Day in and day out, crystalline bits of grey earth are artfully disbursed throughout my home thanks to the methodical and overachieving delivery system that my four geriatric felines have masterminded. (If you think that four cats can’t hatch up a plan to rule your world — ha-ha-ha — then think again!) Whether via scampering, flinging, leaping, or high-tech-modes of strategic relocation, my ever-inventive brigade of teenaged fur balls consistently succeed in seeding the nooks and crannies of my entire world with scoopable cat litter tidbits. In what can only be described as a preemptive strike, I religiously police their litter boxes, removing all unsightly deposits with the speed and accuracy of a ninja. Despite allowing the vacuum cleaner no more than a piddley little coffee break now and again, it is chronically overworked and can barely enjoy more than a few shining moments of cleanliness before once again engaging in the same old search-and-destroy mission.
Simply put, clumpable cat litter is both a blessing and curse. Feline owners will nod in agreement with the claim that this seemingly humble material has become about as indispensable to modern day households as instant-gratification-cookie-dough-fixes (gotta spoon?) or the ever-reliable loaf of pre-sliced bread. While traditional and scoopable clay-based cat litters both contain crystalline silica (the main ingredient in sand, rock and mineral ores) and/or attapulgite/montmorillonite, a natural clay ingredient called sodium bentonite enables clumping cat litter to rise to extraordinary heights of convenience. Phew – and what a difference one little additive can make! B.C.C.L. (before clumping cat litter), cat guardians were forced to battle a noxious air space rife with ammonia and other offensively competing odors. A.C.C.L (after clumping cat litter), the clouds parted, bluebirds once again began to grace us with their happy little songs and all order was restored to the universe. Or was it?
It’s hard to imagine that the sand, ashes, garden dirt and shredded newspapers offered to feline generations of yesteryear were actually ever inferior — cheap, natural and guaranteed to get the job done, natural substrates instinctual appeal to animals of all species, so it’s unlikely that cats voiced any complaints. Deeper research reveals that kitty litter was officially born in 1947 when a resourceful clay salesman named Edward Lowe offered the material to a neighbor who wanted an alternative for her feline. It was so well-received that Lowe spread the word at trade shows across the country and fast reaped the rewards of an industry that to this day rakes in $5 billion each year. As much as I hate to admit this, I have been one of the ignorantly blissful consumers out there who has continually kept my cats perpetually stocked in clay litter, and then…a friend accused me of being the environmental equivalent of Saddam Hussein.
I set out on a mission to determine exactly what my horrible offense was and truth be told, I became sulky and dejected when I allowed the findings to register within my brain. It’s bad enough that I use 40 pounds of scoopable cat litter X four cat boxes…gulp, that’s 160 pounds in one shot. In my defense, I remove the solids from each box and only add fresh litter when the volume is depleted (rather than ditching the entire lot every few weeks and starting from scratch), but in the grand scheme of things, it is no wonder why current statistics peg Americans giving the heave-ho to approximately 2 million tons (100,000 truckloads) of cat litter each year. Even more disturbing — common clay-based clumping cat litter isn’t even biodegradable, despite the widely held presumption that flushing it is a-okay. Could it get any worse? Um, yeah. The kitty litter capital of the world, Georgia, has been strip mining their white clay deposits since the inception of the industry (for over 50 years). That’s the very same type of mining that strips all soil and vegetation from the land, leaving it virtually useless and inhabitable for wildlife. How could I have been in the dark for so long?
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Interested in breaking your addiction to scoopable cat litter and taking a walk on the wild side of feline toilet training? Click here for many helpful tutorials:
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=train+cat+to+use+toilet&search_type=&aq=0&oq=train+cat+to+use
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Want to try your hand at making your own Earth-friendly cat litter? This link offers comprehensive instructions:
http://alliesanswers.com/tip-of-the-day/tip-of-the-day-make-your-own-kitty-litter/1044
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Curious about the most widely-available alternative cat litter products out there?
Corncobs: One Earth Cat Litter (http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=14886)
Pine: Feline Pine (http://www.naturesearth.com/felinepine/)
Recycled newspapers: Yesterday’s News (http://www.yesterdaysnews.com/?D=1080642&T=4745901)
Wheat: Swheat Scoop (http://swheatscoop.com/)
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How about perusing an extensive list of alternative litters organized by type of material?
http://www.thelighthouseonline.com/articles/natural.html#List
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Have you succeeded in converting your feline household over to the green side? If so, please share your success stories in the comments section!
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