Where to put the cat litter in an RV?

#rvlife #travel #cats #pets

2021-04-08

Litter vs Toilet train

The most common toilet option cat guardians choose is the litter box. It’s easy to train, but a dedicated space for it is needed. We chose to litter train Benny, but want to share all the options.

The other option is to toilet train your cat. This is less common, but possible. The great thing is that there is no litter to scoop or track out of the box, and you don’t need any extra space or equipment. However, it takes time to train, and will leave unsightly or smelly surprises for the next user if the cat can’t flush.

Places to put the cat litter in an RV

There are pros and cons to each location, so pick a spot that works for your routine and setup. Everyone’s RV layout is different, so there is no one perfect spot.

Litter furniture

For those with very large RV’s, litter furniture might be an option. These are enclosures designed to look like side tables, plant pots, or cabinets that hide the litter box in plain sight. We have one in our home base and it works great.

Litter inside an RV storage area

A couple ideas that might work are:

• Under the bed storage compartment - This is where we chose to put Benny’s litter. Iit is tall enough for him to stand/squat, and large enough to fit the box and allow for walking space in front to catch tracked litter. The entry, which we cut out ourselves, is also tall and wide enough that he doesn’t have to squeeze through which is great as he ages and becomes less able to do acrobatics or contortions to get in and out of small spaces.
• In the garage/storage area - this is a popular option we have seen many RVers choose. It involves installing a cat door in a wall/floor to allow kitty to pass between the inside of the rig and the garage and making some sort of enclosure for the litter box to prevent kitty from roaming all over the garage and potentially making a great escape if someone opens the outdoor hatch.
• Under the dinette seating - we considered this option until we realized that our dinette is not high enough to allow for a comfortable bathroom visit for Benny. Some RV dinettes have taller storage under the seating, so this may be an option for you.  
• In a closet/cabinet - if you have enough floor space and headroom in a closet to fit the litter box, this can be a great option for some RVers.

Litter in the RV shower stall

If you choose this option, make sure the drain is covered so kitty isn’t sending litter into your grey water tank. That could lead to a blockage. I would only recommend using this option if you are one of those RVers who does not use the shower in your rig. Otherwise, you’ll have to be prepared to move it out of the way and clean the shower stall every time someone wants to shower. This could get annoying after the first week.    

 

DIY cat door

No matter where you choose to put the litter box, you will need to create some kind of entryway so kitty can access the litter - cutting a hole, installing a cat door, or removing an existing door for example. Our’s was made easy with a jigsaw, some coroplast, and a bit of leftover building supplies I had.

I started by making a template of the opening, tracing that onto the panel, and then cutting it out. For the most basic of litter box storage places, we could have stopped there. However, I was very concerned about protecting the wood framing and flooring in the event that Benny misses the litter, so I made an insert of coroplast for the litter box to sit in.

Of course, no door is completely finished without some decorative touches, so I made framing around the entry with the leftover building supplies I had. What do you think?

 

Other litter tips

If you are considering a change of litter type please be aware that it cannot be done overnight. Changing a cat’s litter type is recommended to be done slowly. Cats are often creatures of habit and a drastic change to the type of litter they expect in their box can be enough to cause some cats to stop using the litter and look for other alternatives. Plan to slowly increase the amount of the new litter by mixing it in with the current litter over the course of a month.  

Controlling odors

We use a clay, orderless, multi-cat clumping litter and I add carbon pellets to it for extra odor control. We’ve also heard good reviews about using cedar litter for odor control, but have not tried it ourselves. Regardless of litter type, if poo/pee sits around for a while it will stink. Scooping the litter at least once a day will help minimize odors. I once met a feline vet who told me that she scooped her cat’s litter right after they used it everytime. Her argument was “would you use a toilet that had not been flushed?” 

Tracking litter

To help minimize tracking outside of the litter box, we use a cotton Miracle Mat (https://miraclemat.com/) that catches almost all of the litter Benny drags out on his feet upon exiting. We absolutely love this mat (and are not affiliated with the company in any way or paid to say this). I was pretty skeptical about it until I saw it in action and now we have two!

There are several litters on the market that claim to be track-free. We have not tested them, so can’t really comment. However, our experience has been that some of the ones labeled as track-free actually performed worse than some of them who did not have this claim. I’m not entirely convinced that there is any type of litter that is completely track-free. It really just comes down to managing it effectively.