anyone have a littermaid?

[vacuumfreeeke]

I know there are several animal lovers on here. Just wondering if any of you have or have used a Litter Maid automatic litter box? I'm getting sick of scooping Jasper's litter box all the time, I think it would be nice to have some electric help. I've heard that some cats are scared of them and refuse to use them.... so my question to you is does your cat seem to like or use the Litter Maid if you have someone or know someone who does... also, does it save enough work to justify the cost? I've seen some on CL for 45 dollars, but I feel weird about buying a used litter box... and if Jasper doesn't use it, CL doesn't have a return policy!

Thanks for any opinions (and ignore the ugly couch, it was free and I'm lookin for a better one LOL)

 

[maytagbear]

There's a couch

in the picture?

Jasper is a handsome fellow.

No experience with the LitterMaid, though I have read in their ads that the new motors are quieter.

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[volvoguy87]

Yup.

My grandmother had one and it worked wonders. You just have to use the proper clumping litter in it.

Dave

 

[bugsyjones]

GET IT!

The Littermaid will be the best thing you will buy! To me, I thought the price was a little high, but quickly found out it's well worth it!!!

Your cat shouldn't be scared of it. It doesn't kick on until 10 minutes after the cat has left. You must use clumping litter though. I use Tidy Cats and it works well. My two cats like to watch it scoop. When it kicks on, they run in and watch it.

Perhaps the best thing to do is to place it in the usual litter box area, and put a little bit of litter from his old box in there, so it has a familiar scent. Cats are smart and he should take to it naturally.

The only con about owning the Littermaid is that the replacement waste receptacles are not avaliable everywhere (only where Littermaids are sold), and, at least to me, they can be a bit pricey.

Overall, I suggest you get one! You will love not having to scoop anymore! Just take the receptacle and place it in the garbage!

~Tim

PS: Don't worry about the couch. I like it!

 

[58limited]

I was given a used one. I used the proper litter in the proper amount but the scooping (raking) process would push it to the back with the result of binding the automatic rake. I went back to a regular box. Maybe my used one had a problem or was worn out.

 

[bpetersxx]

more cats please

 

[alanlendaro]

get a cat door...

ours have an electronic cat door. They wear small fobs on their collars that let them (and only them) in and out. Its programmable to keep them in at night but let them in and out during the day. No litter box and they are thriving 9 year old cats. No messes either(knock on wood) aside from the occasional bird, mouse, bat, squrill they catch and want to show off to us.

 

[mayguy]

A friend of ours has given us their Littermaid, (I don't recall why) and I put it to used.. It was an older model and worked well. I was happy with it, As for the waste bin, i dumped it and reused it and just replace it after a couple of months.

After a year it broke, and my partner went out and got a new top of the line one.

I hated that one! it seems like the rake would push the good litter into the bin with the waste. I've tried many brands, and even Littermaid's brand of litter, and still LOT of the good litter went into the waste bin, and also it would jam up.

I got fed up with it, and threw it out.

Right now, I have the regluar litter box that has a built in screen that I lift out of the box, and I do that every 3rd day, and it's quick and easy!

so, i won't own a litter maid again.

 

[moonvalleycacti]

my cat refused to use it or if she did, she would use it, wait till the rake started and grab it and play with it... She chewed the wire rake runs on and its no more

 

[vacuumfreeeke]

Thanks for the opinions guys. I found a video on Youtube of them, and MAN is it loud. I think it's louder than some of my vacuums... if that sucker went off at 4 am, I'd spring out of bed in a panick wonder what the matter was.

I tried one of those litter boxes with a built in sifter, but I couldn't figure out how to get the sifter back under the the clean litter once I removed it!

A cat door isn't an option for me... I live in an apartment... not to mention I care about my cat too much to let him get run over! I have a friend in Arkansas who lets her cats be indoor and outdoor cats because it makes them "happy" she calls me once a month crying because one of her "babies" became a pancake when she let it out. Still hasn't learned that if she wants to keep her cats from getting run over she needs to keep them inside... the logic didn't seem that complicated to me!

 

[sudsmaster]

I have two cats. Both rescued kittens. The female, slightly older, is a wee thing and spends nearly all her time indoors. She does not like to "go" outdoors. I tried that and got tired of the puddles on the kitchen floor or in the bathroom. The male cat isn't an issue - he spends nearly all his time outside.

