Automatic Litterbox Central

Hi,

So what is your final opinion about the LitterFree? Is it worth buying?

Oskar

I can't say definitively whether it is worth buying or not. It depends on many factors:

1. Is your cat easygoing and well-adjusted, or does it get scared and/or stressed easily?

2. Do you mind the noise?

3. What is $300 to you? If it doesn't work out, can you handle the loss? I think the Litterfree works just fine, but how your cat reacts to it is another matter entirely.

Well I decided to buy it. The install was super easy. The noise is not as bad as I thought. It only lasts for few minutes when the unit is stirring up. I would say that it is defiantetly not louder than a regular washing machine. Plastic pellets are a major problem, because my two cats like to dig to bury their waste. I would highly recommend to put the top on.

I think the unit is pretty cool, and it does the nasty job pretty darn good. Automatic flush after the cat leaves would be awesome. However, the fluid is on the pricy side. $16.99 + $9 shipping (petsmart.com) is a little bit too high for more than two flushes a day. Especially taking under consideration that regular litter costs like $2 - 4.

The stop buttom would help. I also would like to see a button to skip after the first cleaning cycle and go directly to drying especially when there is no solid waste.

I think, that the Litterfree is a good start. Hopefully, somebody will come up with a new version that could have stop/skip button and maybe a twisted/curvy entrance for the cat, so pellets would stay inside.

Despite some minor flows, I highly recommend it. It is like Tivo, you get used to it pretty fast. After a while, you stop noticing the technology behind it.

We have three short hair cats and our unit cannot keep up with their needs. It does not flush completely and because the drying fan runs when the unit drains the stench of the "bouillabaise" is awful. Unlike the very poor LitterMate competitor, the unit doesn't sense when it has been used leading to clogs, error messages, and messes. Also the semi-dirty granules track all over. I hope the company comes out with improvements soon as it still makes sense to use a dry system at this juncture.

We have three short hair cats and our unit cannot keep up with their needs. It does not flush completely and because the drying fan runs when the unit drains the stench of the "bouillabaise" is awful. Unlike the very poor LitterMate competitor, the unit doesn't sense when it has been used leading to clogs, error messages, and messes. Also the semi-dirty granules track all over. I hope the company comes out with improvements soon as it still makes sense to use a dry system at this juncture.

We have 5 cats and the litter detail is about to drive us both insane. Do y'all think it would work for 5 cats?

I personally dislike the litterfree. I have 3 cats and it can't keep up with my cats. My cats don't like using the pellets and doesn't cover their waste. They do what they have to and runs out of the litter box which makes my house smell like poop every morning I wake up. It doesn't totally clean their solid waste and it makes my whole house smell when the drying function is on. also when the drying starts, all my cat furs fly all over the place and makes it pretty dirty. The pellets are everywhere and it is pretty expensive to keep up with. I am going back to the old litter. I am also having problems with the machine. I think a pellet went inside the dryer and it makes little pellet noises whenever the drying starts. I think the litterfree is great if u have no choice and travel often but if u don't travel, save your money.... Just my opinion.... anyone can help me solve my problems with the litterfree?

I love the LitterFree. The problems that I read here are easy to deal with. The noise is no big deal. The unit cleans great. If you take the time in the begining to get your cats used to it they will love it and you will know when they poop and set the timer accordingly. My box cleans within 20 minutes of my cats pooping and I only change the solution.

The solution does not cost much more than litter. I paid $18 a month for litter for 2 cats. I pay 19.99 for the solution for the same time period. However, the solution bottle is small and does not make a mess all over my house like the litter I bought did.

The granules do make a mess. (Guess what, so does litter). Yes they sometimes have poop or pee on them (Guess what, so does litter). I went and bought a cheap Dustbuster vac and I vac them up every day or so and at the end of the week I dump the granules back in the box.

