Sunday, October 16, 2011

Arm & Hammer Essentials - Clumping Cat Litter

A natural product I tried as part of my ongoing quest to reduce my impact on what's left of our environment. This is a corn based product, a fact I'm not overly crazy about, so it weighs half of what comparable uses of typical clay based clumping litters weigh.

Overall first impression was good. Zeus was right in it, no problems there. It seemed to work well and there were no unpleasant odors from the litter box even at close proximity, Until I was halfway through the second bag. Now my opinion has changed.

  • Price: about $8 - $9 for a 10.5 lb bag.
  • Clumping Ability: This litter has weak clumps which fall apart easily, leaving used litter behind in the box after cleaning unless you take excessive time to clean the box using a scoop with very small holes. Even the cat's digging breaks them up, significantly.
  • Odor Control: The ammonia odor of cat urine is now quite strong when cleaning the box and the litter is considerably darker in color. This is most likely due to the weak clumps disintegrating, leaving urine soaked litter behind when cleaning the box.
  • Tracking: Possibly due to the sheer size of Zeus's giant hairy feet, this stuff is everywhere. Its light weight may also be a contributing factor. Through the laundry room, through a large kitchen and across the living room, this stuff literally gets eveywhere. You'll become very familiar with your vacuum.

Overall I'm very disappointed, this isn't the quality I'd expect from this brand. Poor odor control due to weak clumping ability mean that you'll need to completely replace the litter more frequently than with other clumping litters. This defeats the whole purpose of clumping litter and makes it a more expensive option in the long run. I'll be trying a different brand next time.

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