Apr092008
Booda Dome Cleanstep is a Huge Hit
Filed under Litter & Hygiene by moderncat at 9:40 pm on Apr 09 2008
I’m still working on my natural litter comparison test, but in order to carryout my experiment, I needed to get another litter box, so I finally sprang for the Booda Dome Cleanstep covered cat litter box. If you’ve shopped for covered litter boxes anytime in the past several years, you have no doubt seen the Booda Dome line. I’ve had other covered litter boxes and I’ve always looked right past this one, thinking, “Oh, it’s just another covered litter box.” I had no idea how popular it would be! EVERYONE loves it (all the cats, and me, too.)
I think it has some features that make it a very well-designed product. First, I have a couple of “deep diggers.” The area for the litter is quite deep, allowing you to fill it up with a lot of litter to accommodate the digging, plus the top fits perfectly and prevents flying litter from escaping. Another issue with deep diggers is that they tend to deposit liquids on the very bottom of the box. The inner shape of the box has curved edges and no sharp corners (similar to its cousin, the Booda Swift Scoop) making it very easy to scoop away the deposits on the bottom of the box.
I chose the Cleanstep model which has a covered walkway/ramp leading into the box. The ramp is designed to remove litter from paws and reduce tracking. It does remove some of the litter, but plenty still exits the box trapped between furry toes. I’m not sure if there will ever be a great solution to this problem, but I think the ramp helps.
It does have a built-in air filter which is supposed to remove 99 percent of odor. That may be more like 10 percent. It’s still pretty stinky. I do like the handle on the top and think that it is quite easy to remove and replace the top for cleaning. It is a nice big box, so even my Maine Coon is comfortable using it. The form is actually quite attractive and it comes in some excellent colors, like gold, titanium, and silver.
I got mine at PetSmart, but it is also available at Amazon.
1 mod*momon 10 Apr 2008 at 9:16 am
that is adorable!
2 Dorion 10 Apr 2008 at 9:22 am
I tried the Booda Dome, but had two issues with it that led me to return to a rectangular covered box. First, I think my larger cat was rather cramped since the dome top leaves less head room, and the ramp also cuts down on the space for the cat to maneuver inside. Second, the plastic liners were extremely difficult to place on the oddly shaped base.
3 Naomion 10 Apr 2008 at 10:02 am
We have a couple of these and mostly love them, too, but we have issues with the cats peeing up the side and it leaking down the lid. Gross.
4 Kateon 10 Apr 2008 at 10:54 am
I looked at these when I was shopping for a new catbox, but ended up going with the CleverCat top-entry one instead. It actually keeps a LOT of litter in the box, and it’s super easy to clean. (Jeez, I sound like an advertiser).
You should check it out though. Definitely the best one I’ve owned.
5 Mikeon 16 May 2008 at 2:11 pm
I had one a couple of years ago but stopped using it in favor of a standard box-shaped enclosed litter box. My cat just seems to track a lot of litter no matter what box I use. The main reason I stopped using it was because of the odor, even though I cleaned the box regularly. I think the door opening is too high and allows odors to escape easily. I did manage to reduce the smell by creating a card-board insert and hot-gluing it to the top of the door to lower the opening. In the end it didn’t seem any better than the other box. I think the cat’s personality and habits are greater factors.
6 Roxyon 23 May 2008 at 8:03 am
I used to have the booda dome when I had 2 cats. I agree there was still plenty of odor. My main issue was the size. I live in a small apartment and it was like having another piece of furniture.
I have the smaller booda for my new cat. I think rather than a litter box that keeps litter in, I need to find a litter rug that somehow magnetically removes all the litter from my cat’s paws when he steps out.
7 Cynecstasyon 22 Aug 2008 at 2:06 pm
I have a geriatric cat who has problems hitting the litter box when she’s urinating. She stands in the box and urinates outside of it. High sided boxes are not an option because of the arthritis in her back legs. Before the Booda dome, we placed training pads around the box, which worked, but we were changing them several times a day. She has responded well to the Booda dome, mostly getting the urine inside. We do still have to clean urine occasionally at the base of the ramp. The lip is large enough that the urine pools there. Yeah, it’s gross, but it sure beats finding it on the floor. We have not had problems with scent, but we use the pine litter which seems to have much better odor control than other litters. Also, the filter needs to be changed about every three months. I gave up using the plastic bag inserts after the first use because they are so hard to use. The pine litter dust is easily swiped away when you change out the box.
The Booda Dome is definitely a matter of preference. Our geriatric cat uses it exclusively, preferring it to all other boxes. Two of our other cats use it when they feel like it. Our fourth cat won’t even walk in front of it. He prefers the regular, nothing fancy box located in a more discrete part of the house.
8 Dreaon 26 Sep 2008 at 3:15 am
I have five cats and I have this exact same Booda Dome - it has changed the quality of my life!!! I LOVE IT!!!
Like with any litter box, the plastic liners are basically useless, but I just take it outside and hose it down periodically between litter changes.
The lip at the bottom of the steps keeps in ’spills’ and much of the litter, which is really nice.
As far as maneuverability, my cats are huge and have no problem with headspace or turning around, but I have the large-sized dome, not the smaller one.
Definitely worth the money in my multi-cat household, and I’ve tried just about everything.