Ragdoll Cat Forums

I know this seems like such a silly subject... but I am just wondering who has litterboxes with covers that have the door flaps?? And if you think it helps with odor control??

My boys have been smelling soooo bad! I have been working on switching their food to Wellness and since the transition their poops have been smelling something awful! I clean their litterbox everyday (sometimes twice a day) and I find that I have to scoop it after each time they poop now too. I feel like I'm constantly scooping poop! Ugh!

I've always had this litterbox:

And just a few days ago I got this one:


I liked the first one they had because it helped with litter tracking but once the smell started happening so bad I wanted one that was more enclosed. And also Dexter is getting too big for the other one, he seemed all cramped in there and was leaving "presents" on the inside walls of the litterbox. I got the biggest size of the new litterbox and so far so good, except they are a little scared of the flap. I keep praising Leo when he goes in and out but I've yet to see Dex do it. So I left the flap off for the day while I'm at work. I really hope it helps with the smell!!

Sorry for the "TMI" post... hahaha!

Keep in mind many cats will reject a box that smells bad, so trapping odor in the box may not be a good strategy. The better solution may be to sift more frequently - or try a LitterMaid if the cats are adults. (I see what may be a filtered vent, but that may not be enough.)

You also may want to try commercial level deodorizers, such as metered sprays from Country Vet. http://www.country-vet.com/applications.php

I have some trays with flaps and some without. The ones with definitely help with odour control but I have 2 or 3 cats who will not use them because of the flap. I think it''s just a case of trial and error Lindz, sorry.

I'm with Jan on this one. I think the cats would be bothered by being closed in a stinky litter box. Dr. Elsey, of the Attract Litter, recommends no cover at all, but I tried it and couldn't live with the litter that got kicked across the floor, and since my boys don't seem to be bothered by the lids, it works for us.

Lindsey that litter box looks very futuristic! We only have the basic litter trays without a top, the boys seem to like tip-toeing between them when deciding which one to use I scoop out the trays at least 2-3 times a day too (usually straight after they've done something) and that keeps the odour down. Its a lot of scooping tho!

I had one sort of like your new one only not quite as nice. I left the lid on but took the flap off. It worked really well. I use a cheap litter - Special Kitty and I never had a problem with smell. I only have one kitty though. And another reason I may not have had a problem with smell is my naughty dog keeps going in there and dining on kitty "nuggets" Only kidding, I don't think she was able to get all of them. I really liked the combo of lid but no flap but out of shear desparation to keep Cricket out I forked out $35 for the Clevercat Litter box. That is the one that has a fairly deep "pan" and the entrance is a hole in the top of the lid. Luca didn't have any trouble adjusting. Unfortunately neither did Cricket! Within 2 days she was jumping on the lid then going all the way in the litter box and then jumping out again. I almost bought the dome one like your 1st picture thinking a dog isn't going to go up in that little tunnel but now I realize if she'll jump into the other box, she'd go into the dome one as well. It is so frustrating. Maybe a change in litter would help your situation.

Lindz how funny, you got the SAME box that I have! Its a nice box, the biggest you can find with a flap. Solo was raised with open boxes, so I was worried he wouldn't understand how to use a box with a flap. Turns out after pushing him through the door a few times and enticing him back out with a treat or two, he figured it out in no time.

We have one uncovered box and one covered, and I do find that he prefers his covered box over the other one. But trust me, if a stinky poo passes, you still smell it... my guess is probably not as much as an open box though!

When we finally found ourselves fosterless, we were down to five cats and 4 boxes. Two covered boxes without flaps, one with, and one dome. There is one, without flap, downstairs for emergencies. We now have three in one upstairs room because they only have the litter room, hallway, and our bedroom to roam in, but we wanted a large "public" restroom so everyone had a choice. Someone, probably Malachai, uses the flap one to pee. Everyone shares the other two. So, they prefer no flap. The dome seems to contain odor better. It could be the filter Jan mentioned.

Teach them how to use the toilet!!!


What kind of litter do you use?

(05-12-2010 12:14 PM)Lindz2785 Wrote: [ -> ]I know this seems like such a silly subject... but I am just wondering who has litterboxes with covers that have the door flaps?? And if you think it helps with odor control??

My boys have been smelling soooo bad! I have been working on switching their food to Wellness and since the transition their poops have been smelling something awful! I clean their litterbox everyday (sometimes twice a day) and I find that I have to scoop it after each time they poop now too. I feel like I'm constantly scooping poop! Ugh!

I've always had this litterbox:

And just a few days ago I got this one:


I liked the first one they had because it helped with litter tracking but once the smell started happening so bad I wanted one that was more enclosed. And also Dexter is getting too big for the other one, he seemed all cramped in there and was leaving "presents" on the inside walls of the litterbox. I got the biggest size of the new litterbox and so far so good, except they are a little scared of the flap. I keep praising Leo when he goes in and out but I've yet to see Dex do it. So I left the flap off for the day while I'm at work. I really hope it helps with the smell!!

Sorry for the "TMI" post... hahaha!

(05-12-2010 09:26 PM)Solo Wrote: [ -> ]Lindz how funny, you got the SAME box that I have! Its a nice box, the biggest you can find with a flap. Solo was raised with open boxes, so I was worried he wouldn't understand how to use a box with a flap. Turns out after pushing him through the door a few times and enticing him back out with a treat or two, he figured it out in no time.

We have one uncovered box and one covered, and I do find that he prefers his covered box over the other one. But trust me, if a stinky poo passes, you still smell it... my guess is probably not as much as an open box though!

That's so funny Alisha!! They had two sizes of it, I got the bigger one and so far I really like it. I like that you don't have to take the whole top of the box off to scoop the poop. I still haven't seen Dex go through the door yet so I keep leaving it off when I'm at work. I'll have to try the treat thing tonight when I get home.

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(05-13-2010 05:50 AM)karissa Wrote: [ -> ]Teach them how to use the toilet!!!


What kind of litter do you use?

Haha... I wish!

I use the World's Best Litter, which I really like. I used to use Tidy Cats (tried many variety's of it) but I think World's Best is better for odor control. And I like that if I do have to scoop a poop out I can just flush it and don't have to waste another garbage bag.