If litter pellets get stuck in between a cat’s toes why not make the pellets bigger?
Litter pellets or granules get stuck between the cat’s toes. I am sure we have all noticed it. It doesn’t matter whether it is wood or clay. I only know the size of wood and clay based pellets but the other types pose the same risk of being small enough to be trapped between the toes. Clumping clay litter is made up of small granules. Wood pellets are larger but both are small enough to get lodged between a cat’s toes where they could be ingested when the cat grooms himself.
It is safer for the cat if he swallows wood or wheat. Ingested clay can cause genuine and serious health problems such as obstructions. Clumping litter is made from sodium bentonite a clay that expands massively. Is it safe? On the face of it, yes. But we don’t know really what effect it might have on a cat’s health (there is also the question of dust settling on a cat’s coat and being ingested but that is another topic).
I’ll get back to the point of this short post, which is really just a question: are the cat litter manufacturers unable to make the pellets/granules larger so that they can’t be stuck between the toes? Larger granules would probably track less as well.
Perhaps larger granules would make the litter too uncomfortable to walk on. What about making them in the shape of flakes so that they are flat? This would probably be too expensive to manufacture. That is my guess. It comes down to cost ultimately.
A similar problem occurs with the size of dry cat food pellets. They are nearly always too small such that cats sometimes swallow the food without masticating it in their mouths. This must be bad for a cat’s health too.
I foster spca kittens an I only use LAVENDER CLUMPING .stoolsget taken out clumps uurine is easy to disposed. An no smell . not even lavender .Itworks for my foster furbabies
When I worked in the shelter, kittens died from ingesting clumping litter. So, there were signs to use “non-clumping” litter in their boxes.
I don’t notice much litter in Mitzy’s paws, and I’ve studied her stools enough to have seen any there. I have a small cotton hook rug outside her litter box, which collect litter. I shake it back into the box weekly.
I’m taking my chances with clay litter, since I don’t like the options. If I had a kitten I would use non-clumping litter or newspapers. Whenever I see any litter stuck on Mitzy’s rear end fur, I comb it out, so she doesn’t lick it off.
There is controversy about clay litter, and I found this information on ModernCat:
Clay cat litter is readily available in every supermarket, grocery store, mass retailer, and convenience store.
It is the standard, it has been used for decades, and it performs very well.
It is cheap.
Many cat owners are unaware of the dangers of using clay litter because no scientific studies have been done to clearly show why it is bad.
Availability, performance, price, and awareness. And this is all controlled by the BIG manufacturers who have huge marketing budgets and distribution channels and who have dominated the cat litter market for years. Well, things are starting to change with several new companies now producing excellent non-clay litters and some of the big manufacturers also adding non-clay litters to their line.
A summary of why clay litter is bad:
BAD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
Clay is strip mined to produce clay cat litter.
Used clumping clay cat litter NEVER biodegrades in the landfill.
BAD FOR CAT’S HEALTH & HUMAN HEALTH
Clay litter contains silica, which is a known carcinogen when inhaled.
Clumping clay litter contains sodium bentonite which expands to 15 times its volume and forms an INSOLUBLE mass when it contacts liquid. It does the same thing when cats ingest it as they groom themselves after using the litter box.
As mentioned in a previous article, my cats prefer fine grained litter and it does seem to be better at absorbing waste than the large granuled version.
Regardless of brand, litter tracking has always been somewhat of a problem, but seems especially worse with my recently adopted cat. I decided to try one of those looped fibre, litter mats and it seems to help. When I shook it, I was surprised how much litter it had captured.
There is a more expensive litter mat called the Black Hole which gets very good reviews and I’m tempted to splash out on one of those.
Thanks for the tip about litter mats. At the moment Gabriel is going out and he goes to toilet outside. It still scares me a bit that he goes out but, I decided it was safe enough and he’s a cautious boy.