Okay, so, my cat, Mittens, she’s been with me for, like, 10 years. She’s my old lady, you know? Lately, she started having these coughing fits. At first, I figured it was just hairballs, but they kept happening, and sometimes she’d wheeze a bit. Freaked me out, obviously.
I took her to the vet, and after some tests, he said it’s likely asthma. He gave me some meds, which helped, but he also mentioned that the cat litter could be making things worse. Apparently, some litters are super dusty, and that dust can irritate their little lungs.
So, I went on a mission to find the best dust-free litter for my girl. I hit up a bunch of pet stores, read a ton of reviews online – it was a whole thing. Here’s what I tried:
- Clay Litter: This is the usual stuff, right? Cheap, easy to find. But even the ones that claimed to be “low dust” were still pretty dusty. I noticed Mittens coughing more after I switched to a fresh batch, so that was a no-go.
- Pine Pellet Litter: These are made from compressed sawdust. They’re supposed to be less dusty, and they do a decent job of absorbing odors. But, Mittens hated the texture. She’d stand on the edge of the box like she was afraid to step in. Plus, they don’t clump, which made cleaning a pain.
- Walnut Shell Litter: This one was interesting. It’s made from crushed walnut shells, and it’s actually pretty good at clumping. The dust was minimal, but the smell was… weird. It wasn’t bad, just different. Mittens didn’t seem to mind it, but I wasn’t a fan.
- Corn Litter: This one seemed promising. It’s made from, you guessed it, corn. It clumped well, and the dust was super low. But, I read some reviews about it attracting bugs, which, ew. I didn’t want to deal with that, so I passed.
- Silica Gel Litter: Finally, I tried the silica gel crystals. These are those little beads that absorb moisture like crazy. And guess what? Almost zero dust! Mittens seemed okay with the texture, and it controlled odors really well. It’s a bit more expensive, but honestly, it’s worth it.
After trying all these different litters, I’ve settled on the silica gel for now. Mittens’ coughing has definitely decreased since I made the switch. She still has occasional flare-ups, but they’re much less frequent and severe. It was a lot to go through, but I am glad to find something that can help my cat.
So, yeah, if your cat has asthma, definitely look into switching their litter. It might take some trial and error, but it’s worth it to help them breathe easier. My little old lady is worth it, and I am sure your lovely cat is the same!
