[lesleyn]

My daughter came home from school and brought her cat, male, fixed. We have a cat already and her litter box has never smelled. My daughter's cat's box really really smells of ammonia. It hits you when you walk in the front door and I have tried everything to get rid of it. Any ideas or suggestions? Also, could this mean he has a problem?

[Dr D]

Could it be that the male cat is spraying horizontaly, and going over the side of the litter box? I have two females, sisters, both spayed, and one of them insists on going like a male cat. I attached high plastic sides on the litter box, and solved the problem. Good luck.

[Jessyfay]

How old is the litter pan? Plastic absorbs stink and if your litter box isn't bleached at least once a week it will absorb that horrible ammonia smell, making old litter boxes really stinky!

Try using a brand new litter box and scented litter and sprinkle a tablespoon of baking soda in the litter pan.

[tigerfeather]

There are a lot of commercial additives for litter that may help with the problem, along with activated carbon which seems to work very well. Does the cat use an open litter pan? You can cut odor by getting a covered litter pan or an attachable litter box cover (think like a canopy bed). Does the male drink enough water? Dehydration can cause strong odors, and so can urinary tract infections. You may actually have to feed a little wet food to make the cat get some fluid into his system.

That all being said, males tend to have stronger scents that females. Also, what Dr. D said. ;)

[ninacon]

I would take a urine sample to the vet. If the cat is male, there is a possibility that the cat has stones or crystals. This can build up quickly and the cat can get sick very fast. Usually this indicates a UTI, or the cat is not drinking enough water.

[shintao]

Change the box at least once a week. Add a blue/white crystals to the regular litter. A product like Oust antibacterial spray, used over the litter box daily. Males tend to over shoot sometimes and it hits the wall. They make litter boxes with one high side.

Males also have the kidney problems, no fish foods, & special diet & mineral free water. They sell wheat grass plugs in the veggie department. Indoor cats need that, and males need a special diet. Check him at the vet. :)

[morgaine300]

Males also have the kidney problems, no fish foods, & special diet & mineral free water. They sell wheat grass plugs in the veggie department. Indoor cats need that, and males need a special diet. Check him at the vet. :)

I happen to know a bit about kidney disease, and can only say huh?

How about this instead: Cats are carnivores. They need a cat diet, not a "special" diet - just one for cats, which most food, especially dry, is not. Cats also eat little animals that are mostly water, and are supposed to get their moisture from their prey, not a nice, clean water bowl. Canned or homemade food is the closest we'll get to this. This provides help with flushing. Cats in the wild don't get nice bottled, filtered water. Most cats eat foods already WAY too high in plant material and don't generally need any more - indoor foods are a marketing ploy. Males don't need any more "special" diet than females - they need a cat-appropriate diet. Females end up with kidney problems as well, and probably for the very same reasons. Cats in nature don't eat dry kibble garbage full of more plant than anything else.

Instead of fixing the cat after giving them a bad diet, maybe we should be fixing the diet. Just saying.

And... the thread is kind of way old.