WWTBAM Bored

Emma found it in Cat Fancy magazine.

http://www.catgenie.com/

The ads say that it's dust-free, non-toxic, never needs changing and doesn't form clumps or make waste.

My sister does.

She loves it.

Her oldest cat refused to use it, so she had to have a different litter box for him.

The others continued to use the Genie, even when he got his own.

Is that one of those things that comes out of something after you rub it and offers to grant three wishes?

I guess they feel like they have to use the word cat.

exactly!

$300 for a litter box???????

I'm speechless, and I oversee government procurement.

Appa23 wrote:$300 for a litter box???????

I'm speechless, and I oversee government procurement.

Hey! We just buy the stuff - it's the engineers who put all the bells and whistles in the scopes of work.

I sure am getting reminded today about a lot of old stuff.

Used to be that at the Overlook Marina at Lake Somerville there was a machine next to the rubber dispensers in the mens' bathroom that offered "Instant P****." Nobody wanted to give up fifty cents to check it out. Finally, my brother did. (Hell, you see that offer enough times and you might as well be hypnotized.)

Out came this little round thing in a plastic packet. We thought it was a damned pill or something. The directions said to put it in water. Turns out it was a sponge-like deal that expanded into the shape of a little teeny cat.

Just goes to show you: there's no such thing as a free lunch (or a fifty-cent ... well, you know).

Appa23 wrote:$300 for a litter box???????

I'm speechless, and I oversee government procurement.

Cat litter costs $7.00 to $10.00 a container. With three cats, I go through a container every one and a half weeks. All of this litter (and poo) ends up going into a landfill. My Littermaid cat box costs around $100 and usually lasts a year and a half.

If it really works, $300 is not unreasonable for a cat box.

PlacentiaSoccerMom wrote:

Appa23 wrote:$300 for a litter box???????

I'm speechless, and I oversee government procurement.

Cat litter costs $7.00 to $10.00 a container. With three cats, I go through a container every one and a half weeks. All of this litter (and poo) ends up going into a landfill. My Littermaid cat box costs around $100 and usually lasts a year and a half.

If it really works, $300 is not unreasonable for a cat box.

Don't forget the price of having a plumber come and hook everything up to a water line and drain line.

I note on the website that they only provide you enough of therocks"/litter for a few months. It would appear that you have to keep buying the litter substitute, at a price of $23.99 for a 3.5 pound box.

It really is a matter of economics. If you are willing to pay that amount of money or more to have to deal less often with litterbox issues, then it is a good deal.

Hmmm.



CatGenie - $329 ( 2yr warranty)
SaniSolution Cartridges - $6-$7 per month per cat
Granules - $2 month

So let's say $23/month for two years, all in, for my one cat.

They have a special right now for $297 with free shipping and two SaniSolution cartridges. That would lower the cost to about $20/month over two years.

I'm probably not going to do it but it would be an interesting comparison with the cost of cat litter and the fact that this system would probably be cleaner than I manage to keep the existing litter box.

As somebody who has had up to five cats at a time, I look at it this way:

With only one cat, I could keep up with the litter box without any problem or much thought. With two cats, the Genie looks more attractive. With three, I'm a buyer for sure. For five, I would get two of them, one for upstairs and one for downstairs.

Now that my house is populated with dogs, I look forward to the introduction of the Lawn Genie.

silvercamaro wrote:As somebody who has had up to five cats at a time, I look at it this way:

With only one cat, I could keep up with the litter box without any problem or much thought. With two cats, the Genie looks more attractive. With three, I'm a buyer for sure. For five, I would get two of them, one for upstairs and one for downstairs.

Now that my house is populated with dogs, I look forward to the introduction of the Lawn Genie.

I have known many cat owners who did not want to keep the litter boxes in a bathroom, where the Catgenie has to be (in order to have access to plumbing)(unless you have a large enough laundry room, and actually would the cat in the laundry room).

My sister's is in the laundry room.

There is usually plumbing there as well.

Appa23 wrote:

silvercamaro wrote:As somebody who has had up to five cats at a time, I look at it this way:

With only one cat, I could keep up with the litter box without any problem or much thought. With two cats, the Genie looks more attractive. With three, I'm a buyer for sure. For five, I would get two of them, one for upstairs and one for downstairs.

Now that my house is populated with dogs, I look forward to the introduction of the Lawn Genie.

I have known many cat owners who did not want to keep the litter boxes in a bathroom, where the Catgenie has to be (in order to have access to plumbing)(unless you have a large enough laundry room, and actually would the cat in the laundry room).

I would the cat in my laundry room, that's where I have the litter box and where I would likely install the Genie if I were to purchase one.

But you are correct that it would be a consideration.

Appa23 wrote:
I have known many cat owners who did not want to keep the litter boxes in a bathroom, where the Catgenie has to be (in order to have access to plumbing).

I have known dog owners who wouldn't let their animals in the house, either, but we were talking about real people.

Sybil has one of these:

http://www.scoopfree.com/?gclid=CMm1x9S ... PAodjgLc8A

It took her a couple of days to get used to it. I left her old box next to it, and (like the directions said to do) let it get a tad...um...rank (i.e., I didn't scoop it). She still kept using the old one. I then put some (clean) regular litter in the new box, and she did investigate, but didn't actually use the new one right away. Then I took away the old one (in a seriously industrial-strength garbage bag), and she finally decided to give the new one a shot. She must like this one, since I haven't found any presents anywhere.

