The litter box setup cats actually use
Location, count, depth and scent — the four things that decide whether the box gets used or the rug does.
Most litter problems aren’t behaviour problems. They’re design problems — a box that is in the wrong place, the wrong size, too few, or full of a scent the cat never agreed to.
Fix the setup and the ‘bad’ behaviour usually disappears on its own. Here is what the research and our customers agree on.
One per cat, plus one
Two cats, three boxes. It sounds excessive until you remember cats don’t share bathrooms happily, and a queue at the box is the fastest route to a wet rug.
Spread them out. Three boxes in one utility room count as one box to a cat.
Bigger than you think, and open
The box should be one and a half times the cat’s length so they can turn and dig. Most boxes sold as ‘large’ aren’t. A low storage tub works beautifully.
Hoods trap odour inside — pleasant for you, unpleasant for the one who has to go in. Most cats prefer open boxes; if you want a lid, make sure it is tall and well ventilated.
Unscented, three inches deep, scooped daily
Perfumed litter is designed for human noses. Cats have a sense of smell fourteen times sharper; to them, a ‘fresh linen’ box smells like a chemical spill. Go unscented and let the litter do the odour control.
Keep the depth around three inches — deep enough to dig, shallow enough that clumps form cleanly. Scoop every day, top up as you go, and change the whole box every two to four weeks depending on the litter type.
