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Robots do exist and they clean litter boxes!

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The Litter-Robot

By Stacy E. Smith

Who has an electric, automated, self-cleaning litter box (LitterMaid, etc.)? Raise your hand. Who wishes they had one, but would rather not spend a couple of hundred bucks on a litter box? Who has one and wishes they hadn’t spent a couple of hundred bucks on it? We can relate. We have one that sits unplugged and is now scooped just like a traditional, non-electric, non-self-cleaning, non-automated litter box. The rake that moved back and forth across the litter in order to sift out the clumps and leave clean litter behind seemed to always be clogged with the sticky combination of urine/feces and kitty litter causing the entire machine to jam.

I came upon Litter-Robot a while ago, by accident, on the Internet (as I do many products) and based on the differences, thought we should give it a try. What is the difference? Litter-Robot is round – sort of shaped like a globe. We call it “Kenny” because, to us, it looks like the so-named, hooded, parka-clad character on the animated series, “South Park” on Comedy Central. The cat enters the globe, does its business and leaves just like a traditional covered litter box. Litter-Robot has an electronic sensor that tells it cycle seven minutes after a cat leaves. It slowly rotates and the clean litter is sifted through a grid into a holding area below. The beauty of this system is that there is absolutely nothing on which the cat’s “clumps” may become stuck. The unit then rotates back and forth a few times dumping the clumps into the receptacle tray below, and finally the last rotation allows the clean litter back into the globe with the unit returned to its original “home” position. There are a series of three lights that let you know what the Litter-Robot is doing; the green “ready light” signals that it is ready for use again (not that your cat needs to learn those). There is a safety mechanism in place that prevents the Litter-Robot from operating when a cat is inside. The globe rotates so slowly; so slowly that I’m not sure there would be much of  a problem if the cat decided to re-enter the globe, but there is an additional safety feature in place that shuts off the motor automatically if that were to happen. It is impossible to imagine any cat that would climb into anything that is moving and making noise.

The receptacle needs to be lined, but one of the features of Litter-Robot is that there are no special liners to buy; ordinary kitchen garbage bags will do the trick.

What they say:

“The Litter-Robot frees you from the chore of litter box scooping. You can be confident that your cats have a litter box that is cleaned automatically and reliably, again and again. The large waste drawer holds several days’ worth of waste, giving you the time and freedom to do the things you enjoy. You can take that weekend trip or leave town for a short business trip without having to worry about your cat’s litter box.

Cleaning the litter box is now as simple as changing a kitchen garbage bag every few days.  If you have several cats, the Litter-Robot drawer may still need to be emptied daily, but you’ll never again have to scoop a dirty litter box by hand!

Litter-Robot is reliable and dependable, requires no special receptacles or waste bags, works with any clumping litter, and is safe and comfortable for your cats.

It is not recommended for cats or kittens weighing less than 5 lbs. as they aren’t heavy enough to activate the sensor; nor is it appropriate for cats weighing more than 15 lbs. since they may be too big to get into the globe and use it comfortably (although that may be a negotiable point depending on the cat).

Additionally, the company warns that if you have a particularly fearful or skittish kitty, he/she may not be interested in using something that moves and has a motor, but that is true for any automated litter box on the market.”

What we say:

Our cats love it and so do we. The unit was simple to assemble – almost plug and play (as they say). It only took a couple of days for the cats to use the Litter-Robot. They not only don’t seem to mind the motor and the movement of the unit in between uses, when any of them are in the house and hear the unit “do its thing” they run to watch. They’re fascinated by it for some reason.

Litter-Robot is expensive. At around $300 (the most expensive LitterMade unit is around $200) it is one of the most expensive automated litter box on the market right now. The difference is that IT WORKS! There is no clogging or expensive, special receptacles or liners to purchase (which we know first hand are fairly expensive and really add up over time) – generic kitchen garbage bags are cheap. Additionally, for any of you that hate litter box duty, this is the next best thing to not doing it at all. Removing the bag full of clumps and replacing it with a fresh bag is as much work as you’ll have to do.

Our vote is if you’re going to buy an automated litter box, Litter-Robot should be your choice.

Tags: Comedy Central, kitty litter, Litter Box, Litter Maid, Litter-Robot, South Park