I use an Omega Paw litter bin. It's covered, and has a plastic louvered panel on one side. Halfway up, it ends, and there's a shelf with a drawer resting on it. When the entire covered unit is rolled towards that side, the clumps and stuff roll past the louvered panel, the unused litter goes into the space behind the panel, and the junk goes into the drawer. Then you right the bin, remove the drawer, and dispose of the offerings.

The only problem is that the female cat has never learned to bury her stuff. I can hear her pawing away at the sides of the bin, but she doesn't manage to get any litter on top of her solids. I've gotten used to it. When I hear it I generally go in there after she's done and rotate the bin slightly to cover the solids up, or all the way to dump them into the bin. Depends on how busy I am at the moment. Otherwise the house is treated to the aroma of uncovered cat droppings which is not pleasant.

She was almost starved to death when I rescued her, so I figure she had a terrible infancy and that's why she never learned how to cover up her "do it" in the litter box. It would also explain why she's reluctant to go outside. Other cats tend to pick on cats that don't cover up their stuff. Other than that she's a sweet cat, except to the male whose presence she will tolerate up to a point, and then she'll chase him away with some hisses and swats.

 

[mayguy]

Vaccumefreek,

You must of been missing a pan for your box. There should be two pans stacking intside itself. Once you dump the waste/clump, you put the screen in the empty pan, and then pour the clean litter in that pan, and wash out the dirty one, and drop the other pan into the clean pan.

 

[nmaineman36]

We have the Littermaid Mega Elite and couldnt be happier. I empty the waste tray once a day and reload the box with clumping cat litter. We have been using the Tidy Cats Multiple Cat Immediate odor killing litter and I can tell you that its not immediate in killing odor. I will be going back to Fresh Step with carbon clumping litter. That stuff kills any odor fast. One of our cats likes to poo like a truck driver and the smell...gawd I dont know where she gets it from but the other 2 dont smell even close to what she does. Anyways the box has an ionized air cleaner that does work. I wash the box out when I change litter and thats every 2 weeks. I cant imagine going back to a regular box. Plus the cats love having a fresh clean box. If you think about it would you like to take a dump in a toilet that has never been flushed???? Nuff said.

 

[petek]

I found one at Goodwill for $10 and gave it to my sister last year sometime.. she really likes it and hasn't had any problems. Found a second one a few months ago and gave it to a friend with a cat and they also love it.

 

[mayguy]

Here is the box I use.

It's easy to clean, no loud motor, and headache of jamming up, and wasted litter in the waste tray.

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2755056

 

[butch-innj]

I got one when they first came out on the market.
But the problem wasn't the box, it was that my pussy was just
too big !
She get into the box but her rear end hung over the side and
she'd poop on the floor.
Then I found the problem solver....it was back to the old
large size plastic box but I found at WalMart these plastic
sheets made for cat litter boxes that eliminated the need to
scoop.
They were on display near the boxes of cat litter and I noticed
them one day as I was just browsing around the isle.
They are sheets of plastic that come folded up that you have
to open up flat. There are like 10 of them stacked up and
they have alot of holes in them for the cat litter to sift
thru. You empty the cat litter box, line the box with all 10
of these sheets stacked up, put the litter back in and when
its time to clean out the litter box you just gather the edges
of the top sheet of plastic, lift it up and the clean litter
falls thru the holes and you just throw away what didn't fall
thru along with the piece of plastic.
Love these things, I hope they never stop making them
And my pussy wasn't afraid of it and it uses no electric.

 

[rinso]

I have a "Mega" Littermaid.

Positives: All three of my cats use it. As a test, I have their old litterbox nearby. They will use the Litter maid more than 10-1 over the litterbox. It is very convenient.

Negatives: Flimsy waste receptacles, that don't self-seal. Litter dust flies in your eyes and face when removing waste receptacles. Changing the receptacles ensures that you are right down there with the feces and urine clumps, instead of a scoop handle distance away.

 

[jakeseacrest]

I use a regular litter box for my babies. Sorry the pic is so big. Jacob is the white cat and Abby is the black one.

 

[rinso]

This is our newest kitty, Sybil: