The Litter Robot 3 looks like a high-tech cement mixer and damn, it works like a cement mixer. I think the inventors got their ideas for the device from watching cement mixers! Enough of cement mixers. They come with stairs to enable smaller cats to stroll into the cement mixer – sorry litter box, in comfort. When it has been used enough you push a button on the side of the machine or on your smartphone which is connected to it wirelessly, and it starts to rotate which separates the poop and gloop from the substrate.
The litter substrate has to be one that congeals around pee i.e. clumping type. There is a huge range nowadays. When the device rotates the substrate drops through a grill while the clumped poop and pee drops into a tray beneath the drum where it can be removed and the contents disposed of safely. Not down the loo please because that can cause problems such as toxoplasmosis in the sea which can infect marine wildlife if the reports are to be believed. It can also block drains.
I don’t think you can successfully compost used cat litter either.
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This is quite a large item; much larger than a conventional litter tray. It is noticeable. This may be a factor when considering to purchase one. I mean you need a bit of space in your home to tuck it in a corner discreetly.
That said the comments I have read are very encouraging. They adore the thing. I guess that their adoration comes from a hatred of removing poop and pee from litter trays. Some people hate the task. I never found it a problem although I am not a great fan of poop and pee. I used to use a covered tray and I could clean it in 60 seconds. I used to time myself and took pride in doing it rapidly.
RELATED: Do cats prefer open or covered litter boxes?
There are a couple of drawbacks that I can see for the Litter Robot 3. The cost. It costs $500 in the USA. And I am sure that it requires maintenance from time to time. That may be worse than cleaning the litter box in the first place.
More importantly you can’t comply with the great American cat behaviourist guru Jackson Galaxy who wisely advises that cat owners buy one cat litter per cat plus one. I mean if you have three cats you are not going to buy four cement mixers! Too much space will be used up and the overall cost would be £2,000.
He also advises that the litter tray is not covered. He thinks open litter trays are less likely to cause anxiety in a cat. The Robot 3 is covered.
But for ‘one cat families’ who hate cleaning the litter and who have a bit of disposable income, this is a nice product with plenty of fans.
Below are some pages on cat products.
