All of us cat owners out there absolutely love our cats, but sometimes litter boxes can really stink up a home. With a little routine maintenance and the right products, you can keep your house smelling fresh and clean.
Daily Routine
Depending on how many cats you keep in your home, and how many litter boxes you have, will depend on how often you need to scoop out the litter boxes. Obviously, if you scoop every time they use the box, this would be ideal, but typically this is unrealistic. In most cases scooping a minimum of once a day is enough to keep the smell from causing too much of a disturbance in the house, but for those of us out there with multiple cats, twice a day is best. As the owner of 4 cats, I scoop out the litter boxes as soon as I get up in the morning, and again right before dinner time.
Litter Box Maintenance
Scooping the litter boxes on a regular basis helps, but most litters out there are only designed to control odors for a certain amount of time. The one I use typically lasts for a month, and then any litter left in the boxes must be discarded and replaced. The litter packaging will usually tell you how long the odor control is guaranteed for, and to prevent any odor issues in the home, it tends to be best to follow those guidelines. After discarding the litter, you will want to clean the litter box itself to remove any urine that may have seeped into the box.
I have found a bit of the blue dawn dish soap mixed with vinegar and warm water leaves the litter box clean as a whistle. For those who dislike scrubbing there are also disposable litter boxes that are even biodegradable, like Natures Miracle, that you can just discard of at the end of the month. It also should be noted that even plastic litter boxes are only good typically for 1 year, before they should be discarded.
Finding The Right Litter
As someone who once owned a cat that was very picky about their litter, I can tell you sometimes finding the right litter for your household can be a trial and error process. Many cats do not care for a lot of the scented litters out there, as sometimes those litters are too strong. The litter I am currently using is Fresh Step Multi-Cat with Febreze, I love the smell, it has done a great job for odor control, clumps well, and the cats seem happy with it.
All in all once you have the right litter for your household, and find the right maintenance routine for your home, keeping your house smelling fresh and cat free is a breeze!