As for me, I LOVE this thing, since there's no maintenance whatsoever for a month. After 30 days, I just take off the mechanism, pop it on a new tray (with new crystals), and toss the old. It's truly a miracle of modern science.

KillerTomato wrote:Sybil has one of these:

http://www.scoopfree.com/?gclid=CMm1x9S ... PAodjgLc8A

It took her a couple of days to get used to it. I left her old box next to it, and (like the directions said to do) let it get a tad...um...rank (i.e., I didn't scoop it). She still kept using the old one. I then put some (clean) regular litter in the new box, and she did investigate, but didn't actually use the new one right away. Then I took away the old one (in a seriously industrial-strength garbage bag), and she finally decided to give the new one a shot. She must like this one, since I haven't found any presents anywhere.

As for me, I LOVE this thing, since there's no maintenance whatsoever for a month. After 30 days, I just take off the mechanism, pop it on a new tray (with new crystals), and toss the old. It's truly a miracle of modern science.

That looks a lot like the Litter Mate. Is it the same thing? I've considered getting a Litter Mate before, but I was afraid that the motor bar thing would scare the girls so they wouldn't want to get in there.

I have seen an advert on tv a couple of times for the Cat Genie, and it intrigues me. My girls are old (Miss Fantine is the baby of the group at 11) and set in their ways and I fear they wouldn't take to either one of them.

fantine33 wrote:
My girls are old (Miss Fantine is the baby of the group at 11) and set in their ways and I fear they wouldn't take to either one of them.

I just thought you'd like to know that Sam-I-Am, a.k.a. Sammy, made it to 27-1/2 years, with her final months under the guardianship of her new tall friend, Rusty. Miss Fantine and her sisters may have many, many years to come.

fantine33 wrote: That looks a lot like the Litter Mate. Is it the same thing? I've considered getting a Litter Mate before, but I was afraid that the motor bar thing would scare the girls so they wouldn't want to get in there.

I have seen an advert on tv a couple of times for the Cat Genie, and it intrigues me. My girls are old (Miss Fantine is the baby of the group at 11) and set in their ways and I fear they wouldn't take to either one of them.

She had a Litter Mate, which broke (which is why I got the Scoop Free thingie). It was on the loud side.

The Scoop Free thingie is MUCH quieter. And it doesn't start for 5 or 10 minutes after the cat leaves the box, so I don't think it would frighten them so much they wouldn't use it.

peacock2121 wrote:My sister's is in the laundry room.

There is usually plumbing there as well.

Our Littermaid is in our laundry room. It's great for three cats, but we go through tons of litter. I still have to take it apart every few weeks to clean the box.

silvercamaro wrote:

fantine33 wrote:
My girls are old (Miss Fantine is the baby of the group at 11) and set in their ways and I fear they wouldn't take to either one of them.

I just thought you'd like to know that Sam-I-Am, a.k.a. Sammy, made it to 27-1/2 years, with her final months under the guardianship of her new tall friend, Rusty. Miss Fantine and her sisters may have many, many years to come.

Thank you, Sliver! That makes me feel good. Chloe is at least 17-18 now and I'm constantly checking her to make sure she's still breathing. Then she deigns to open her eyes and give me a "What up, dumdum? Can't you see I'm trying to sleep?" look.

KillerTomato wrote:She had a Litter Mate, which broke (which is why I got the Scoop Free thingie). It was on the loud side.

The Scoop Free thingie is MUCH quieter. And it doesn't start for 5 or 10 minutes after the cat leaves the box, so I don't think it would frighten them so much they wouldn't use it.

The quieter thing is a big plus. When I was seriously considering one I had four cats and didn't know if there would actually be 10 minutes between visits! Maybe with three, there wouldn't be such a line.

Is the Scoop Free thingie available for purchase locally or just online (if it just doesn't work out it would be nice to be able to return it.)? Is the cost comparable to the Litter Mate? Can one send in UPC codes to defray the cost? (If that were the case they should give me boot with it. Ha!) Can you just bring one over and set it up for me?

Now, what's the fun in that?

I mean, isn't that what a carpet is for???

Really, now.

Natalie has 2 cats and had the Litter Mate. We saw the Cat Genie last year in the Sky Mall magazine and ordered it. She has it in her laundry room and as a female who is a bit obsessive complusive about cleanliness, she loves the
Cat Genie.

She didn't care what the expense would be, but it really doesn't cost any more than what the Litter Mate was running.

kayrharris wrote:Natalie has 2 cats and had the Litter Mate. We saw the Cat Genie last year in the Sky Mall magazine and ordered it. She has it in her laundry room and as a female who is a bit obsessive complusive about cleanliness, she loves the
Cat Genie.

She didn't care what the expense would be, but it really doesn't cost any more than what the Litter Mate was running.

Obsessive? Compulsive? I would have no idea what that is like. Ha!

I am really getting all into this now. I need to look into this more than just seeing the advert and going 'kewl!'.

What are the approximate sizes of these three models? (I think Caro is the only one who mentioned the Scoop Free.) I went from a tiny little house with a huge laundry room to a big huge house with the w/d in a closet so the all the cat stuff is in a fairly small bathroom (the cats go to the bathroom in the bathroom? Horrors!).

If I had kittens I'd try to train them to use the toilet, but the process seems rather lengthy and arduous. I think it would be easier to get them to do that from scratch, so to speak.