The Benefits of Using a Litter Tray for Your Cat

The Benefits of Using a Litter Tray for Your CatCats are domestic creatures with several needs. While some may think that cats are so independent that they can handle themselves and that their daily care needs are minimal, a quality litter tray is essential for keeping your cat happy. For a better idea of why this is, keep reading.

Your Cat Can Remain Aware of Its Surroundings

One of the most basic benefits of a basic litter tray is that it is flat and allows your cat to have unobstructed vision. Cats are still animals who like to know when and where a threat might approach so that they can react promptly. If you have a cat that tends to be skittish and might even be characterized as paranoid, a cat litter tray is the perfect litter vessel.

Trays Keep the Litter Inside the Litter Space

One problem behavior that some cats exhibit is flinging their litter about the place. While the litter-tracking habits of kittens are one thing, a juvenile or adult cat who deliberately flicks its litter out of the box is quite another. 

Some people will say that an enclosed litter box is great for minimizing mess with a cat using its litter box. Still, a litter tray that rises sufficiently high can ensure that only the most dedicated cats will ever get more than a few flecks of litter out of their box.

Your Cat Can Move About

Another benefit of a tray over a box is the topic of maneuverability. Because cats prefer a litter area that gives them a great deal of flexibility and angles of approach, a tray is a superior option over an enclosed litter box. 

With an enclosed area, your cat is limited to a very narrow range of motion and may only be able to enter the box from one spot; an open-air tray will give your cat all of the freedom it wants to find the driest spot to relieve itself upon.

Self-Cleaning Models Exist

Cats tend to prefer a clean litter tray, and they may look elsewhere if their designated litter area remains soiled for too long. Despite this fact, not every cat owner is eager to clean the litter box for their cat regularly. A self-cleaning system means that you can focus on dealing with whatever else comes your way and worry about keeping your cat’s litter fresh and clean another time. 

Open-Air Does Not Always Mean Full-View

There are times when the needs of a cat and the needs of a cat’s owner do not always align. Cats, especially if they are territorial males, prefer to leave their mess visible to assert dominance. Few people will appreciate seeing a cat’s stool within a litter box in the time between scooping/cleaning sessions. 

Some litter trays circumvent this visibility concern by featuring high guards or other visual obstructions. When coupled with an appropriate scent-trapping or scent-obscuring litter, only you and your cats will ever know that there is a mess that needs scooping at some point.

Splash Guards

No matter how competent they may be at leaping and bounding, some cats still come up short in certain matters of spatial awareness. One of the most obvious ways this can manifest is “high urination,” in which the cat does not give your home the courtesy of angling downward when it proceeds to urinate. 

A sufficiently equipped litter tray will feature splash guards that keep the spray trapped within the confines of the tray and away from jetting onto whatever would otherwise be in your cat’s line of fire.

The cats generally like their splash guard to snap securely into the base, overlapping the tarp liner as it creates a good high barrier that keeps the spray and all the mess inside. Try to make the cat litter tray experience best for your cats and see the difference.

Cleaning Up

There are plenty of reasons to get a litter tray for any cat. It can obscure the cat’s mess to be scooped at a later time. Some models are self-cleaning. It can protect your home from urine and stray litter. Lastly, your cat can go without anxiety regarding potential attacks or restricted movement.