I've always put it in the trash, because I heard cat feces couldn't be composted. Was I misinformed?

We’ve been trying different types of litter lately. We just dump it in the trash.

When we had a cat, I basically did the same: sift and top off as needed, then do a total empty and clean the box every couple of months. I used clumping litter too - clay unscented, and did dump the contents outside in the back corners of the yard, since I figured it might help amend our Florida sand.

The scooped out stuff went in the trash.

If I didn't have a yard, it would all go in the trash. There are worse things to send to a landfill, IMO.

WE use dustless, scentless, clay litter, store brand, from Pet Co. A 30lb refill = $12. We tried Fresh Step and several other brands, but the dust was so bad I couldn't keep the bathroom clean, where the two covered kitty litter pans are. We replace it completely once a month. Put it in a trash bag, in the trashcan.

Have you ever tried wood pellets? Those little things you burn in a pellet stove? Our local animal shelter used them and I gave them a try. They smell nice and compost. I dont use them now because I have a cat that wont use them

I forgot to mention that I have two "Cat Genies", one for upstairs and one down in the cellar. These dispose of the solids and clumps, the Genie is lined with a plastic bag which I do tie off and put in the trash (inside the trash bag with the regular trash after it sits ready for pickup). No odor, no mess. I really like the Genies except I know I'm putting more plastic bags out there.

So it's actually the other litter left in the pans that I was wondering about. Looks like I could start buying a less expensive clay based litter and put bags of it in the trash. I wonder if the clay ever breaks down? Thanks for the replies.

Yeah, both World's Best and the Natural Cedar/Pine/Corn litter causes dust no matter what the ads say. But with WB I have never noticed a lingering odor.

I looked at the pellet type litter and I wondered how well you could scoop with those. Do the pellets fall through the scoop?

I buy the clumping litter at Costco. We're allowed to put it in our green bin.

You definitly need clumping litter for those automatic cat boxes. We had one for a while-an inheritance sort of thing but found it glitchy. I forgot to say we put our clumping litter in the regular trash. I tried composting it but it just turns into goo. I suppose in some future distant age it will break down.

We use zeolite litter and it goes into the trash in a compostable plastic bag. Cats can be really fussy about what litter they will use and what they won’t. Once we needed to get a wee sample for the vet and she gace us some plastic beads to sub for the litter in the tray to prevent the sample being contaminated. Our cat refused to wee for a day and a half before I gave up.

I use the Tidy Cat 24/7 and I would swear each time I purchase it is a different product. What I have purchased most recently is a gray color with perhaps a little blue green coloration added.

I was using Worlds Best Long Lasting in a red bag but it seems to have disappeared in this area. I purchased an Arm & Hammer product in a bag that sounds similar to what you were using. I would not mix your original stuff with the Tidy Cat because if they clump the clumps fall apart easily.

I scoop into double bags then place in the trash once a week unless the cat with the reoccurring over active bladder has problems. I take that out and scatter it behind some low plants. First time last spring I started putting it around my remaining blueberry plant and it apparently loved it. I had more and bigger blueberry's last year than I have ever had. I was worried at first that it would leave a whitish surface layer but so far it has not.

Now that I've read, you can compost the litter, you just can't compost the "solid matter". Ah. Got it

You can compost the solid matter but not in anything that would come in touch with anything that a human would eat. This is similar to when growers clean out chicken houses and barns. It is not so much any bacteria but any worm eggs such as round worms or various flat worms. Some areas including this one it may also be against the law to add it to a vegetative compost pile.

i mix it with penguins and snowmen ...

Oh I always get things messed up. I didn't meant Cat Genie, I meant Litter Genie. This:

It's like a trash can, but better. You have to buy the special plastic bag refills for it. Those are kinda pricey but I think worth it.

mailfluer, not sure what you mean about not mixing the 24/7 with the old litter. I've already done so in one pan, putting a layer down, then a layer of the old litter on top. This morning when I scooped the pan, there was clumping. The Tidy Cat Natural Cedar/Pine/Corn is/was a clumping litter and did ok except my one boy sprays in the pan and so there is not one single clump but sometimes a number of smaller clumps that fall apart. But I'll make a note tomorrow if there is less clumping.

I thought I should introduce the 24/7 slowly.

