstances, we must choose the litter that best suits us. If our cat likes it and uses it without problems, we do not have to change it. On the other hand, if it does not accept the sand we have chosen, we will have to replace it with another type.
How to change the type of cat litter? We can place, directly, a litter box with the new litter, to see if like it, or we can replace the old one with the new one, in the same litter box, always taking into account the degree of acceptance of our cat.
It is important to know that when cleaning the sand we will be able to distinguish between two basic actions, which are the daily collection of waste solids and liquids and the change of sand, which we can do as we will see in the next section and with the frequency that will determine the cat and the type of sand chosen.
How often is the cat litter changed?
From what we have been explaining, we see that you cannot give a single answer to how long cat litter lasts before having to change it, as several factors will influence its level of dirt. What we do recommend is collect stool every day
Once this is done we will have a practically clean sand and, then, we can follow one of the following methods:
- Every time we remove dirty sand we can fill with more clean sand. This is more common when using absorbent or clumping litters, as they are completely changed more frequently, approximately from 1 to 3 times a week It will also be a more appropriate method if we put a small amount of sand. How much litter do you put in the cat? On this subject, it is recommended that the layer with which we fill the litter box be enough so that the cat can bury its droppings, but we must not overdo it, since, if the litter box is open, the cat with its paws could get a lot out.
- We can remove the stool and leave the rest of the sand for as long as it lasts clean, from 1 to 4 weeks, depending on the type that we use, at which point we will throw it away and refill the sandbox. This method is commonly used with the silica sand, since all or almost all of the package is used in a sandbox and is not changed until after about 4 weeks, also depending on the number of cats that are using that bathroom.
In some cases, even if we carry out regular litter changes, a bad odor may be generated. In these situations, we recommend you visit our article to learn some tricks for the bad smell of cat litter. In addition, you can also discover how to move the sandbox.
The complete cleaning of the sandbox
Once we have seen how often we should change our cat's litter, we would have one last and important step left, which is cleaning the containerwhere we deposit the sand, which can be an open or closed sandbox, a tupperware or any similar plastic pot.
As we have said, the absorbent litter does not agglomerate, so that the liquids go through it until they reach the litter box itself, impregnating it with urine. Therefore, every time we make a complete change it is good that we wash the sandbox with warm water and some soap For this cleaning, the use of cleaners such as bleach is controversial, since, although for some cats it is an attractive smell that would encourage them to use the litter box, it repels others. We can test our cat's sensitivity by bringing the bottle of bleach or some impregnated object closer to it to observe its reaction before using it in its litter box.
Finally, litter boxes deteriorate over time and the effect of our cat's scratching and waste, so it is advisable to renew themwhen we see signs of deterioration.
How often to clean the litter box?
Finally, how often to perform a complete cleaning of the entire litter box will depend on all the factors that we have been exposing. In general, if we opt for an absorbent litter that does not control bad odors and that filters even the litter box itself, a deep cleaning once a week would be recommended., about.
The highest quality litters, which bind urine and eliminate odours, allow this cleaning to be carried out once a month, on average Of course it also depends on the number of cats in the house and what they dirty. Therefore, it is best to adjust the frequency of hygiene to your particular case.
