Automatic Litterbox Central

Dear CatGenie Cat Lover,
If you ever have to contact us we hope it is with good news.

However if you have a problem, please, please contact us. A happy, satisfied customer is our priority. Cat lovers who chose the CatGenie become part of our family. And we take care of family.

We welcome your comments and ideas. We like to hear what you have to say and plan to have a forum for all our customers.

Gigi, Richard, Selina, Bryan, Jeri-Lynn, Shawn, Dannell, Carla, and Scott.
Your Customer Service Representatives

CatGenie, you are the shit - literally.

I saw this crazy thing on TV and I was amazed. A robotic litter box that is really environmentally safe, and great for people who dread changing the litter box!? SIgn me up!

I was also impressed that it is great for your cats health because most people don't change the litter as much as they are supposed to.

For me, just pressing a button once or twice a day and having the CatGenie go through a 20 minute cycle of sifting waste, flushing waste into the toilet/laundry drain, washing the litter (plastic granules) and drying the granules, sounded like the perfect plan for me.

It sounded like an awesome piece of technology, and when I saw the CatGenie thing on TV, my wife and I both thought it was the cat's pajamas. We copied down the coupon code and went to their website and ordered it!

Because I'm Canadian, it turned out to be a lot more expensive than I'd hoped, shipping alone ended up costing me about $150, add on UPS fees and the total cost of shipping was about $200. It was almost $450 USD (about $40,000 Canadian) after I finally got the CatGenie.

But I figured it would be well worth the price and I didn't think twice about the expensive cost of this glorious piece of technology!

About a week went by with smooth operation, and then the shit hit the...nothing, the shit stayed in the bowl.

I don't know how they freaking do it, but inside the machine, there's a little wizard that casts a level 10 liquify spell on the turd, then he mixes it with some special sauce, and it all gets flushed down the drain.

Not all of the shit was making it to the wizard, so I don't blame him.

Apparently I have a broken CatGenie, but the company won't admit any flaws, and insists that they never get calls where people are having the same issues as me.

The scoop is too big so some shit chunks falls through the scoop at least once a week when I run it, and then the machine ends up baking me a big bowl of Cat Shit Soup.

It makes my basement smell like a crackhouse, and I end up having to change the litter by hand anyway.

So yeah in theory this thing is awesome, but in my experience it's a high tech looking piece of cat shit.

I called customer service to complain, but the guy on the other end was not helpful at all, he was really catty to me - unsympathetic, didn't seem to care. He refused to even give me some free granules to replace the ones that got ruined in the CatGenie diarrhea bake-off.

However, he did let me know that if I'm not happy with the unit, I can send it back with a full refund, minus the $200 shipping and restocking charges of course. Thanks you're so awesome Richard. I felt like whipping him with the Cat-o-9-tails.

I couldn't deal with this guy, the cat had my tongue, so I hung up. I figured there was more than one way to skin a cat, and I emailed customer service a letter, hoping I'd get some justice that way.

The same guy that was on the phone answer my email!

This was at the end of November.

The guy responded all smug like again, and nothing got resolved. I gave up. I figured I was just going to have to watch the CatGenie more closely to observe that it wasn't letting shit pieces fall through the scoop.

So at least once every 3 times it misses some turds and I have to scoop them out by hand while it's going through the cycle. I should invest in a second scoop instead of doing it by hand...anyway thats beside the point.

So 3 months went by, every time I ran the machine is smelled like shit because once the granules get baked in a bowl of CatGenie Shit Soup, the smell doesn't wash out.

But I don't want to have to buy an extra bag of granules 3 times a week - that shit is like $40 a bag plus shipping it's ridiculous.

So now we just close the basement door for a couple hours and put some air fresheners down there. We just deal with it.

However last night, the machine stopped working. So I called customer service, and it turns out that "something" was clogged in the CatGenie, something that prevent the shit from draining.

I had to take the entire machine apart, and I saw that underneath the bowl, there were shit stains everywhere! The CatGenie is nasty.

I spent about 2 hours washing the entire thing with soap and hot water and bleach. It was horrid, I never had to deal with this when I was using a $5 plastic litterbox.

I just want to get a hold of the Fat Cat in charge of this operation and tell him that I'm not too impressed.

I called the customer service guy again to complain, got someone else this time. He said he would pass my information along, and he told me that I could buy an additional piece for the CatGenie that would prevent feces buildup under the bowl.

That's like selling a car and then afterwards offering to purchase an addon which is the gas tank.

It's not like cleaning shit is some BONUS FEATURE of the CatGenie. Cleaning shit is it's prime directive. The bonus piece which cleans shit under the bowl, should be included just the same as the piece that cleans shit in the bowl.

