This is a follow-up to my first natural cat litter comparison in which I tested Arm & Hammer High Performance, Swheat Scoop (regular strength), World’s Best Cat Litter (multi-cat strength), and Nature’s Miracle. If you haven’t read it yet, please also see the original post What’s In Your Litter Box to learn more about the dangers of clay and silica based cat litters and why natural litters are the way to go.
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As the grand finale to Litter Week, I had to post about my recent findings in the world of natural cat litter. Since the last comparison, I found three more natural litters to test, all available at PetSmart. This time I tried PaPurr Scoop, Swheat Scoop multi-cat strength, and Feline Pine Clumping. Here are my observations:
PaPurr Scoop
I really like this litter but it is hard to find. I purchased it at one Petsmart in my area, but I have never seen it at any other stores. I also can’t find the manufacturer online, so if you have any information, please leave a comment. PaPurr Scoop really does look and feel like clay litter but it is made from recycled paper. The texture is like soft little beads and it is a bit dusty, but not nearly as bad as clay litter. It has a soft scent that smells like lightly scented paper, and it did a pretty good job at odor control. Good clumping, especially if liquids are left alone for awhile before scooping. This one is safe for flushing in small amounts because it is biodegradable.
Swheat Scoop Multi-cat Strength
Swheat scoop multi-cat strength seems to be slightly better than the regular strength. Better clumping but still a lot of dust, so I’m avoiding it because of my gluten intolerance. If you like Swheat Scoop, I’d go with the multi-cat strength.
Feline Pine Clumping
Feline Pine clumping litter is from the same company that makes the Feline Pine pellets. A lot of cats don’t like the pellets, including mine, so I was excited to try this one. This is one of my favorites because it has a pleasant scent of sawdust and it clumps reasonably well. It is very light and easy to carry, which is great, but that also means that it tracks easily. However, it doesn’t hurt when you step on it, like the pellets do. The cats seem to like the texture, but it’s not outstanding on odor control and I find that the clumps sometimes get stuck to the bottom of the box and you really have to scrape to get them off. I have to do a complete hose-down of the litter box more frequently when using this litter.
A word about the pine pellets
There are a few different brands, including the original Feline Pine pellets. These pellets break down when they come in contact with liquid and turn to sawdust. You are supposed to shake the box to let the sawdust settle to the bottom and scoop the solids. I thought it became a big mess and most of my cats hated the pellets, but lots of people and cats love them. If you do, you may want to know about the special litter box that was created for use with the pellets, the Feline Pine Self-cleaning Litter Box. It has a perforated upper compartment that lets the sawdust fall into the lower portion of the box, making things a little neater. This also extends the life of the pellets because they are not being thrown away with the sawdust, plus it reduces tracking because the sawdust is contained in the lower part of the box.
Arm & Hammer High Performance Has a New Name
Just a note, the Arm & Hammer High Performance natural clumping litter reviewed in our first natural litter comparison has changed it’s name and packaging. It is now part of the Arm & Hammer Essentials line, but as far as I can tell, it is the same corn-based litter but with a new, incredibly obnoxious scent. The old A&H High Performance had a strong perfume-y smell and the new Essentials litter has a different and even stronger perfume-y smell. At first I liked it because it’s kind of fresh smelling, but after living with it in the box, I just couldn’t stand it. Otherwise it performs about the same — light and fluffy texture, low dust, okay clumping.
Warning! Fresh Results Natural Litter is Not the Same Quality!
I found a natural corn-based litter called Fresh Results at Walmart for a really good price. It looked and smelled exactly like the Arm & Hammer natural litter, so I assumed they were the same. They are not! I really noticed a difference in the quality of the Fresh Results – very bad clumping and almost no odor control. It’s certainly better than the clay choices available at Walmart, but please know that this is not the best natural litter out there. It’s very disappointing because that was a great move for Walmart to put in a natural litter, but now people might switch back to clay after having a bad experience with natural litter.
New natural litters to try
I found some new natural litters at the pet expo, although they are not easy to find yet. Here are a couple that I have yet to test:
Green Tea Leaves Clumping Cat Litter
Green Tea Leaves clumping litter is wood-based plus it is made with green tea leaves that contain catechin, a natural tannin that helps fight odors and is anti-bacterial.
Close to Naturenow Organic Soybean Cat Litter
This one sounds great! It’s from The Organic Farm Store. The litter is 100% organic and all natural. It is made from soybean meal for superior clumping and granulated potato starch to enhance odor control. It is biodegradable and flushable and supposedly low tracking. I can’t wait to try this one!
What are you using?
