This is one of several posts on clumping cat litter comparison. The comparison is divided into sections for a more blog-friendly format. A later post will tie everything together with our conclusions / selection.
Over the past 4 months, we've used the following clumping cat litters for our seven cats:
Swheat Scoop, Arm & Hammer Essentials, Feline Pine Clumping, and ExquisiCat ClumpingWorld's Best Cat Litter was a late entrant (mainly due to cost) and not pictured above.
Arm & Hammer Essentials was purchased from Target. The other litters were all purchased from the local Petsmart.
Swheat Scoop is made from naturally processed wheat. Go to the link for more information. We initially got the original formula (in photo above) but switched to the multi-cat formula for the comparison trial. The multi-cat formula is more expensive at about $32 for 40-pounds (Original Swheat Scoop is $25 for 40-pounds; clumping clay ExquisiCat is about $13 for 40-pounds) but appears to clump better than the original and better odor control.
Clay-free does not mean dust-free. The fine powdery cloud when we poured the Swheat Scoop is not as bad as the clay dust (and did not worsen allergies in our cats compared to the clay litter).
Swheat Scoop has a pleasant wheat smell --- not overpowering. It does a good job of odor control. But note, we scoop the boxes everyday so did not test if the odor control is due to removal of wastes or some property of Swheat Scoop.
Natural wheat starches transform the litter into solid clumps when wet (urine). The starches sometimes can make a sticky dough ball in box corners but can still be easily scooped and cleaned. Make sure you have enough litter in your box (3 inches deep) or you will end up with a doughy litter mess.
Swheat Scoop pluses: good clumpability, minimal dust, pleasant smell, good odor control, biodegradable, renewable resources, weighs less than clumping clay litter.
Swheat Scoop minuses: costs more up front compared to regular clumping clay litter, makes doughy mess if litter depth is too shallow (though this applies to most clumping litter), availability (the multi-cat large 40-pounder is not always in stock at the local pet store).
World's Best Cat Litter (WBCL) is made from whole-kernel corn --- it is milled so the actual litter is a ground coarser than the regular clumping clay litter, not actual whole kernels! The website has a lot of information, it's actually overwhelming. We did not include WBCL in the initial selection because of its price tag of $34.99 for a 34-pounds bag. As it turns out, WBCL did live up to its name.
As with the Swheat Scoop, there is a multi-cat formula which we used for the trial. WBCL has a fine powder cloud when poured. After scooping the boxes, my forearm is covered with a fine dust (as with Swheat Scoop) but I (my breathing) did not notice this "dust cloud" while scooping so maybe the dust does not get in the air as much as the clay dust. This powdery layer is not unexpected considering the processing needed to get the fine texture.
WBCL forms excellent clumps, second only to the clumping clay litter in our comparison. Exellent odor control. However, WBCL has a corn smell that is not as pleasant as the wheat from Swheat Scoop. WBCL corn smell reminds me of the cow barns at feeding time --- not bad but not exactly pleasant.
WBCL lasts longer in the litter box than the others in our trial; we did not have to refill the box with fresh litter as often. My theory is that WBCL uses less litter to form the clumps; hence, each urine clump removes less litter from the box. It also kept the litter box cleaner since the urine clumps before it collects at the bottom.
WBCL pluses: excellent clumpability and odor control, biodegradable, renewable resources, lasts longer, septic-safe (though we don't recommend flushing it), weighs less than clumping clay litter, minimal dust.
WBCL minuses: costs more up front compared to regular clumping clay litter, availability often limited to the major pet stores.
Next Up: Arm & Hammer Essentials and Feline Pine Clumping Litter
Swheat Scoop is made from naturally processed wheat. Go to the link for more information. We initially got the original formula (in photo above) but switched to the multi-cat formula for the comparison trial. The multi-cat formula is more expensive at about $32 for 40-pounds (Original Swheat Scoop is $25 for 40-pounds; clumping clay ExquisiCat is about $13 for 40-pounds) but appears to clump better than the original and better odor control.