Anyway, sorry I had to rant so long, I just had to let the cat out of the bag and get this off my chest. I can't believe they are suckering me into purchasing MORE granules, and an under the bowl scrubbing kit plus a scoop with teeth. I know this isn't the problem, and they should be sending me this stuff for free to satisfy a customer (who spent a crazy amount of money on a cat box) instead of creating a monster.

-------------------------------------------

So that was me in January. That wasn't the end of my problems, and I had to write and call in again, and I almost lost my solids (as the catgenie reps call it) when I got the same guy on email.

What, are these guys operating out of someone's basement? He takes phone calls, answers emails AND works the company gloryhole.

I kinda feel bad for the guy, having people complain to him about cat shit all day long.

I remember when I worked for a call center, I would do anything to make the customer happy. I'd give them free shit and it would make them settle down instantly. I don't know why companies haven't realized that free shit = happy customers.

Maybe the CatGenie doesn't give free shit because it knows by purchasing their product, you'll have enough left over shit.

Anyway, I figured out today that what is causing the NEW problem is grass.

I started growing cat grass last week, and apparently the machine isn't equipped to handle that. People were having the same issue with hairballs and fur, and then they release a new TURBO HOPPER®! Now with 2X the power!

I don't know if my machine has the turbo hopper, but I had to buy one to make sure.

I wish they'd also send me the TURBO SCOOP®! with 2X the ability to pick up turds!

Maybe they could also send me the TURBO SANITIZER®! Now with 2X less 'crackhead's bathroom' scent!

Freakin douchers...I had to order the turbo scoop and got a deal on it, only $5 ... plus $15 for shipping.

They said they were going to send me a coupon in November which I never did get, that would have at least covered the damn scoop.

I also refuse to buy any more of their $30 + shipping CatGenie Washable Granules. Ripoff. They are just freakin PVC pellets! You can get twice the amount on ebay for less money.

Regardless, I want some damn free CatGenie Washable Granules for all the shit I've had to put up with, and all the boxes I've had to throw out because they got ruined when the machine malfunctioned.

I want my cat to feel like she's shitting in style, I don't want her feeling like shes some barn cat, or some whore tabby cat, dumping under someone's porch.

She's got pink claws, she can't be going on no name brand PVC pellets...

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So this was me LAST month.

Every month something goes wrong with my CatGenie, and the customer service still haven't given me anything free to replace all the stuff I buy that I don't have to and all the granules that get destroyed.

About a week ago, the machine would stop working in the middle of the cycle. It would give 2 beeps and the bowl would be full of water and 'solids'.

After trying to get a hold of customer service, taking the machine apart a few times, and freaking out completely with this huge inconvenient mess, I figured that if I unplugged and plugged the machine back in, it would go again for a bit and then beep again. I would unplug and plug back in, and it would do the same. After about 3 or 4 times, and about an hour or 2 later - the cycle would run completely.

I tried 3 different hoppers and the same thing happened with each one so it wasn't the stupid water sensor.

I finally got a hold of customer service today and we figured out that the hose needs to loop up around another pipe so that it has a curve in it as big as the CatGenie.

A couple weeks ago we decided that we were going to stop running the hose into the laundry tub because the stink was pretty bad, so we put the machine in the floor directly into the basement toilet pipe.

I guess this somehow made it so that the draining would start before the filling was complete, because of gravity, and some other stupid reason, it would screw up the cat genie.

I'm just glad that another month of Cat Genie Horror is over with.

What's next Cat Genie, what will you throw at me next! Free granules? Not likely....

darbsllim,

You are freakin killing me!!!

That shit was hella funny. I thoroughly enjoyed reading your post, it made my night.

**************************************************************************************************************************************
Things like;

shit hit the...nothing, the shit stayed in the bowl

there's a little wizard that casts a level 10 liquify spell on the turd, then he mixes it with some special sauce, and it all gets flushed down the drain

It makes my basement smell like a crackhouse

I felt like whipping him with the Cat-o-9-tails

It's not like cleaning shit is some BONUS FEATURE of the CatGenie. Cleaning shit is it's prime directive

What, are these guys operating out of someone's basement? He takes phone calls, answers emails AND works the company gloryhole

I wish they'd also send me the TURBO SCOOP®! with 2X the ability to pick up turds!

Maybe they could also send me the TURBO SANITIZER®! Now with 2X less 'crackhead's bathroom' scent!

Freakin douchers.

I want my cat to feel like she's shitting in style, I don't want her feeling like shes some barn cat, or some whore tabby cat, dumping under someone's porch.

She's got pink claws, she can't be going on no name brand PVC pellets...

************************************************************************************************************************************************

Maybe the above phrases should be CatGenie's new marketing points. I have a few also...

CatGenie... Here Shitty Shitty!

CatGenie... Always Shitty, Never Clean!

