not-so-clumping cat litter

[andrea1970]

I have been using the Walmart Special Kitty clumping litter in the green box for a while now.  For a long time, it seemed to clump up nicely, good and hard and scooping the box was much easier.  I will confess to being less than perfectly diligent, but even if it was a couple of days, I could still scoop the litter fairly easily.

However, lately, it seems like all I'm getting is clay-ish mud -- literally like digging in the yard in TX.  Is the litter just not clumping as well as it used to - maybe changed the formula?  Or is that an indicator that somebody is peeing a lot more?

Anyone else use this litter?  I have a ton of it, so I hate to buy a new container of something else.  Hubby gets grumpy about too much pet junk in the garage.  I'm also going to try and check the box after only 1 or 2 uses and see if it clumps okay with only a little bit of pee.

[ScoutGotBig]

I noticed it getting "gluey" also.  Since I was almost out, I got a new brand to try, and no one is peeing more.  I think it's just a formula change.

If you have a Target - the Super Target here carries their own brand of kitty litter that's about $4.50 for a 14 lb jug (cheaper per jug than per bucket).  I have to get the jugs, as the buckets are too hard for me to carry.  The Target brand is AWESOME, almost no dust, clumps hard as a rock, no real perfume, cheap....  Plus, I'll be honest.  I've had some WICKED bad days and not scooped the boxes for 6 days (ewww) and they didn't stink, the cats still used the boxes, and they were still easy to clean.

[Marybelle]

I use the walmart brand, and I've not had issues (even with 3 cats using he same box and not scooping as often as I should).  I try to scoop every morning, and, if I do that, it works like a charm.  Even if I go more than a day, I don't really have an issue except that some of the larger clumps of pee fall apart, but they usually only break into one or two pieces.  It could be a regional thing, though. 

[Dearpie]

I haven't had any issues with our Special Kitty.  I have however been cheating.  Because I spend a lot more time at Costco, one of my Costco's carries a lemon-grass scented clumping litter that is a lot less expensive than the other brand (I can't remember the name of it).   So I tried it.   The first time, I was a bit overwhelmed at the scent, but the cats are fine with it.   So now I just pick up either litter, depending on where I am.

[andrea1970]

I bought a pail of Tidy Cats and just swapped to that.  So far it seems to be clumping better, although my PITA cat pooped just outside the box the first night it was there.  I think part of the problem is one of the cats (no idea which) pees huge puddles up against the edge of the litter.  So it is also sticking to the bottom and sides of the box. And to the litter scooper.  So what's stuck to the scooper dries and then falls all over the place when it gets picked up, etc.  Seriously, scooping the Special Kitty has been like digging in the Texas clay mud.

[ScoutGotBig]

My tub o' lard pees against the side of the box also - ewww and ick.  The "best" solution for that is to get a metal scoop, it's the only thing that really gets it off.