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Does litter box size matter?
Yes. Litterbox size is important to your cat. This is key to know if you want your cat to use their litter box regularly. The following guidelines work for an open cat litter box, covered litter boxes, and even a self cleaning litter box. In most cases, the desired litter box dimensions depend on your cat’s length excluding their tail. The easiest way to do this is to use a measuring tape. Here’s a rule of thumb to use when choosing. Your cat litter box should be at least 1.5 times longer than your cat. The width must be at least as long as the length of your cat.
This size provides ample space for your cat to comfortably able to move around in their box. It lets your cat dig into the cat litter comfortably in several spots, not just in the center of the litter pan. Most importantly, it allows your cat to turn around inside the box.
Does this surprise you? Imagine a large cat like a Maine Coon cat. The previous rules mean the best commercial litter box for this big of a cat must be 36 inches (0.9 meters) or 3 feet long. WOW, that’s a lot. Large cat, large litter box. A study published in the Journal of Veterinary Behavior Clinical Applications and Research found that cats, if given the option, will favor a larger litter box over a smaller one. For another perspective, here is a more realistic picture.
Average Litter Box Dimensions
We just got a tape measure and measured our cat (the one that was the closest at the moment). Our cat from nose to the base of her tail was 20 inches (0.51 m) long. It means that the box should be 30 inches long and 20 inches wide (76 x 51 cm). But, are there any litter boxes in pet stores that large? Well, we checked and they aren’t sold that big.
Most litter boxes we found were close to 20 inches in length which falls too short. And even one box that had a sticker with the word “mega” on it was just 24 inches long, which is slightly less than recommended.
So what’s the solution? In general, you are back to “the bigger, the better” recommendation because even if you buy the largest litter box in the pet store, you may fall short.
What is the largest size litter box?
We found that the largest boxes were a bit smaller than our cats like. So what to do? We loved how Pam Johnson-Bennett, a certified pet behavior consultant and an award winning cat book author, recommends getting a large plastic storage container and making a litter box out of it by cutting one of the edges lower for an entrance.
There are two benefits to this. First, the box will be large and comfortable for your cat. Second, the cat litter will stay inside the box. Many cats dig enthusiastically. When they do that, the cat litter gets thrown all across the room. One way to prevent your cat from kicking litter out of the box is to get a large litterboxes with tall sides.
So if you can’t find a big enough litter box that your cat will use in your local pet store. Go to the hardware store to get a large storage container to use as a plastic litter box.
How Tall the Litter Box Sides Should Be
The sides of a litter box should be equal to or higher than the height of your cat plus the cat litter that is inside. So when you measured your cat’s length, measure how high they stand (to the top of their back). Then measure how much litter you usually have. Most people have about 2 inches of kitty litter. For example, our cat that we measured above was 20 inches long and 10 inches tall. WIth 2 inches of kitty litter, we’d ideally want a box with 12 inch tall sides or higher. In our case, we’d go taller as this particular four legged fur ball of ours loves to kick litter out. A litter mat makes it easier to clean this up litter scatter and helps contain litter tracking. Litter tracking is where it sticks to their paws and they leave it all over your nice clean floors. To fix litter scatter problems, top-entry boxes will contain everything. But some cats (we have at least 2) don’t care for them. We have 2 cats that will only use a traditional litter box. Note that the favorite litter boxes of one of our cats with mobility issues has high sides, but an opening for them to enter.
How big should a litter box be?
As a loving cat owner, you may already be staring at your screen in disbelief. Why would pet stores sell litter boxes that are too small?
Well, we aren’t litter box manufacturers so we can only guess that it’s due to the cost of making a box large enough that people would buy. Many a cat owner that comes into our veterinary clinic complaining that their cat doesn’t use their litter box can’t imagine having that big of one in their homes. It’s understandable. Imagine if we humans needed a toilet that big. Something one and a half times our height. While it’s understandable that the cat owner and our feline patient have to live in the same house and, most commercially available litter boxes are too small for most cats.
Yes, we hear this statement when we discuss this topic, “ But most cats still use them!”. Yes this is true. But if your only alternative was a small toilet in a cramped closet, would you still use it? We know we would. It probably would take a lot more discomfort before you’d choose to urinate on your fancy carpet in your living room. While this may be a bit of an exaggerated comparison, you get the point.
Cats can tolerate smaller litter boxes, inappropriate litter box locations, unfavorable kitty litter, infrequent cleaning, way too small of a box, and other inconveniences. Most cats would still use the box because they are trained to do so. But when several inadequacies add up, problems such as eliminating outside of the litter box may occur. Even more so, in such a case it becomes hard to identify the cause since there’s more than one.
Kitten Litter Box Size
A good litter box size for a kitten is one that is at least 1.5 times as long as they are from nose to base of their tail. It should be wide enough to give them plenty of space to turn around in. As mentioned above, higher sides will help keep litter scattering from going everywhere. The good news is that it can be bigger than this so they can “grow” into it. When should you start litter training a kitten? As soon as you bring them home. Training your kitten to use their litter box is usually easier with standard litter boxes. Avoid introducing fancy ones such as top-entry litter boxes until they consistently use a regular one.
How Many Litter Boxes You Should Have
The number of litter boxes you should have is equal to the number of cats you have plus 1. Make sure you space them away from each other if you have the floor space. Also avoid placing them near things that may bother your cats. For example, we have several where our clothes washer and dryer are. We found that only one of our cats will go in there if we are doing laundry.
Tips for litter box use
The bottom line is that if you can’t find a large enough box, or your house doesn’t have the space for one, go for the largest you can find that will fit in your home. Size is just one thing about a litter box that will make your cat comfortable. While it does matter, it isn’t the the only thing that can cause your cat to not use it. When you look at all the things that make a litter box desirable in your cat’s eyes, make sure to get right what you can because it will make the difference in whether your cat is or isn’t using their litter box. A study published in Applied Animal Behaviour Science found that cats will continue to use a litter box even when they are frustrated by it. However, the study went on to cite that:
“Providing a suitable litter box environment promotes optimal wellbeing and potentially urinary tract health in cats.”
Applied Animal Behaviour Science
What this tells us is that even when frustrated by their litter box, your cat may still choose to use their less desirable litter box. More importantly, by providing an optimal environment for their elimination, your cat can be healthier. What can you do to make an optimal environment for your kitty’s “business”? One key is the type of clean litter that you pour onto the litter tray. One of our cats loves clumping litter. Our older cat however is less enthusiastic about clumping litter. So try different types and watch your cat reaction. Also, make sure to remove the soiled litter as often as possible. We have one picky princess that will only use her box if it has fresh clean litter, every time. You may also find your cat doesn’t like the covered litter box or self-cleaning litter box you just got them. While they do have their advantages, some cats prefer an open, large litter box.
Summary
You have learned the details if litterbox sizes matter, average litter box sizes, the largest litter box, how tall the sides should be, kitten litter boxes, how many boxes you need, and tips for litter box use. This will go a long way towards a long and happy life with your pet cat. And keeping your Pet Happy is what we all want.
This article is a part of series about cat litter boxes.
