The Clumping Litter Health Scare We believe that the Internet scare over clumping litter and cat health is exaggerated at best. We do encourage people to try alternatives if they have animals showing signs of respiratory distress or animals that eat their clay litter. Of course, these are likely signs of other underlying health problems. Our Experience We are not veterinarians nor do we play veterinarians on television. But we have been using clumping litter for many years with no negative consequences. In fact, none of our cats have ever been sick in any of the mysterious ways mentioned on the scare sites since starting clumping litter. No respiratory illness and no bowel impactions, etc. However, our cats don't eat the stuff. Ruby, Our Myopathy Miracle. One kitten we adopted, Ruby, came to us with a serious heart myopathy. The vet said her heart would likely not support her into adulthood. This was confirmed by second opinion. Ruby lived for 15 years and I could just as easily say that her unexpected longevity was caused by our use of clumping litter. Of course that would be ridiculous. Lola, Old and Doing Fine. Ruby's sister Lola is now 16 years old and she has mild hypothyroidism. She has always been on the chunky side compared to her siblings. We tried diets, but nothing worked. It appears to be a genetic condition. Yet even with her obesity and age, she is doing great — in spite of our use of clumping litter. In fact, her hypothyroidism causes some excessive drinking and urinating and the clumping litter is ideal for isolating this additional liquid waste. Looking for Causes The fact is, when pets become ill, we humans look everywhere for answers. Our own beloved dog Carlos died of cancer several years ago. Was it the water? Was it the food? More likely it was something he was exposed to in the years before we adopted him or it was genetic. We also had a beloved cat, Jerzy, who died of cancer many years before clumping litter ever came on the market. This is a cat who ate fresh food and was given the same drinking water we drank. What caused his cancer? We have no idea. A Similar Internet Hoax — Cedar Rodent Bedding For a while, our son had pet mice (in a house with 6 cats — go figure) and I read that the use of cedar bedding caused respiratory problems for small animals. This misinformation was all over the web. Then I found a letter written by the scientist who had performed the original study that was being misquoted by all the scare sites. This scientist explained how she had been misquoted. Her research was examining factors that might have very minute effects on laboratory mice which could taint experimental outcomes. She said that cedar bedding was perfectly safe! It took me a long time to find this information and had I not put forth the additional effort, I might have been swayed by the dozens and dozens of scare sites. Clumping Litter Health Links While there has apparently not been a lot of hard research into the use of bentonite clumping litter, we have compiled the following links to sites which tend to counter the scare sites. But if you are still not convinced, try using the all-natural, plant-based clumping litters if your budget allows for it. Safety of Clumping Litter - Sandra M. Barclay, D.V.M. Kitten Kaboodle Just Fine, Deborah E. Pears B.V.Sc Are clumping litters safe for my cat? -Bruce D. Elsey, DVM Cat Litter - To Scoop or Not to Scoop - About.com (Great article) Selecting the Right Litter - Ani-Med Pick of the Litter - Petfinder.com OEHHA - Safe Use Determination for Bentonite Clay Litters Personal Experience - Lisa Violet From the Manufacturers |