Dear Folks - I love it when this list gets really active discussions, such as this one on kitty litter and the water heater thread. I think that sharing information and ideas about the practical everyday aspects of living more sustainably is one of the most important functions of this list.
My cat has been using various compostable litters for over 12 years now. I tried the various pellets (wheat, sawdust, corncobs), but finally settled on aspen shavings. The aspen is less aromatic than pine, which means it is less likely to cause skin or eye irritation for cats. I buy it in large brown-paper-covered bales at Ithaca Grain and Pet Supply (a side benefit is that these large bags are not only recyclable, but potentially reusable for holding yard waste, wrapping things, or art projects). I cant remember the exact price of a bale, but I think it is around $10 and a bale lasts us about two months. I change the litter box an average of twice each week (because I only have one cat) and dump the entire contents in my compost, rinse the litter box, and dump that on the compost too. I have a large (three bins, ~1 cubic meter for each bin), low-maintenance, backyard composting system made of wooden pallets. I build the pile in layers, adding leaves and weeds to cover each deposit of cat litter or kitchen scraps, never turn the pile, and let the full pile sit for a year before sifting and spreading it. Heres my reasoning: (1) My cat doesnt go outside at all; hence she doesnt eat any wild animals, and is less likely to acquire parasites or pathogens than I am. (2) Neighborhood cats poop all over my yard all the time. Im not feeling the need to find all their feces and flush it into the sanitary sewer system before I plant tomatoes. So I feel really comfortable about my cats feces that have composted for a year going on my vegetables. I suppose if your cats are eating wildlife, you need to be more careful, but composting and just sitting out in the elements for a year does a world of good to kill pathogenic bacteria and parasites, most of which dont survive well for long periods of time outside the guts of their hosts. It is worth reading Joseph Jenkins book, Humanure, for an intelligent and well-researched account of how to safely deal with manures without using all the limited resources that we currently use for this purpose. Thanks for all the discussion! Gail Blake _______________________________________________ RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: [email protected] http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org
