I have 4 cats. Everyone is amazed at the lack of odor. You can't even tell that I have them (ok, there *is* some fur on the couch) :-) I have 4 litterboxes. I use Swheat Scoop litter, and I remove the clumps every other day, and clean the entire box every 2 months (please never use ammonia for this). I've had cats for 38 years & Swheat Scoop works the best to control the odor. In the past, when I have fed medium-quality foods lke Iam's, Science Diet, etc, their poop was MUCH stinkier. Now that they eat a commercial prepared healthy raw diet - zero smell! It's so odd. Please don't even consider feeding anyone that junk they sell in the supermarket. One look at the label with prove that - fillers like corn, wheat hulls, flour, sugar - it's ridiculous what some companies get away with putting a bag & calling "food". Think about a wild feline - do they eat corn? Flour? No! They hunt,and eat meat. I highly recommend a raw diet, and a better cat litter. Think about what you eat & how it affects you. The same goes for your pets. Cats make wonderful pets & wonderful friends. They deserve the best you can afford! :-) As far as any mess outside the box, again, having cats for 38 years, the absolute best product I have found is Simple Solution. I had a senior kitty who had a lot of accidents...daily...and in my *living room*. Oh boy! However, Simple Solution completely got rid of the smell. It's an enzyme which literally *eats* the urine, so it's 100% gone!

We just (this past weekend) switched to Dr. Elsey's Ultra Precious Cat litter for our two indoor-only cats. So far, so good. We've been using, and swearing by, Everclean ES, fragrance-free since it came out back in the late 1980's (started out using the original version, but switched to the ES for its stronger/harder clump formation as I had two cats at that time as well). We were very satisfied with Everclean's odor-neutralizing and clumping properties. We tried switching litters a few times over the years, but always switched right back to the Everclean, as none of the other litters could match Everclean's ability to neutralize cat urine odor. We were quite spoiled--with Everclean, our home did not smell like a "cat box." If we were so happy with Everclean, why even consider switching? Well, we were quite tired of (and more than a little annoyed with) the fact that their Unscented/Fragrance Free (both terms used on their packages) ES litter, was more often than not, heavily fragranced. Our cats would come out of the litter box, reeking of this fragrance (as if they had rolled in a bottle of cheap perfume). I called the company a number of times over the years to complain, and to ask them to please do something about this. According to Everclean, they looked into it, and the litter was in fact unscented/fragrance free when packaged in their facilities. If this was in fact true, then the only thing we (DH and I) could surmise, is that the (boxes of) Unscented ES litter must absorb the perfume-y scent from the boxes of their fragranced litter during storage or shipping. The boxes themselves have as a rule, had no scent at all, only the litter contained within (strange), so checking the boxes before bringing them home was of no help. Fed up, I would often look at the different types of litter available at our local family-owned and operated pet supply store, but always stuck with Everclean, despite it not being fragrance-free. as advertised. Having battled carpenter ants in the past, and having two cats with possible food allergies, I was reluctant to try any of the corn or other "food"-based litters. When I saw bags of the new-to-the-store Ultra Precious Cat Litter on the shelf (40 #'s for $14.99, good price), I asked one of the guys about it. He said a customer kept telling them to get in and sell it, so they finally did, more to humor her than anything. Since then, they've been selling out of it, and the feedback has all been positive (overwhelmingly so apparently). So we picked up a couple of bags over the weekend, and like I wrote at the beginning of my post, so far it seems pretty good. Urine odor appears to be neutralized well. Poop odor, maybe not quite as good, but still pretty good (slightly detectable while scooping the litter box??). It's definitely more dust-free than Everclean (or some others we had tried over the years), and is truly fragrance-free as well. If my opinion about it changes in the days (weeks, months) to come, I will report back to you all. Here is a link that might be useful: Ultra Precious Cat

Wow! Thanks to everybody for all of the your creative suggestions!!! I am still debating on the better location. It's either going to be in the garage or the basement bathtub (that no one EVER uses). For what it's worth, we use Tidy Cats clumping litter and it seems to do the best job for us. I also installed one of those intermittent spray air fresheners (runs on batteries and hangs on a simple nail) just over the tub where their box is. That has made a great deal of difference...but It's not enough to make me want a litter box off my foyer anymore! Natal, thanks for asking about the basement. It really got me rethinking my position on that. My reasons for avoiding using it as a litter spot is that since our renovation, the basement is just soooo nice now...I just hate to have that durn box, the scattered litter, the smells, etc. down there! The only place it can go is the tub though. My concern with that is that the tub is acrylic, and I am afraid of getting too many scratches. But, I'm thinking that if I get a couple of throw rugs to line the tub and lay over the edge, it might not be a problem. Now I'll just have to find a way of keeping them from clawing up the leather furniture that's down there...(maybe we'll have to re-try Soft Paws...hmmmm...) Sujafr, Thanks for the warning about losing the fire-rating on the door to the garage. I would not have thought of that in a zillion years. Hmmmmm...now that option does not seem so great. My DH will certainly hate the idea knowing that little tidbit. I'm glad I did not do my usual thing and just impulsively hack a hole in the door! Jeanne gallo--wow!!! That little cut-out for the kitties is awesome! I so want that in my next house!!!! Do you mind if I save a copy of the photos?? Thanks again, everybody! You guys are THE BEST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Everclean clumps really well. I've never noticed it stuck on my cat's paws. I use the Booda litter boxes so tracking is minimal but it's really the consistency of most clumping litter. It just contains odors much better and it lasts a lot longer. As mentioned, there's a good amount of dust when you first pour some in but I just keep the cats away from it while it settles so no one is actively inhaling it. I wish I could find a natural litter that works but I haven't been able to. I don't like the idea of them breathing in the dust but the natural stuff just can't control the odor for my 3 cats.