Because the Coppster was too lazy to go Google it.
What is good litter box maintenance? My primary job is house/pet sitting for folks when they're out of town or work too far from home to come check on their pets during the day, and a couple of my clients have cats with litter boxes.
... except, I don't know much about litter boxes. My two cats are outdoor potty trained! How often should I clean it (assuming I'm house sitting for extended periods of time: 2 days or longer)? When do I replace the litter? Do you replace ALL the litter, or just refill the box with fresh stuff? Is there anything STOOPER IMPORTANT I need to know that I didn't just ask about?
Seriously what the heck am I doing. Litter boxes seem easy to take care of, and I haven't gotten complaints, but I feel mildly inadequate because we just don't use 'em in my house.
What is good litter box maintenance? My primary job is house/pet sitting for folks when they're out of town or work too far from home to come check on their pets during the day, and a couple of my clients have cats with litter boxes.
... except, I don't know much about litter boxes. My two cats are outdoor potty trained! How often should I clean it (assuming I'm house sitting for extended periods of time: 2 days or longer)? When do I replace the litter? Do you replace ALL the litter, or just refill the box with fresh stuff? Is there anything STOOPER IMPORTANT I need to know that I didn't just ask about?
Seriously what the heck am I doing. Litter boxes seem easy to take care of, and I haven't gotten complaints, but I feel mildly inadequate because we just don't use 'em in my house.
How many cats and what type of litter?
When I had my two kitties, we had clumping litter, and I tried to clean it every day to every other day. I completely changed the litter (even after adding some to it) about once a month, sometimes twice. Look up the type of litter as well. There are the plastic sort of pearls that absorb, there are wood chips, clay, clumping, wheat, and they are all quite different. You may want to Google it especially if your clients all use different litters.
When I had my two kitties, we had clumping litter, and I tried to clean it every day to every other day. I completely changed the litter (even after adding some to it) about once a month, sometimes twice. Look up the type of litter as well. There are the plastic sort of pearls that absorb, there are wood chips, clay, clumping, wheat, and they are all quite different. You may want to Google it especially if your clients all use different litters.
Brand wise they might be different, but I think they're the same types of litter: clumping. I assume that's what it is because the urine clumps together into a semi-solid (or solid? It's not like I poke it) lump that I can scoop up.
As for right now, one household has one cat, the other has two! I don't believe my needing to completely replace it will be a problem on my end then, since I generally don't do month-long stints. 2-weeks maximum, but I haven't done one that long for either cat-owning client yet!
As for right now, one household has one cat, the other has two! I don't believe my needing to completely replace it will be a problem on my end then, since I generally don't do month-long stints. 2-weeks maximum, but I haven't done one that long for either cat-owning client yet!
I use clumping scented litter. I scoop the pee and poop out once a day to once every other day. I change the litter completely once every 2 weeks or until it starts to smell. Because you end up removing clumps of litter during use it's a good idea to add a bit of litter every couple of days so the litter level stays the same. When I replace all the litter, I wash out the box with water first and then scrub it clean with bleach, dry it and refill it. With non-clumping litter, you only scoop the poop every day, then usually replace the entire litter once a week. All litter bags/boxes have instructions for litter cleaning as well, so if you come across a kind that you don't know the instructions should help.
I wouldn't worry about completely changing the litter, leave it up to your clients to do that. Like Zakery said, every day to every other day for scooping/cleaning, and if need be add a bit more litter. If the loose litter seems really dirty (like it hadn't been completely changed in some time) go ahead and change it.
Got it, both of you! 
Thanks again for the tips and schedule advice, it's going to help a boat-load next time I go take care of those clients' felines. I'll pay more attention to the instructions too, in the future, though like I said I haven't gotten any complains, so I must be doing something right. 
Still, the more knowledge, the better! 
Thanks again for the tips and schedule advice, it's going to help a boat-load next time I go take care of those clients' felines. I'll pay more attention to the instructions too, in the future, though like I said I haven't gotten any complains, so I must be doing something right. Still, the more knowledge, the better!
I know most of this has been answered, but I'll put in my own two-cents C;
We have three cats sharing a single litter, so we have no choice but to scoop it every day and clean out the old litter completely about once a week. My sister, on the other hand, only has one cat who happens to have two litter boxes, and she doesn't scoop those for a few days because there's not a whole lot there. On the other hand, I have heard of cats who are extremely finicky and whose owners need to scoop it absolutely every day or a few times a day, otherwise they'll mess outside of the litter because they don't like it being dirty at all.
It's usually a matter of personal preference I guess? I'd ask the owners about how often they usually scoop or clean the litter and do what they say c:
We have three cats sharing a single litter, so we have no choice but to scoop it every day and clean out the old litter completely about once a week. My sister, on the other hand, only has one cat who happens to have two litter boxes, and she doesn't scoop those for a few days because there's not a whole lot there. On the other hand, I have heard of cats who are extremely finicky and whose owners need to scoop it absolutely every day or a few times a day, otherwise they'll mess outside of the litter because they don't like it being dirty at all.
It's usually a matter of personal preference I guess? I'd ask the owners about how often they usually scoop or clean the litter and do what they say c:
And thank you for your input too, Teacup!
I'll definitely ask in the future, even though at the time of hiring I assumed cleaning litter boxes was an easy and thoughtless task--much like picking up dog poo on a walk. There's a good chance they figured I had a litter box too for my own cats, because apparently everyone does except us. You'd be surprised how many people are, well, surprised to discover we've trained ours to go outside, just like you'd teach a dog.
I'll definitely ask in the future, even though at the time of hiring I assumed cleaning litter boxes was an easy and thoughtless task--much like picking up dog poo on a walk. There's a good chance they figured I had a litter box too for my own cats, because apparently everyone does except us. You'd be surprised how many people are, well, surprised to discover we've trained ours to go outside, just like you'd teach a dog.
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