Also, Jeff is wrong it is not a risk. If it does not work out, the store will take it back (Petco/Petsmart) It has a money back promise. Also I had a problem and I called the Litterfree customer service people and they solved my problem. (The person who asked for help in this discussion call the customer service for litterfree they can help).

FINAL THOUGHTS: It could use some improvement. However, it is the best product on the market. REMEMBER It is sometimes difficult for 3+ cats to use 1 box no matter what kind of box you use. Hey 3+ cats should never use 1 litterbox anyway, and 1-2 cats works great! I would bet 3 cats can work most of the time too. BOTTOM LINE It works, cats can easily adjust, it takes you out of the litterbox and buying and storing litter. The product works as advertised!

I agree that it works, however emotionally distressed animals are a special case.

Jeff and I stopped using the litterfree simply because Shadow couldn't stomach the change. (Our vet is suggesting a form of kitty prozac if we start to be really bothered by Shadow's emotional problems.)

I don't think that the Litterfree help line will help with Shadow. He's just had a hard little life early on and we can't change the consequences. We just love him and give him a good home: which in his case is sans Litterfree.

It was a blow to us. We were looking forward to all the great things described in this post. We tried for three or four months. The results were worse than litter clean-up. Shadow kept getting sick. That may not be related, but he's been fine since we pulled the plug on the experiment.

Maybe we will try it with the other cats again, one day. Like we say, Harley didn't mind the change too much. I anticipate he and Lily will perform fine.

I think it is worth the risk with emotionally stable cats. It is a bigger risk with cats that have problems and each cat owner will know whether it's worth it.

Hi, I'm Friday, a cat who easily freaks out over all sorts of objects and situations. One of my owners has diagnosed me as having an "unstable personality". This is because she never knows what is going to freak me out. My owner does know that I suffer from stress and anxiety due to also having low self esteem. This is mainly because Big Fat Bob neighbor cat marks (pees and poops) all over my owners front yard. My owners would like to "remove" Bob and other cat intruders to preserve my sanity but this would not be ethical. So I, Friday, have taken it upon myself to clearly spell it out to those pests that "THIS IS MINE" by marking (pee) on my owners lovely new washer and dryer (it is near the garage door). It smells heavenly. My owner has learned from several vets that cat owners should have 1 litter box/cat plus 1 extra to help alleviate marking (a clean box means less stess?) and mistakes. This makes for a lot of work. Got any thoughts on this device and controlling the urge to mark and whether or not it can substitute for a second box? Maybe this box and a couple of bottles of Prozac: 1 for the cat and 1 for the owner?

cas wrote:I agree that it works, however emotionally distressed animals are a special case.

Jeff and I stopped using the litterfree simply because Shadow couldn't stomach the change. (Our vet is suggesting a form of kitty prozac if we start to be really bothered by Shadow's emotional problems.)

I don't think that the Litterfree help line will help with Shadow. He's just had a hard little life early on and we can't change the consequences. We just love him and give him a good home: which in his case is sans Litterfree.

It was a blow to us. We were looking forward to all the great things described in this post. We tried for three or four months. The results were worse than litter clean-up. Shadow kept getting sick. That may not be related, but he's been fine since we pulled the plug on the experiment.

Maybe we will try it with the other cats again, one day. Like we say, Harley didn't mind the change too much. I anticipate he and Lily will perform fine.

I think it is worth the risk with emotionally stable cats. It is a bigger risk with cats that have problems and each cat owner will know whether it's worth it.

we currently have the littermaid box, which is still messy, and noisy, too! It wakes us up in the middle of the night with its motor going... so we're going to give this a try; even with people like 'al' giving his negative experience all over any board that mentions litterfree, i think our two cats will be fine with it. if they're not, it's got a 30-day money back guarantee...

We have tried some new things at the cat house of Shadow, Harley, and Lily. By the amount of things we've tried is anyone else doubting our abilities to control the cats' behavior?

