To think about getting a cat but not wanting to do a litter box?

[Nolitterbox]

We had a cat that died about 8 years ago, she was not an indoor cat - but hardly ever went outside. Really only to sunbathe! The good thing was: no dead wildlife. The bad thing was: litter box. I hated it. It was a bane of my life the whole time.

I have a really strong sense of smell and can always smell them when I go to people’s houses who have them and I really dislike them. Also, our house is very small - there’s nowhere “tucked away” it could go.

I told DH we could get a cat and not do the litter box thing. He isn’t so sure. It’s a dealbreaker for me!

So:
if you have a cat and a litter box, vote YABU
If you have a cat and no litter box YANBU

Okay I think a cat is not for me! I definitely had no intention of passing the problem off to someone else.

But I take your points of cats pooing on neighbours’ gardens. And that, even if you could mitigate the neighbour poo problem, they’d need a litter at some point when they’re kittens/ old/ v cold winter etc either way.

A cat litter box really is a dealbreaker for me. So I have decided: no cat!

We have 2 cats. Got them as rescue kittens. Took less than a month to train them to go outside and we don't have a litter box.

We don’t have a litter box.

2 cats. As kittens had litter tray for a short time. Now they go outside.

And no I don’t clear it up. They bury it. And I live in the countryside away from everyone.

We only had a litter try for the two weeks we kept our adopted cat inside then it was gone! Can't stand them

So where do you think your cat's poo would end up if you didn't bag it up?

Tbh, I thought the cat would bury it in the soil in a patch in our garden for it to decompose naturally!!

Surely bagged up poo and cat litters all end up in landfill, which isn’t excellent for the environment.

Anyway, I have decided that we are not best suited to a cat right now because of the litter conundrum!

Outdoor litter tray then. Years ago, my next door neighbour got a cat but told me she got a cat flap and got rid of the litter tray as she couldn't stand the smell. A few weeks later she informed me she was getting her front and back garden paved over as she was so annoyed with her own cat shitting in its own garden.

Where do you think the cat ended up shitting...? I only found out as my toddler at the time picked up dried cat shit.

Don't be that cat owner.

You will need one whilst the cat settles in or is a kitten. After that the cat will go outside most likely and the litter tray will hardly be used or not used at all. Get decent litter and they don’t smell at all.
Do NOT cage or confine your cat to a house or catio. So cruel. But then I think any animals kept in a cage for human enjoyment is horribly cruel, no matter how well they are treated.

@PurpleWisteria1 but you’re ok with other peoples ‘pets’ crapping in other peoples gardens? Why should we have to pick up cat crap when we don’t want pets

I hope the U.K. ends up following Australia on cats

I am kind of inclined to agree with this. I've had cats and of course know you can't restrict them to where they poo once they are outside, but you seem to actively be wanting other people to have to deal with your cat's poo rather than providing them a toilet yourself - becuase you dislike the poo. That's not on.

Are we supposed to know what that means? I have lived in Australia, with three cats and I have no idea what you are on about.

We have 3 cats and 3 litter trays. The boys use theirs but GirlCat only goes outside. She's only used her litter tray when she's been confined indoors for some reason.
So even with the best of intentions, if you let your cats out then you don't know where they're going to the toilet.

They mean that cats are not allowed to roam and are effectively in prisoned for the pure enjoyment of the human owner. Awful. Just don’t get a cat at all of you are going to keep it in a guilded cage all of its existence. How do people live with locking an animal up? Look at it every day whilst they go out and the animal can’t? Just don’t get it.

YANBU

We have a cat flap so ours just go out when they want and I'm so glad as I hate litter trays!

If you get a kitten they will need a tray for the first few months. Even a full grown car will need to be kept in fir a few weeks to establish its home. If you can get over that?
I went from daily to once every six months (they still have a tray in a cupboard but I can't remember the last time they used it).

When you get the cat you will have to deal with a litter box for a good few weeks before you let the cat out!

I think cat litter is very variable, but all seem to be far better technically, if that is the term, than it was years ago. As others have said, decent food is less smelly, so with careful hygiene, effective litter and good food the situation is a lot better than it used to be.

I think it has become law in some states that they must be in catios because of attacking wildlife. I agree with you though - get a gerbil if you want something in a cage.

I can’t understand the hysteria about cat poo. They’re roamers - you seriously expect owners to know where their cats are going? They bury their poo and there are plenty of ways to deter cats from your garden. If ‘cat proofing’ is so easy then you do it to your garden!

As it happens I’ve seen our cat poo under our hedge and they tend to go in the same place each time. But if I hadnt, I wouldn’t give it a second thought. Foxes, badgers, rodents all poo in your garden. Yes they’re wild animals but surely you accept poo is just part of the outside world?

Our sand/mud tyres are covered to stop cats (including our own who would almost certainly be the culprit) using them. Water is covered so I can be sure it doesn’t have rat wee in it. I know these things are safe for my toddler because I have made them so. If I find fox shit while gardening then, yep, that’s a bit gross but I’ve got a spade in my hand and gloves on - pretty easily solved.

I’m not gonna feel bad about my cat neatly burying her poo in some soil when dog owners frequently leave shit in the literal middle of the path on our way to school. No wonder my kids school have both indoor and outdoor shoes.

I have had cats all my life but only ever had a litter box when we were away and catsitters were in or when cat ill. It's far easier and more hygienic for everyone - in my opinion obv

Well, the flipside of that is how do people live with themselves letting their cats out alone knowing they could easily get run over, or poisoned, or taken by someone else, or lost, or hurt in a fight?

I mean, every week there are threads on here from people who have lost their cats to the roads - some as young as six months old. Letting cats out to roam isn't exactly a dream existence for them.

There are valid arguments for keeping cats inside and for letting them out. Telling one side that they're cruel for their decision isn't particularly helpful - and I'm sure you wouldn't appreciate being told you were cruel for letting your cat out to take their chances on the roads.

Rubbish! It’s not cruel!!

Get a covered box and decent food and it won't smell. The difference after changing her diet is incredible.

We have a cat with litter tray. We use wood pellet litter which is easier to clean and smells much less. As soon as our cat has pooped we use a poop bag and remove it. Hardly and smell at all. Or you could shell out for a robot litter tray which sifts ,cleans and dries! They are really expensive though.

Some cats are happy without a tray but I think you have to accept that the cat you get might wish to use one. If you don't provide it then you may get accidents/issues and as cats get older they often prefer a tray as the act of pooing makes them vulnerable to attack (in their heads, I appreciate we're not over run with loads of predators that might attack cats).

One of the first posters said it, if you can't cope with dealing with animal poo then don't get an animal. It's not fair on them.

@Glittertwins what diet have you changed your cat onto?