I use Tidy cat and another brand I get at a discount store for the three litter boxes in the basement. It's all scooped and put in the trash.

I had to laugh one time when I was reading our trash pick-up services rules and regulations page where it states that you cannot dispose of excrement in the trash. So just exactly what are we supposed to do with our dog and cat excrement?

I'm pretty sure my trash pick-up has "animal waste" as permitted to be put in with the trash. I'll go to the web site and look.

For people who dump your litter outside, you might want to re-visit that. I recently looked into disposal options, as we have 5 cats and a bunch of boxes, and I feel like there is no good, environmentally friendly way to dispose of old litter, or even the daily scoopings. I came across several articles that said it's not a good idea to put it outside. I collect it in a variety of used bags - old paper bags or used plastic grocery bags that friends save for me - and dispose of in our trash barrel. Our trash service allows pet waste.

My older cat is quite particular about litter. It must be unscented. I buy clumping in what is basically what I can find as a store brand at Walmart, Kroger or HEB. Dh prefers the Walmart brand, but they aren't always in stock.

With the wildlife I have that visits my yard who leave their droppings etc. I lack concern about putting the used heavily urinated litter around my plants. Last night once again I was left with gifts on my patio. Most of those articles while they are correct that body waste can contain things that do go into the ground water they have not done any research in ways household garbage is handled including bagged kitty litter.

In this area at least it is put into big mounds and compacted. You can frequently see trenches or drainage ponds to hold the liquid from the rain that washes through the mound. Those drainage ponds are allowed to seep into the ground or evaporate until they are full of particles. At that time they are either capped with dirt or dug out and the solid materials taken elsewhere. For a while those solid particles were spread on a field as an experiment to see what grew best. They no longer do that as it was discovered it concentrated heavy metals of various sort. So the short of this is that the kitty litter will eventually enter the ground water which is what most are concerned about.

I returned the walnut based bag of kitty litter today. I'm going to try using the Tidy Cat 24/7 Multi cat. I need to start to cut back on expenses and there's no sense in spending all that money on pricey litter for the two inside/outside cats who only use their litter boxes in the basement overnight. Sometimes they don't even use them, they wait to until I let them outside in the morning. I do feel better about natural litters but they seem to be getting even more expensive. I'll still use the Worlds Best for the inside cat.

Whenever I do a complete clean out of the pans, I'll do as Bluebell and put it into paper bags or similar and put in the trash. Even the pine/cedar/corn litter I have been using didn't break down on the dirt/weed pile as much as I thought it would. Takes a long time.

When my daughter fosters kittens the shelter told her to use pine pellets (40 lb bags) from Tractor Supply. Its used in horse stalls Its odor free but turns to sand when wet. Its not a big investment to try a bag. They are $6.49

Oh wow Lisa, that's a great idea! I see $5.49 at our TS! I wonder why our local rescues don't use this? They are always asking for clumping and that stuff is pricey!

Not only expensive, clumping is not good for kittens.

I have switched over to the Tidy Cat Breeze system. It is pellets & it has changed my life. I moved into a new home at the end of Sept. last year. It has very dark wood throughout & the dust from litter in the utility room was out of control. It was tracked all over the house & the floors had to be cleaned daily. I live alone with 2 cats & that is not my idea of house cleaning. The breeze system has been a life saver for me. Yes it is easy to scoop, the pellets fall through the scoop. The urine filters through the pellets & is held in a tray below on a pad similar to a diaper. It uses one pad a week per box. I have 2 boxes & 2 cats. I started with this system about 3 months ago & have not had to throw out the pellets yet. There is no odor at all. I was concerned that my cats would not adapt to the change but they did with no problems at all. It is expensive to get started but so worth it. I will never go back to regular litter.

We tried to keep a box of fresh litter "ready to go" at my husband's country house, so that the cats could use it as soon as we got there. Turned out, mice love World's Best, which is made of corn. We arrived to a littler box full of mouse poop and litter tucked into the sofa cushions.

I use the Tidy Cat Breeze litter box with the pine pellets from Tractor Supply. One bag lasts more than six months. No odor at all. The wet pellets disintegrate and go down through the holes to the tray and you just scoop out the solids. MUCH better than clumping litter which is dusty and heavy! Lots of good videos on Youtube about this method.