How to Reduce Tracking in a Cat Litter Box

As much as you love your cat, you don't have to put up with cat litter strewn across the house. Every time your cat uses the litter box, it retains cat litter between its toes, spreading the litter whenever it spreads its paws or leaps. Fortunately, with a few products available at most pet stores, you can dramatically reduce the amount of litter your cat tracks across your home.

Things You'll Need

  • Low-tracking cat litter
  • Litter box ramp
  • Carpet or tracking mat
Show More

Instructions

    • 1

      Clean your cat's litter box often. Cats prefer clean litter boxes. If the litter box is crowded with clumps of uncleaned litter, the cat will have to scratch more to search out unused areas. This causes more litter to get stuck in their paws. It also increases the probability that there will be moist litter, which clings more easily to the cat's paws. Clean your litter box regularly or invest in an automatic litter cleaner such as LitterMaid.

    • 2

      Use low-tracking litter such as Feline Pine or Petco Low Track litter. Look for litter that is advertised as "low tracking" or has less dust. If you cannot find low-tracking formulas, look for litter made of pellets or with larger granules. Larger granules are more likely to fall off before the cat leaves the litter box. Avoid clay litter because clay sticks to the paws more easily.

    • 3

      Attach a ramp of wood or plastic to the litter box and cover it in felt or carpet. As your cat leaves the box, the litter will stick to the ramp's material. You can also choose from dozens of ramps at most pet stores. If you cannot make or buy a ramp, put a welcome mat meant for scraping shoes outside the box. A mat with a grid or is ribbed forces the cat to open its paw when it walks on it, releasing any clinging litter. The mat should also have a slightly tacky surface so the litter sticks to it.

    • 4

      Attach a cover to the litter box if your cat tends to scatter the litter outside of the box. Litter scattered outside of the box can be tracked by the cat once it leaves.

    • 5

      Clean the area around the litter box regularly. Cats distinguish between clean areas and dirty areas and reasonably tend to avoid scattering litter on clean areas.