Please leave your comments about these natural litters or any others that you have tried. If more of us show interest in natural cat litter, it should trigger the litter manufacturers to make improvements and continue developing new alternative natural litters that are healthy for cats, people, and the environment.
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Please read the following posts to learn more about flushing cat litter:
December 21st, 2009 at 1:38 pm
I have tried nearly every litter out there looking for the best one. Feline Pine is nothing more than wood pellet stove fuel and you can buy a 40-pound bag at Lowe’s or Home Depot (or your local feed store) for less than $5. Don’t waste your money on the Feline Pine. Feline Pine (or wood stove pellets) disintegrates when peed on and turns into sawdust. The sawdust tracks everywhere. World’s Best is extremely dusty. The label says “99% dust free”, but if you read the fine print, it says “silica dust”. If a black cat goes into a box with this litter, its feet will be encased in dusty boots upon exiting the box. My favorite litter is Nature’s Miracle, and the Wal-Mart brand is identical. Not all stores carry it, but this link is for the product and you can input your zip code to find out if your local store carries it. http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10450484
This litter has NO dust. It does track. The scent is a pleasant woodsy aroma, not some fake perfumey stuff. The clumps are not rock-hard, but I prefer this. It means my cats won’t have cement-like bits of litter stuck in their paws. Art and Hammer makes a similar litter, but it has a very obnoxious, heavy perfume. Cats don’t like perfume and this one gives me a headache!
Nature’s Miracle (and the Wal-Mart version) is more expensive than many litters, but if you scoop daily, one bag will last a month. Really. It ends up being less expensive than other “cheaper” types.
February 21st, 2010 at 3:49 pm
i breed smoke persians and have automatic littermaid litter boxes — i lover the WBC for that purpose, but have heard that there is a petsmart knock off of that brand for a lot less money — is that true? is there a clumping Exquisicats corn litter? has anyone tried it? — i always switch to yesterday’s news before a queen is ready to deliver because i once had a baby born in clay clumping litter (fortunately i was just around the corner and was (with lots of trouble) able to wash off all the clumping litter from his wet little newborn body — but i was wondering if i could just leave the WBC in for the queens, it seems it wouldnt be too bad getting it off of wet babies if necessary… In the boxes, some of my cats prefer the clay so i have a few with clay litter — for me the best has been ever clean — fresh step was the worst…
March 2nd, 2010 at 7:31 pm
Love the Green Tea Leaves clumping litter. No dust, no perfume, great odor control (for one cat for sure!) and easy to clean up. It doesn’t clump really well, but that doesn’t bother me as much as dust and perfume from clay litters. The one thing I don’t like about it, is that it is pricey.
April 8th, 2010 at 7:46 am
Hi Kate – The Noble Beast carries PaPurr Litter, they changed the bag so perhaps you did not recognize it. PaPurr is a Arizona company too. Also approached by Green Tea yesterday about carrying their litter, but it does seem pricey. About $9.00 for a 4 lb bag, wanna test it for us?
April 26th, 2010 at 6:56 am
I second Simone’s vote of confidence in the green tea litter! I live in New York City and get it from my two local pet shops, though I haven’t been able to find it at chains like Petco, so I imagine it’s not widely available yet. I used to use World’s Best, and I didn’t care for pellets historically, but the cashier at one of my shops recommended it, and I haven’t looked back since.
It is very pricey, but it covers up odor like nothing else I’ve ever tried. Having a tiny apartment, this function is a big deal for me. It actually has a really pleasant woody (not cedar) smell. Plus, it is also super light, which means carrying it from the store is much easier than with a grain litter. I haven’t had much problem with tracking–I’d say it is actually less of problem than it was with World’s Best and Swheat Scoop (see below).
Both my shops have been out of it for a week (I think they both use the same spotty distributor–again, hard to come by) and I bought some Swheat Scoop as a temporary replacement. I have to say it doesn’t even carry a candle to the green tea litter–I’m completely loyal at this point!
July 16th, 2010 at 12:37 pm
I switched to Feline Pine pellets because my cats are allergic to grains, so the corn-based litters aren’t an option. I got the special litter box, which works well, and the sawdust is lightweight and incredibly easy to clean. Only issue is, the special box doesn’t come with a cover, and they do tend to kick the pellets out of the box. The manufacturer is too small to afford tooling a lid, but they were kind enough to send me links of other boxes/lids that would fit on top. I ended up buying a dog tent on Amazon that I believe the box will fit into (because it was better constructed than the kitty litter tents and less expensive!) so we’ll see. Anyway, I’m sticking with Feline Pine because – unlike the wood chips at the hardware store – the toxic (to cats) sap has been removed. And it’s really not that expensive – I go through it much slower than the clumping Arm & Hammer I used to buy.