Although cats have been kept domestically as pets since the early Egyptians, it wasn't until the late 1940s that commercial cat litter came to be. Prior to that people either let their cats outside to do their business or used cardboard box full with stand in the home.

This was less than ideal and, in fact, the first commercial cat litter was "discovered" mostly by accident when a cat owner sought out the help of her neighbor after the sand she used for her cat litter box was frozen solid. This neighbor made a product that consisted of clay and gave her little clay pellets to use as litter. The pellets proved to be so absorbent this was an immediate success and soon everyone wanted to use these little clay pellets which soon became sold under the name "Kitty Litter".

Since than there have been hundreds of brands and types of litter manufactured and sold on the market. But how do you know which type is right for you?

The answer that might have a little bit to do with your cat is some cats can do not like different types of litter. Needless to say, if your cat isn't comfortable going in the box you can probably find someplace else to go and you may not like it. Although most cats take to most types of litter you may find you need to experiment a little bit if you cat doesn't seem to like his litter box.

Here are some of the materials you might consider for your cat litter:

Clay

The original Kitty Litter was made from clay and this brand is still available today and very popular. It is made from sodium bentonite which is a type of clay that is very absorbent. When the cat would use the litter box, his waist with clump up making it easy to change out. Most cat litter has claimed today in fact this is what makes the clumpable cat litters so easy to use.

Clay litters, however to have some problems they can clump onto your cat's paws and fur and can be destiny. Some of the newer brands claim to be less dusty but these contain silicon particles which are a known carcinogen. You might want to think twice before buying any cat litter with this in it, but a lot of them do use it so you have to read labels carefully.

Silica Gel

This is a fairly new material for cat litter and is made from silica dioxide sand, oxygen and water. It is said to absorb up to 40 times its weight and does not track so you won't have to worry about it getting all over your house. Manufactures claim this is non toxic, and although it can be expensive and might save you in the long run since holds the moisture inside the silica gel balls, the same cat litter can be used for months without changing up the box so you save on material and maintenance.

Newspaper

You can buy some litters made from recycled newspapers that are crunched up into pellet form. This cat litter is dust free, non-tracking and is biodegradable so you can flush it.

Wheat And Plant Based

These are the most natural kinds of litters and while you might think that these don't work as good as the other letters I used a wheat based cat litter and I can assure you it works just as good in his last dusty and smelly as the clay litters. They can be a little bit more expensive car very good at controlling odor and can be flushed. My cat seems to like it too!

Other natural types of cat litter include those made from corn kernel, ground corncobs, beet pulp, and wheat grass.

Sawdust

Some cat litters used pine or cedar sawdust which is dried and compressed into pellets. These naturally neutralize the odor from the ammonia in the past year and enter pretty absorbant as well. These plants have natural bacterial and insecticidal properties and the natural smell the plant. If you have allergies or asthma, you may want to be careful with these as I know personally the pine smell can set off my asthma.

By: Lee Dobbins

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It's a wonderful thing to have a cat as a pet, but there's no getting away from the chores that come with it, other than feeding and giving your best friend attention, you also have to make sure that the cat litter boxes in your home are taken care of. This can be an easy task or a difficult one, depending on your feline friend, some take to using the cat litter box quite easily, while others take a little longer and may have to be coaxed.

No one is happy with their pet using the floor or plant pots as their bathroom, so it's in your interest to get them using the cat litter box as soon as possible. If this becomes problematic there are a few things that check and do to make sure that your cat becomes more comfortable using it's bathroom area.

Cats Need Room

Cats want space when they use the bathroom, we need to make sure that they have the space they need to do it in. Some cat litter boxes come with hoods, they are great for hiding whats inside the box and they provide the cat with some privacy at the same time. They are a problem though if you have a big cat that can hardly turn around in it, in which case they won't want to go inside. If you make sure that they have more space so that they can get in and out more easily then you'll have a happier cat.

Cats Are Naturally Clean Creatures

Cats are very fastidious, and just like you they don't want a messy bathroom, they respond a lot better when they have clean cat litter boxes. It's important that you clean the litter every day, the longer it sits there, the more likely that it will develop unpleasant odours, and because cats have much more sensitive noses than us, it will be put off by this. Further to this make sure that you clean out the cat litter and disinfect the cat litter box at least once a month to help keep control of bacteria that is building up.

Location, location, location.

If you have a cat litter box that is out in the open, and your cat isn't using it, it's likely that your cat needs a little more privacy. Some cats need to be totally alone when they use the bathroom. If you have a multistorey house then place a cat litter box on each of the floors. Finally, get a box for each of your cats, then plus one. With a little care and attention to the purchase, placement, and maintenance of your cat litter boxes, you can help to ensure that your feline friend stays happy and goes to the bathroom where it should.

By: Andrew Manifield

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