Wood stove pellets at $5 for a 40 pound bag make a very nice cat litter. The pellets are made from hard wood so they last much longer than the pine pellet litter made for cats. They are biodegradable. They also clump around the poop. The urine turns them into sawdust and as long as there are pellets in the box, there will be no smell. Once all of the pellets have turned to sawdust, you can still use it for a while. Eventually they will become soaked with urine. Dump and refill before this happens as that is when it begins to smell. If you dump it while there are still pellets in the bottom, there will be little to no cleaning of the litter pan.
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For an outstanding scoopable, clumping, odor controlling cat litter, try using chicken feed or chick starter crumbles. This is available at feed stores and farm and home stores. It costs about $10.00 for a forty pound bag.
For a cheap or free cat litter substitute, get wood shavings or sawdust from a woodworker or lumber company. It is absorbent, all-natural, and can be emptied in the compost or garden.
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
I am so sick of my cat tracking his litter all over the house. Does anyone know an alternative? I feel like my floors are like being at a beach in Florida.
By Kristina
I would suggest finding or buying a synthetic mat with a shag pile, or a piece of artificial turf. Place under the litter tray, with plenty of room for puss to walk to and from and this will act as a 'broom' for puss's feet.
Check your stores and see if they sell the cat litter made from newspaper. It doesn't track. Also, there is a clear, bead type litter that doesn't track. My cats prefer the newspaper pellets.
It seems there was a hint for something you can get at the Farm and Feed store to use in the place of cat litter, can anyone tell me what it is?
By Mary
I saved that tip last year: this is a copy from my "Pet Tips" document, where I saved it:
Use Chicken Feed as Kitty Litter
For an outstanding scoopable, clumping, odor controlling cat litter, try using chicken feed or chick starter crumbles. This is available at feed stores and farm and home stores. It costs about $10.00 for a forty pound bag. I kept my old clay scoopable cat litter jugs and pour it into them. One bag will fill five of the twenty pound litter jugs.
We have 38 inside cats and we have cut our litter bill by two thirds. I feel that this does a better job of controlling odor than the clay scented litter. My only recommendation to ease litter box cleaning is a litter scoop called "Litter Lifter" you can find them on a Google search. This scoop is great with any litter, no more shaking the scoop, the clean litter just falls through the scoop. From ThriftyFun.com 12-22-10
38? you are both very brave!
Can this chicken feed be used for kittens? Kittens can eat litter so it can harm them, particularly clumping litter. I just wonder if eating chicken feed would be harmful.
Why can't we use sand or moss for cat litter than all of these artificial cat litters manufactured by companies?
By Caroline N.
You can use those items and also shredded newspapers IF you have a large supply. Most people do not live on a beach and have access to large amounts of sand. Moss takes time to grow and you need to microwave or bake it in an oven to kill the tiny insects that live in it. You can use shredded newspaper; but, do not use the glossy ad sheets.
Another thing that can be used is sawdust.
There are also commercial cat litters made from newspaper, pine, and corn if your objection is not to the cost; but, environmental.
ThriftyFun is one of the longest running frugal living communities on the Internet. These are archives of older discussions.
These are all compatible with composting and can be used to make compost after kitty is done.
