Cats are very picky animals, they are also major clean freaks and very moody. That’s why they are addressed as queens and rightly so because the way cats carry themselves is no less than a queen.
Cats are picky from food to the places they relieve themselves. Pet parents might relate to this.
If your cat’s litterbox is not clean, it may not use it and use other surfaces in the house to do so. Cleaning and disinfecting the cat pee is a great hassle.
Rather than creating a situation, where your cat has to use other things as litterboxes you can prevent the act of cleaning and disinfecting by cleaning the cat’s litterbox in time.
If you live in a house, it is rather easy to clean the litterbox but if you live in an apartment you might wonder how to clean it. Your bathtub can be used for that but with proper precautions.
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Can You Clean Litter Box In A Bathtub?
Cat urine is toxic and contains the body waste of cats which could be very detrimental to the human body.
Cleaning the litter box in the bathtub could be a very wrong move if not done carefully enough.
The chances that the waste gets stuck in the bathtub are more and these chances are not worth taking.
When you live in a house you should take the litter box outside and clean it with a hosepipe, but when you live in an apartment you are not left with many options, the bathtub may be one of the only possible options for you to choose.
So yes you can clean a litter box in the bathtub, but once you do it with all the necessary precautions and take the time to clean and disinfect the whole bathtub.
The cleaning after is also a part of the process because even if you take all the precautionary measures, you should do it because it is better to clean now than pay hospital bills later.
If you decide to use your bathtub you will also need protective gear such as gloves, protective glasses, and even a face mask.
The cat’s fecal matter contains a bacteria called Toxoplasma Gondii which can cause toxoplasmosis in human beings. In addition to that, another disease that can be caused to human beings due to exposure to urine or feces is called Cryptosporidiosis.
These diseases are not usually fatal but could cause serious harm sometimes. People suffering from AIDS, if contracted these diseases could even die.
So think more than twice before choosing your bathtub as a cleaning place and try to find another possible alternative. If not let’s see how to do it as safely as possible
How To Safely Clean Litter Box In Bathtubs?
Follow these steps while cleaning the litter box in a bathtub:
- Equip yourself with protective gear. Gloves and masks are essential because risking your health is not worth it. For more precautions, you could add protective eyeglasses, especially for pregnant women. They should consider this a mandatory obligation for their safety.
- Start with scooping the waste from the litter box. If you don’t clean the litter box it may spill and the waste matter would go down the drain which could cause clogging in drains.
- If required, change the litter, you should regularly change the litter in about 1-2 weeks. After scooping from the litter box directly transfer the litter to a garbage bag if you want to change it.
- Add cleaning solution and warm water to clean the box. You can use a mild detergent as cats are not a big fan of new and strong scents. New scents would drive them away from the litter box, to avoid that you can also use natural cleaners like vinegar and baking soda to clean the box.
- Make sure you scrape out all the particles from the litter box and no particles are stuck on it
- The water left behind in the litter box should be transported very safely. To get optimum safety, take the collected water from the edge of the litter box down the toilet. This way the water doesn’t come on frequently touched surfaces.
- Once you are done with the litter box clean the bathtub preferably with bleach or a potent disinfectant to get any stuck particles or bacteria.
Though the best way to clean a litter box is in open spaces with a hose, this should suffice too. But make sure you take all sorts of preventions to avoid the risk of infection
Can You Clean Litter Box In The Shower?
Cleaning the litter box in the bathtub to some extent is safer than cleaning it in the shower.
If you use a shower, the water when hits the litter box bounces back and spills on all the surfaces. This could get bacteria and parasites on your shower walls and other surfaces of your shower.
So it is highly frowned upon if you choose a shower over the bathtub to clean a litter box as it is comparatively unsafe and could be a catalyst for diseases and infections.
If under crucial circumstances, you have to use the shower try your best to contain the mess to a limited place. That would make disinfecting the area easier and also the surface area to clean would also decrease.
Make sure you use a strong disinfectant or bleach to clean the walls and all the places the dirty water has spilled. The smell of both does not affect humans the way it does to cats, so you can use anything without bothering much.
If given the choice what would you do to clean the litter box in the bathtub or the shower? I would say go with the bathtub as it is much safer. You would be a fool not to do so after realizing how much safer it is than the shower.
Can I Wash Litter Down The Drain?
If you clean the litter box inside the house the litter may go down the drain.
You may overlook the issue and brush it off thinking that it is ok if it happens but it is not ok.
No, you cannot wash litter down the drain. Initially, for some time, you won’t even know the problem but after some time you would face plumbing issues like clogged drains and damaged pipes as the long-term effects of washing the litter down the drain.
The litter when mixed with water forms clumps, which are further insoluble and hardened on drying like the plaster of Paris.
The litter if washed down the drain gets stuck to the pipes and hardens gradually as water is transported to the pipes causing clogging of drains.
The clogging due to litter is rather slow than instantaneous. These clumps stuck to the pipes could also damage the pipes t which they are stuck.
They can ruin the pipes to such an extent that you may have to change them. And the cost of plumbing could easily affect the balance of your budget.
The chances of this happening increase when you clean the litter box inside the house without many precautions and carelessly.
If you do so you may want to rethink the ways you clean your litter box or you would end up having to either pay hospital bills or take up the plumbing costs. If you are not vigilant enough you may have to take up both.
We don’t want that do we? So we need to be more careful and alert.
Frequently Asked Questions?
Can I bleach to clean the litter box?
No, you cannot use bleach to clean the litter box of your cat, as bleach leaves a distinctive odor that your cat dislikes. If the odor is left behind, which usually is, your cat may stop using the litter box and start using other household items as its personal litter box
How long can you go without changing the litter?
It is advisable to change the litter in one or two weeks, the litter should not be used beyond that as it is a breeding ground for bacteria and parasites which can spread harmful and contagious diseases. In addition to that, your cat would also avoid the litter box if the litter is too dirty or used too much.
Can I skip cleaning the bathtub after cleaning the litter box in it?Â
No, skipping the cleaning after part is out of the question for you, if you clean the litter box in the bathtub. The bathtub is a frequently visited spot in our house if something infectious stays on it, it could cause diseases and infections to you and other people in the house.
Summary
Cats are those animal species who are very conscious of cleanliness. This also applies to places where they relieve themselves.
For pet cats, the litter box is one such place. Cats only use clean litter boxes and avoid using one if it is dirty.
To clean a litter box the best place would be outdoors, but if you don’t have such resources you can use the bathtub to clean the litter box.
The main thing you would have to keep in mind while doing so is that you try to minimize the number of particles getting stuck on the surfaces of the bathtub and make sure no litter goes down the drain.
Cleaning the bathtub after doing so is also unavoidable and you should make sure you do not miss it or there are chances you might get sick and the infection could be contagious.
