"Cats stink!"

There is nothing more infuriating to a cat owner who has a clean, odor free home than these two words.

Cats do not stink. Nor are they dirty. They are, in fact, very clean. If you ever observe a cat over a 24 hour period, much of the time that they spend not eating or sleeping is spent grooming themselves. I don't know any short haired cats that have ever needed any professional grooming services (except in very rare, medical related circumstances), and most long haired cats require vigilant brushing and maybe a once a year trip to get shaved down.

And they do not smell. At least not any more than a human or a dog. I mean, of course their poop might be stink sometimes when they first go (although since mine have been on a homemade diet, I haven't noticed it at all), but doesn't yours?

I know, I know. But you knew this person, and they had a cat, and the whole house REEKED! From one cat! The minute you walked in the door, you could smell it!

I hate to tell you this, but that person was not taking proper care of their litter box. With vigilant scooping and cleaning, your litter box will not smell. If your litter box smells once it's scooper, it's time to change the litter.

Cats are clean. It's their owners who are dirty, or, and I'm being too kind here, haven't been properly educated on how to care for a cat.

And I do not just say that as the snooty owner of a two perfect kitties. I say that as the humble, and oft embarrassed, owner of a cat who PEES OUTSIDE THE BOX (see previous posts).

Yes, it's a total pain, but when Stubbs goes on one of his peeing rampages, the only thing to do is pull up your sleeves and clean, clean, clean. And you CAN get the smell of cat pee out of things. It just takes time ad patience, and a little bit of knowledge learned from experience and trial and error.

Here are a few things I have learned through experience:

1. Don't buy a scented litter to try to mask the smell of a dirty litter box. Your litter box still smells dirty, and the scented litter has its own scent, which people recognize as the scent of litter, which makes them assume your cat is dirty.

2. Stick with litters made with natural ingredients like pine, corn, or wheat. Buy a scoopable, clumping version of this litter. Scoop daily. Or twice daily if you are like me and have a kitty who is pick about his litter box.

3. Buy another litter box. Yes, I know this sounds counter productive, but it's not. An extra litter box will make your cat happier and less likely to go outside the box. It also disperses the poops and pees so that they are not all in one location.

4. Add a sprinkle of baking soda to your litter box to absord odors.

5. Use a litter liner. Easier clean up.

6. For accidents outside the box: Nature's Miracle is the way to go. The trick with Nature's Miracle is to use it straight, don't water it down, and, now this is important so pay attention, do not use any other products on the stain until the Nature's Miracle has removed the odor. I cannot stress this enough. Nature's Miracle is designed specifically to neaturalize enzymes in animal urine. If you use another product on the urine first, you may be altering the enzymes, hence making the Nature's Miracle useless. Be patient and vigilant. Nature's Miracle, let it soak (for really bad stains I just let it straight up dry), water and a wash cloth, let it dry, sniff, repeat as necessary. For urine on hard surfaces like tile or linoleum, dump it on and let it dry, repeat as necessary.

If you have any other questions or tips, please feel free to email me or leave me a comment!