Cat Allergies and Litter

In some instances people with cat allergies are not simply allergic to a cat or the cat alone; cat litter can also be the culprit. Hypo-allergenic litter and self-cleaning litter boxes can help prevent suffering, along with following some helpful tips for keeping down airborne allergens caused by cat litter boxes.

  1. Litter Allergy Causes

    • Many litters are scented with perfumes and can have fine dust that becomes airborne through the ventilation of a house or from the collection of it on the cat itself. Fine dust particles from coarse clay material cause symptoms in many allergy sufferers.

    Hypo-Allergenic Litter

    • Some types of cat litters are natural and seem to cause fewer allergies, such as pine chips. An even better choice may be litter pearls made of pellets, flakes, or granite because they act like a sponge, emit fewer dust particles, and many are perfume-free.

    Litter Box Placement

    • Do not place litter boxes near the breeze of open windows, under ceiling, floor, or table fans or near air vents of the heating or cooling system, for any of these placements will circulate allergen particles throughout an entire home. Cat litter boxes should also never be placed in the main living area of a home, where family members spend the majority of their time, or in a bedroom or office of an allergy sufferer.

    Keep Litter Clean

    • For people with allergies, it is important to keep a cat's litter box extra clean, and it is often recommended that the litter be replaced weekly, instead of monthly, along with the usual daily scooping of the litter box. Always try to have a non-allergic family member clean and change a litter box. If an allergy sufferer must do it, gloves and a pollen mask should be worn, and the litter should be poured in slowly to keep the dust particles from flooding the air.

    Self-Cleaning Boxes

    • Automatic self-cleaning litter boxes are the newest innovation in litter boxes, and they not only can make life a bit easier, but they can also really help people who have allergies caused by cats and/or litter. They have a sensor that recognizes when a cat has used a litter box and then signals a sifting comb mechanism to rake the box and scoop feces into a sealed container.