Christy, let me mention this: I think I should add a new twist to things. We've abandoned LitterFree b/c Shadow is impossible as you probably have read. The new development is that we tried the "World's Best Cat Litter" (they're name, not mine). It is made of corn and has some advantages -- you can believe their claims for the most part.

We haven't tried doing the following yet, but have read on other sites and believe from our own experience that this product may improve everyone's LitterMaid experience substantially. If someone tries it, let us know. Christy, if you try this as an alternative during your 30 days please let us know.

Thing 2: Marking is a pain. Harley who is smart and well-natured most of the time has this particular problem. Our battle guide includes: vallium for coping (like in the instance of the new kitten) - it works but ask your vet; a "Scranimal" in the marking area - we are testing this one this week; that kitty enzyme stuff that's supposed to make them less stressed - this works except in extreme cases. If you're cat is particularly crazy, there really is kitty prozac. If your cat has problems coping, then your vet can give them valium. If your cat is outside, you should probably leave his wits alone and try some of the non-medicated solutions.

Liesl wrote:We have 5 cats and the litter detail is about to drive us both insane. Do y'all think it would work for 5 cats?

I am curently trying the experiment on 6 (count 'em--6!) cats. They have been trapped in the bathroom for three, going on four days with the LitterFree. One I know definitely used the box before I trapped them in there, so I let him out occationally. The problem is one of them keeps making diarrhea messes on the floor away from the box and I'm not sure which one it is, since I'm not in there with them all of the time.

Before I trapped them in there, I caught 4 of them pooping/peeing on the carpet in the dining room and in the hallway. That's why I decided to force them to get used to the box by giving them no other choice. I'm pretty sure who the current culprit is, but can't be sure because I havn't caught him in the act. I just know he's pretty freaked about being in trapped in the bathroom and he has been a bad boy frequently in the past. I also have the problem that I can't let too many out, even if they prove they are good kitties, since then they don't have access to the box. So, we are definitely going on to day 5 tomorrow (unless anyone has any brilliant solutions to my problems). I'll let you know how it goes.

I got the LitterFree for X-mas this year (2002) and my cat and I love it. Chester is 14! and he didn't have any problem getting used to it. I actually put the LitterFree in the bathroom, all set up and ready to go, right next to his old litterbox. He chose the LitterFree! I stopped using clay a few months ago and switched to pine and paper pellets, but even they took a lot of work. I do understand about the hair issue. It does float, but after it dries out you can just pick it out and throw it away. And if you have a short-haired cat like I do, its not much of an issue anyway. The only thing I have a problem with is the smell. It doesn't smell between flushes, just during. Here's what I've found works for the smell. Air freshners of course, but they just cover up the smell. I have a small box of baking soda beside the box, that seems to help, but one of the main things I do is turn on the bathroom fan. That seems to suck up the odor. We've had it for about a month now, and I wouldn't trade it for all the old litter pans in the world.

First off... is it me or did "Steveo" sound a little too much like he was throwing a sales pitch? Litterfree workers/makers... if you're going to post on here about how great your product is, do everyone a favor and don't be sneaky about it. It shines through - and through - and through. Just be honest and provide answers.

I know the steveo guy is going to come back and say "I am a real person not working for the company... blah blah blah." All I have to say in advance to that line of crap is - the writing's on the wall dude, read your last post - though you did state there's room for improvement (there is in everything - nothing new here) you still just had to counter everything/every complaint someone had about the product with the typical marketer answer.

Lastly, Wendy, that is just damn funny. I know people are going to take u seriously on here and get all pissy about 6 cats in a bathroom for days... but come on people, use your noggins - it's obviously just a joke. And a funny one at that.

You want something to be pissed about? I recently watched TLC Animal rescue or some crap like that, and this one guy had 250+ cats running rampid in his house. ALL WERE FERREL! The house was so messy and smelt so bad, the dude was living in his garage!! He was one of these sick and demented cat collectors. You should have seen the animal rescue workers trying to pull all these god damn cats out. LOL!!!