sorry, I do have three cats and three boxes. sometime they all use one box only, sometimes they each take one one. go figure. I like the unscented Arm and Hammer seems to work well, but lets hear form some of the others.

I'll check out the Arm & Hammer. I was wondering if the automatics worked better with certain kinds of litter. I'm guessing that clumping would probably be best?

One box per cat, plus one. And not all in the same spot, because then they still count as "one".

There are other things too, if your cats are sensitive: not near a noisy appliance like a dryer, not in a spot where they have no escape route--stuff like that. Mine seem to be okay with dryers and corners. Depends on the cat.

I had one of my kitties start using a closet once till we figured out he got scared by something by the box. once we moved the box everything was good again.

My senior baby would have none of it, she has a timid disposition.

We have been using World's Best litter for years. You can find it online or at Petco

Like this one: http://www.walmart.com/ip/LitterMaid-980-Multi-Cat-Self-Cleaning-Litter-Box-Cats/15686625

It didn't worked very well for my husband's cat who made huge clumps that clogged the mechanism. Plus, since it just shoved the nasty bits into a holding bin the smell was still bad. Since it was heavy and awkward it made it more difficult to clean than a normal box.

I ended up getting a litter box with a built in sifter, sort of like this one:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Lift-N-Sift-Litter-Tray-System-4-pc-Cats/24553392

I still use that one - with decent quality litter it is really easy to clean and makes it much easier to deal with. I've only had problems since our cat has gotten older since he is making stinkier messes. But all I do is not put so much litter in and dump the whole thing if it gets nasty.

I am looking for feedback on the automatics and your experience is very helpful. I didn't know that they would clog and didn't consider the weight of them. Dealing with a clog would be a mess. We are looking for something that would eliminate contact with the feces.

Thanks again.

And basically is self-flushing: http://www.catgenie.com/

It is more complicated to hook up and uses special "litter" that does not get flushed. I haven't tried that kind. They are pretty expensive and specialized but there is no contact with the feces at all in normal use.

The other possibility is to train the cats to use a toilet. There are sets of frames to transition the cat to that and some people have had good luck with it. http://www.citikitty.com/ (There are other brands.)

I haven't tried it but when I was a kid one of our cats taught himself to use the toilet. Mom refused to have litter boxes and the cat was supposed to go outside but that cat had been an indoor only one until we got him. So he just started using the toilet and was really good about it - though he never flushed.

Thanks very much for all the help and recommendations.

I haven't had one, but experience with other devices is that they usually break and/or need to extra cleaning and work taking care of them in the end. Like the idea of a water fountain for cats: yes they are cute, if your cat will use it, which mine would not. And then you have to clean the thing out. Instead, just turn the water faucet on to dribble for a little while after they have been fed, so that the one who likes running water can have a drink. Simple. The other two like their water dish just fine.

But back to litter boxes: in our two story house, we have one litter box upstairs, a covered one; one larger one on the main floor (laundry room) and two in the basement. The main floor one gets a lot of use, and I've tried to do without it because the room is small. But the 11-year old must be getting a little arthritic and doesn't like to use stairs as much. The other day she "voted" with her pee by jumping into a basket of dirty laundry in the laundry room and aimed a pee at the side of the basket. Fortunately it went out the basket and onto the floor instead of our clothes!

So the laundry room litter box is back! I swear by Tidy Cats scoopable, and like their Instant Action variety because the 24/7 is too highly scented for me. I buy it by the 40 lb box. I've tried lots of litters, believe me, and this one scoops the best. At the 40 lb. size it's pretty economical and it scoops so well that I don't get crumbles and haven't had to change out the whole box.

This is a learning curve for us! Thanks for the rec. on Tidy Cats. I'll check it out.

I have not tried World's Best. With three cats it would seem to be too expensive.

I have tried Arm & Hammer. While it is good and a little cheaper, it has more crumbles than Tidy Cats.

Also important is that whatever you try is 99% dust free, for the sake of the cats and your home.

I was going to buy one of those tracker pads to put under the litter boxes. Hope that will help.

They catch tracked litter and I dump it back in again.

If a cat has anything less than solid stools, you get a great big mess.

I truly wish something better would be designed and developed, but thus far, I haven't found it.

Thanks for the tip. I need something that won't be messy or get clogged.