CatGenie... World's first automatic cat box (manual scooping required)!

CatGenie... Never touch cat litter again...BUT contact with Cat SHIT required!!!

Hey darbsllim,
Two things: 1) I'm sorry to hear that you have been having so many problems. I had a couple months of CG hell also (no free stuff except the little parts bag) so I can feel your pain, but it sounds like yours might be worse. 2) I wish you had put a NSFW notice on your post because I was laughing so hard in my office I thought people were going to get irritated with me.

I hope you have better luck this month. But if you don't, I hope you will tell us about it.

I have 3 CG's and they work as advertised. However I had problems in the beginning. Customer service helped very much. I really think that the biggest trouble was impatience on my part. I can tear it down and clean it without a second thought now. But wouldn't you know, I don't have to any more. With the upgrades they now run without errors. I run them 4 times a day. They are always clean and don't smell. THANK YOU PN.

^^^^did you ever ask to speak to a manager or supervisor when you called? that is my first response when the rep that answers the phone is not helpful. keep moving up the chain from there instead of just repeatedly contacting the same idiot(s).

what's the saying about doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results? lol just kidding. i understand your frustration, thankfully i've only had one drainage issue with mine (knock on wood). cleaning the thing out was, imo, surprisingly easy. i expected it to be this elaborate dis-assembly procedure and it'd be difficult to clean. i just got the garden hose and some cleaner and went to it. finished & reassembled in less than 10mins.

Thanks for the comments, I enjoyed venting to fellow Cat Genie owners =)

I agree with Flyguyjake - they should definitely be a little more honest about the CatGenie.

Never Touch, buy, or smell cat litter again.
Introducing CatGenie.
The only automatic cat box that flushes waste
away and, like a cat, washes itself clean.

• Cats use permanent Washable Granules that never need changing
• For your cats, it feels like using a clean box of cat-comfy, cat litter
• For you, CatGenie works like a washing-drying appliance
• After a one-time, simple DIY hook up to water, you're set
• Push a button or preset to start. Sensors see when cat is using
• Used and recommended by veterinarians, nationwide
• See why CatGenie is the GREENEST cat box to own

rrrrriiiiight....

I think we have a class action lawsuit on our hands for false advertising. Perhaps we could get the courts to force them to be more honest with their advertising:

Never Touch, buy, or smell cat litter again. Instead touch & smell granules which cost twice as much as cat litter.
Introducing CatGenie.
The only automatic cat box that tries hard to flush waste away, but usually misses a good portion and makes a big mess which you have to clean up. Like a cat, you will grow to love the CatGenie because it was so expensive that you don't want to throw it away.

• Cats use permanent Washable Granules that never need changing, except when the machine scatters them all over the floor, or when it misses solids every other cycle, and the baked on shit stench becomes so horrid that you are embarrassed to have company over. Then you will have to throw the whole box away and buy new Washable Granules which will never need changing as well!
• For your cats, it feels like a voyeuristic robot is scaring the shit out of you onto a clean box of cat-comfy, cat litter. Sometimes - when the machine malfunctions every other cycle - it feels like a robo-peeping tom is beeping at you while you do your business in a bowl of water, SaniSolution, Turds & cat-comfy Washable Granules that you'll never have to replace.
• For you, CatGenie works like a washing-drying appliance. In most cases, you will also work like a washing-drying appliance.
• After a one-time, simple DIY hook up to water, you're set to take it apart and clean it at least once a week after hours of frustrating customer service phone calls and hundreds of dollars in mandatory consumable purchases. If you are a septic tank engineer, then this appliance is perfect for you.
• Push a button or preset to start. Standby with a plastic spoon to pick up turdlets that the GenieHand misses. Sensors see when cat is using, but do not use the sensor as you will most likely return home from the theater to a red beeping bowl of cat shit soup and a cat who has done his business in on the floor.
• Used and recommended by behavioral psychologists, in a worldwide social experiment.
• See why CatGenie is the GREENEST cat box to own, because you will part with so much green it's not even funny, and the stink will make your guests turn green.

darbsllim wrote:

I want my cat to feel like she's shitting in style, I don't want her feeling like shes some barn cat, or some whore tabby cat, dumping under someone's porch.

She's got pink claws, she can't be going on no name brand PVC pellets...

OMG, this part had me laughing in stitches! It's funny because I feel the same way about my cat!

Anyway, so sorry to hear about the problems you're having. I guess I must be lucky because my CatGenie actually works, apart from the mutant-frankensense baked poo smell, which I've solved by refilling my own cartridges with third party solutions. Since then, no more bad smells, so maybe this could be a solution for you too.

Hepkat wrote: I guess I must be lucky because my CatGenie actually works, apart from the mutant-frankensense baked poo smell, which I've solved by refilling my own cartridges with third party solutions. Since then, no more bad smells, so maybe this could be a solution for you too.