Clay-free does not mean dust-free. The fine powdery cloud when we poured the Swheat Scoop is not as bad as the clay dust (and did not worsen allergies in our cats compared to the clay litter).
Swheat Scoop has a pleasant wheat smell --- not overpowering. It does a good job of odor control. But note, we scoop the boxes everyday so did not test if the odor control is due to removal of wastes or some property of Swheat Scoop.
Natural wheat starches transform the litter into solid clumps when wet (urine). The starches sometimes can make a sticky dough ball in box corners but can still be easily scooped and cleaned. Make sure you have enough litter in your box (3 inches deep) or you will end up with a doughy litter mess.
Swheat Scoop pluses: good clumpability, minimal dust, pleasant smell, good odor control, biodegradable, renewable resources, weighs less than clumping clay litter.
Swheat Scoop minuses: costs more up front compared to regular clumping clay litter, makes doughy mess if litter depth is too shallow (though this applies to most clumping litter), availability (the multi-cat large 40-pounder is not always in stock at the local pet store).
World's Best Cat Litter (WBCL) is made from whole-kernel corn --- it is milled so the actual litter is a ground coarser than the regular clumping clay litter, not actual whole kernels! The website has a lot of information, it's actually overwhelming. We did not include WBCL in the initial selection because of its price tag of $34.99 for a 34-pounds bag. As it turns out, WBCL did live up to its name.As with the Swheat Scoop, there is a multi-cat formula which we used for the trial. WBCL has a fine powder cloud when poured. After scooping the boxes, my forearm is covered with a fine dust (as with Swheat Scoop) but I (my breathing) did not notice this "dust cloud" while scooping so maybe the dust does not get in the air as much as the clay dust. This powdery layer is not unexpected considering the processing needed to get the fine texture.
WBCL forms excellent clumps, second only to the clumping clay litter in our comparison. Exellent odor control. However, WBCL has a corn smell that is not as pleasant as the wheat from Swheat Scoop. WBCL corn smell reminds me of the cow barns at feeding time --- not bad but not exactly pleasant.
WBCL lasts longer in the litter box than the others in our trial; we did not have to refill the box with fresh litter as often. My theory is that WBCL uses less litter to form the clumps; hence, each urine clump removes less litter from the box. It also kept the litter box cleaner since the urine clumps before it collects at the bottom.
WBCL pluses: excellent clumpability and odor control, biodegradable, renewable resources, lasts longer, septic-safe (though we don't recommend flushing it), weighs less than clumping clay litter, minimal dust.
WBCL minuses: costs more up front compared to regular clumping clay litter, availability often limited to the major pet stores.
Next Up: Arm & Hammer Essentials and Feline Pine Clumping Litter
5 comments:
I think all these litter comparisons are really interesting. I had to stop using WBCL years ago when my dog Ginger ingested some. I would have thought that with it being such a natural product, it wouldn't have caused any problems, but it made her sick enough to need vet care. I switched back to regular clumping litter and never had a problem again.
(Of course, it's pretty gross that she was going into the litter box in the first place. But that's dogs for you, I guess!)
I have heard kittens having problems with regular clay clumping litter, but not with WBCL. Do you mind telling us what kind of problems Ginger had --- was it gastroenteritis (i.e. vomiting and diarrhea), from getting some intestinal parasites from the cat, or actual intestinal blockage? From my understanding, WBCL clumps are designed to break apart when immersed in water (hence flushable in small amounts). Ginger must have eaten quite a bit of it. Poor girl. Glad to hear she is fine now.
As I recall, Ginger had some kind of blockage. She didn't need surgery or anything like that, but she was miserable for a little while. I think she had ingested quite a bit over time, and that was the problem.
Our cats did nibble on Swheat Scoop and WBCL when we first introduced them. So I can imagine a dog eating lots of it and having problems. Something for us to keep in mind. I'll make sure to include that note in the conclusion. Thanks for the reminder.
Great post!
Cat Litters
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