Product Review : the Cat Genie

What's it worth to you to never have to scoop litter again? Twelve dollars per month? $70? More? Are you tired of keeping up with the chore of scooping, which we all know is dirty at its best, completely nasty at its worst? We all know the smell of clay saturated with cat urine, wafting its way through your home and defining you as a cat owner. What about the grit that ends up on your carpet or in your bed?

Well, someone has found a way to end this for you and me. And it works.

I'd read about the Cat Genie on the web, but had always been reluctant to buy one. After all, the cost of the unit is around $300, and the supplies at first glance do not appear cheap. But depending on how many cats you have and how often you clean your litter box, the cost of supplies could be more manageable than you think for the freedom you gain by avoiding the chore of cleaning the litter box.

So with four cats to clean up after, scooping two litter boxes up to three times per day, I purchased a Cat Genie in May of 2008.

The package was tight and smartly done, with everything tucked snug into the Styrofoam. I was a little worried at first because the UPS guy (I still love Big Brown) dropped it a bit unceremoniously on the floor of his truck before bringing it in, but nothing appeared broken at first glance. The instructions were easy to understand and the hardware easy to assemble. We put it in our laundry room and had it hooked up and ready to go in about ten minutes. True to most purchasers of the Cat Genie, we turned it on for its first cycle and stared, mesmerized, as the bowl spun and the "claw" sifted through the litter. After it had ended its first cycle, we touched the clean, warm litter and muttered praises to whomever had invented this thing. As strange as it sounds, we were unable to avoid drawing designs into the litter so we'd know as soon as any of the cats tried to use it.

The mechanics of this device, although a bit noisy, are pretty sleek. Upon activation, a claw reaches down into the box while the bowl spins, pushing any fecal matter into the claw's grasp. The claw lifts the poo, shakes itself, and then deposits it into a bin. After three cycles of this, cleanser mixed with water from your toilet or laundry hook up soaks the plastic litter granules. While the bowls spins, the claw comes back to help "scrub" the granules clean. The water and urine then drain through the bottom of the bowl. At the same time, a "blender" liquefies the poo where it resides in the bin. All of the waste is then evacuated into either your toilet or laundry drain.

All in all, very amazing, presuming you can get your cats to use the thing.

We likely handled the cat acclimation poorly, as we sat with our cats the first cycle ran, and we had some good laughs as the cats stood and stared at this strange contraption. We did coo at them and praise them as they watched the Cat Genie work, so we thought they seemed comfortable enough around the box. We then moved their old litter box near the Cat Genie so that they could start learning to go in the new spot.

One of the cats, our Persian, had no problems jumping right in and going. Two of our other kitties had more problems using the device, most likely for having to share the same litter box. There were accidents here and there. We'd always been a two litter box house, so accidents only made sense.

I was so impressed with the Cat Genie that I purchased another one and put it in our spare bathroom in the basement. With the second box, the accidents all but went away. The two cats with problems were leaving a poo here and there, but after getting them both fixed the problem completely went away. From there we've enjoyed a perfect existence with our Cat Genies.

Hint: I also noticed that sprinkling some Cat Attract on the edge of the bowls seemed to help.

Four months later and we love these litter boxes! The only cleaning we have to do is to sweep some of the granules off the laundry room floor where the cats have kicked them out of the box. I simply save them in a plastic cup, wash them off later and dump them back into the litter box. I also flush the toilet in the spare bathroom room once per day to get rid of the waste that is deposited there, which is usually comprised of shredded hair and some litter granules. I recommend scrubbing the toilet bowl once every week or so to remove the residue as it can be pretty nasty.

Another great feature of these litter boxes is the auto-clean function. It is simple to setup but, unfortunately, doesn't work like an alarm clock where you can set it to go at specific times. It does, however, automatically clean either every 24, 12, 8, or 6 hrs. For four cats, we have both boxes set at every 8 hrs or 3 times per day.

Issues:

The only mechanical issue I had with the litter boxes was that when I tried to set the auto-cycle for the first time on one of them, it told me my cartridge was out of solution, which I knew it wasn't as I'd only run the thing maybe 12-15 times. I took it out, shook it, and put it back in. The cat genie went about its business.

The bowl is a little small, so our fifteen pound domestic longhair occasionally misses, but it is only an occasional thing and occurred with the old litter box as well.

Some folks complained that when a piece of solid waste got left in the bowl, the heat from the final drying cycle caused a horrible smell in the house. We experienced this as well on occasion, and the smell was bad but only lasted a short time. It has never actually bothered us.

Cost Analysis

I took some time to go through what I'd spent for a six month supply and figured my average cost of supplies per month. These are estimates that could be changed based on how many boxes of granules you go through and how clean your cats need their litter boxes to be.

Note: (Sani-Solution cartridges are good for 60 washes)

4 Cats

2 Cat Genies

3 Washes per day per CG = (3 Sani-Solutions + 1 Box of Granules Per Month Total)

$59.99 per month (best buy is the Combo Pack 3 Sani-Solutions + Box of Granules)

I found I could save a lot of money if I reduced the number of washes per day per CG.

4 Cats

2 Cat Genies

2 Washes per day per CG = (2 Sani-Solutions + 1 Box of Granules Per Month Total)

$39.99 per month (best buy is the Combo Pack 3 Sani-Solutions + Box of Granules)

Let's look at some other scenarios

2 or 3 Cats

1 Cat Genie

3 Washes per day per CG = (1.5 Sani-Solution + ½ Box of Granules Per Month Total)

$29.99 per month (best buy is the Combo Pack 3 Sani-Solutions + Box of Granules)

2 or 3 Cats

1 Cat Genie

2 Washes per day per CG (1 Sani-Solution + ½ Box of Granules Per Month Total)

$19.99 per month (best buy is the Combo Pack 3 Sani-Solutions + Box of Granules)

1 or 2 Cats

1 Cat Genie

1 Wash per day per CG (1/2 Sani-Solution + ¼ Box of Granules Per Month Total)

$12.24 per month (best buy is the 12 pack Sani-Solution and then Single Boxes of Granules)

Start Up Costs:

Each Cat Genie is $297 (shipping included and each Cat Genie comes with two boxes of granules and 2 Sani-Solution cartridges) if you purchase from the manufacturer. They come with a 2-year warranty. I found out later that buying the sidewalls is a good idea as it saves you from cleaning up granules that are normally kicked out of the bowl. One set of side walls are $19.99.

Total Startup for one Cat Genie $316.99

Overall Benefits:

Although you may find the above costs intimidating or unappealing at best, I can assure you that the Cat Genie is well worth the trouble. Once it finally hits you that you're not tied to your litter boxes anymore (and that your cats are firmly acclimated to their new boxes) you'll feel a huge sense of relief.

When you go out for more than half a day, you won't have to worry about getting home at a certain time to scoop the litter. It feels even better when you are tired from an evening out and want to simply fall into bed without messing with the litter box. Getting up in the morning is easier too because you know the litter boxes are already clean and ready for a new day.

With four cats, and me scooping both litter boxes up to three times per day, the Cat Genie has been a Godsend and has helped me enjoy the best things about having cats, forever leaving the behind business behind!