Automatic Litterbox Central

Help!!!

After a year of lurking this forum and reading all about alternatives to clay litter, I finally decided to try WBCL. I was afraid of bugs (ew!) but closely inspected the bag before buying and have seen no creepy crawlies. The 17lb bag I bought fit perfectly into the 27lb tub that my old clay litter came in. When I was pouring it out of the bag and into the tub, my girls came running. They sniffed and sniffed, then my little one started EATING IT! One of the draws was that it would not hurt them if ingested but I don't want her eating her litter.

Tonight I cleaned the boxes and added the first scoops of WBCL. I thought I would be safe mixing it in with the clay until my little one smelled it and decided it would be tasty, too. My girls don't free feed due to being indoors and their propensity to gain weight. I would love to be able to stop using clay litter and like the idea of WBCL... is there any way I might train them away from eating WBCL that I haven't already tried?

Thanks! Meg.

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My litterbox solution: manual
My litter solution: trying WBCL

My girls: Arabella Leslie ("Bella" - 10yr), Alydia Grace ("Gracie" - 3yr)

I tried asking this question on the WBCL website and received this response (in under 24 hours!):

You may want to sprinkle baking soda across the top of the litter. This sometimes discourages pets from snacking on the litter as it is very drying to the palette.

I will give this a try and report back in case anyone else here comes across this problem...

I think you may want to examine your cats' diet if they eat WBCL they may be missing something nutritionally.

be aware that if they ingest too much baking soda (while eating the litter) it can poison them

http://www.drugs.com/enc/baking-soda-overdose.html

Why don't you try saving some clumps of poop or pee (I know, gross!) and placing on top of the new WBCL litter. I think this just might discourage them from eating it, since most cats don't eat their own feces. But if they have a fresh box of corn, I can see how they would eat it. Eating the WBCL won't hurt them at all, though!

(I've been using world's best for the past three years...my 5 lb chihuahua has eaten some and is fine!)

flutecat

You've probably figured this out by now, but I had the same problem with one of my cats when I started using Swheat Scoop. I'd been using WBCL for years but like to try everything. My youngest, who seems to think he's still a kitten, sniffed the new clean litter then gobbled some up. I laughed so hard. My other cats were quick to do their business in the new stuff and no more eating of the litter. Some cats are more curious than others and must taste anything that has that cat friendly pleasing scent to it. No need to worry unless it becomes a problem.

Thank you all for the replies. We are now on 100% WBCL and aside from the excitement of opening a new bag and the occasional nibble, my girls have accepted it as their litter. We've tried both original and multi-cat strength with all positive reviews.

When switching from clay to WBCL, I tried the "little at a time" approach and I would strongly suggest AGAINST that. The mix of clay/WBCL smelled horrible and the pee balls would fall apart if I looked at them funny. Now that we're 100% WBCL, the litter boxes are a treat to clean. My motherinlaw thinks I'm crazy when I say that but it's so true.

I never would have thought a litter could make us this happy.

Meg and Bella and Gracie

Another positive for WBCL:
It really seems to track less than clay. I don't know why as it is so much lighter. Yes, it gets all over the floor of the room that contains the boxes but it does not track all over the house. Double yay!

Also, please don't worry about my girls' nutrition... they've been on Hill's Prescription and Science Diet all their lives.