Hey there. Glad I could make you laugh =P

The smell for me came from when the thing missed turdlets and baked them. I fixed that by babysitting the machine each time it runs to make sure that I pick up the chocolate chips it misses and put them in the hopper.

The sanisolution did have a unique stench though, and I fixed that by ordering an unscented cartridge and putting the drain hose directly into the floor where no odors could escape.

I don't mind babysitting the machine to pick up turdlets it misses - but they should tell me I need to do that. It should be marketed as an automatic cat machine that you will have to do minimal work with. They should tell you that maybe it will miss a couple of chunks here and there and you should watch during the scoop cycle to prevent a rotten stench from the gates of hell.

If they only told us about the issues that will INEVITABLY happen with EVERY CATGENIE, it would prevent terribly unsatisfied, irate customers. If they were honest about the shortcomings of the machine, you would expect it and not be bothered by it, because even with the shortcomings it's still an awesome piece of engineering and technology.

However, they seem to like creating customers who want to burn their headquarters down with the leftover turds the machine does pick up and bury their bodies in a grave with shit stained granules.

In fact, I think the next time I get a bowl of cat shit soup courtesy of the Cat Genie, I'll pack it up and expedite them a helping.

If you have small turds that get missed by the Genie hand or if you end up with brown soup then it could be that your cat has very unreliable poo...

I don't know what you feed your cat, but cats on a good diet should have firm poo of a good size that either consists of one or two pieces. I think this is the variety that works best with the CatGenie and probably what it was best designed to clean. If your cat's poo is significantly smaller or sludgy, then perhaps I could recommend switching her diet. I feed my cat an all-meat diet, which from what I've seen on animal planet, is what cats prefer to eat (they're obligatory carnivores, i.e., they cannot eat or digest anything other than meat). Why not try feeding your cat the same and see what happens after a few days?

Hepkat wrote:If you have small turds that get missed by the Genie hand or if you end up with brown soup then it could be that your cat has very unreliable poo...

I don't know what you feed your cat, but cats on a good diet should have firm poo of a good size that either consists of one or two pieces. I think this is the variety that works best with the CatGenie and probably what it was best designed to clean. If your cat's poo is significantly smaller or sludgy, then perhaps I could recommend switching her diet. I feed my cat an all-meat diet, which from what I've seen on animal planet, is what cats prefer to eat (they're obligatory carnivores, i.e., they cannot eat or digest anything other than meat). Why not try feeding your cat the same and see what happens after a few days?

I was told that Mainecoon Crap is inherently unreliable.

She doesn't have sludgy or unusually small crap, but sometimes satellites will detach from the mothership when the vessel is shaken by the GenieHand.

Are you insinuating that I'm forcing my furry feline to famine with unfavorable food!?

Are you saying that I'm malnourishing my Maincoon with an unmentionable mandible mandate!?

I'll have you know that I spoil my precious pussy with Royal Canin Maine Coon and Natural Choice, made from meat.

However, if you are saying that she would prefer real meat - then please tell me what kind of meat should I feed my cat?

This was the most entertaining post I have ever read! Keep it up, LOL!!!!!!

One thing you might try for the small turds escaping the mother ship, on the scoop remove the plastic piece over the ridges, it will shake less. Side effect is more granules get flushed but might keep the little turds from hatching from the big ones, LOL!!!!

darbsllim wrote:

Hepkat wrote:Are you saying that I'm malnourishing my Maincoon with an unmentionable mandible mandate!?

Perish the thought! Besides, we all know just how bad-tempered a malnourished pussy can get!

I feed my cat premium wet cat food (all meat without any cereal ingredients), but it is possible that like you said, Main Coons just produce unreliable poo and large amounts of hair that the CatGenie wasn't really designed to optimally handle. If this is the case, then I'm afraid I'm all out of suggestions

My cats had loose poops for months. Made for losing a lot of granules, but few brownies. Now they are all firm, and I've met the brownie. eek.

The firming agent of choice turned out to be the right high quality food (after a lot of tries), and this:

http://www.eaglepack.com/Pages/HS_Solution.html


Impressive stuff. I tried a lot of things, but this was the ingredient that brought me from slurryville to brownietown.

"...Because I'm Canadian, it turned out to be a lot more expensive than I'd hoped, shipping alone ended up costing me about $150, add on UPS fees and the total cost of shipping was about $200. It was almost $450 USD (about $40,000 Canadian) after I finally got the CatGenie..."

If you had read the purchasing information at the Catgenie website, it plainly spells out that outside the 48 states, the shipping rules are different, both for receiving and returning. You certainly can entertain us with your comedy skills, but your complaint about shipping to you and your returning it, rests with you and not Catgenie.