Are you fond of nurturing cats? If the answer is yes, then know every ins and outs about your cat. One of the most bizarre aspects of fostering a cat is cleaning its poop. Cat poop is not one of those substances that dissolve in the soil. So it creates a grim situation where you have to dump the cat’s poop. Should you simply flush that down your toilet? But wait, there is a complexity to doing that. Cleanup costs for cat poop can be enormous, as it can clog the entire drainage system, resulting in enormous costs to clean up the entire drainage system. There are potential health risks from cats’ poop as it can cause several health issues for infants and pregnant women. So what do you do with the cat loo? In this article, I will give a detailed glimpse of how you can dispose of your cat’s poop or if you can flush it.
Quick Reasons and Solutions Table:
Reason | Explanation | Solution |
Cat Poop Can Clog Pipes | Cat feces can clump together, especially when combined with kitty litter, leading to blockages. | Dispose of cat poop in the trash using biodegradable bags to avoid plumbing issues. |
Negative Environmental Issues | Toxoplasma gondii, a parasite found in cat feces, can survive sewage treatment and contaminate water. | Invest in a pet waste composting system to safely break down feces without reaching waterways. |
Degrading Aquatic Culture | Parasites and chemicals from cat poop can harm aquatic wildlife and disrupt ecosystems. | Use eco-friendly, flushable litter and consult with local sewage guidelines before flushing. |
Why is Cat Poop harmful?
Though the cat is the clean and most adorable creature in the world, their poop is not that good for nature. It becomes a cement-like substance when they come into contact with air. Cats have a harmful parasite in their poop called Toxoplasmosis Gondii, and this can cause damage to the human body, especially to pregnant women who are more prone to this disease.
Why does cat poop smell so bad?
Cat poop is naturally not a pleasing substance, and it is very annoying to clean the cat’s litter and poop. If your kitty has a parasite or any kind of dangerous bacteria in the intestine, then the poop may spread foul smells. The cat itself may not withstand that smell. It is recommended to ask a veterinarian if your kitty secretes foul-smelling poop. Sometimes eating bad foods can result in foul smells out of the poop. In some cases, colon infection, gastronomical issues, and inflammation cause a bad odor from the cat’s poop.
Can You Flush Cat Poop? Sneaky Trouble for Cat Owners
Cat poop is not a great substance to dump directly into nature, and it is also not wise to flush them in the toilet. If you do so, you are calling problems knocking on your door. Here are three reasons why you should never flush cat poop.
Cat Poop Can Clogg Pipes
The most dangerous fact is that if you want to flush your cat poop, it may turn out to be clogged. The feces of a cat is naturally a hard substance that doesn’t wash away with the flushing of water, and they are prone to form in a cement-like substance that dries out quickly. And if you have an eco-friendly bathroom that uses less water to flush, then flooding away from the cat’s poops might seem difficult as they are very hard in nature. Another issue is that your septic tank is not designed to break down the cat’s poop.
The septic tank operates on the microbes that breakdown the human feces, and thus it becomes soluble in water, but the cat poops are not dissolved in the septic tank as the microbes cannot eat them, and excess gathering of the cat poop in the septic tank may cause damage to the tank.
Negative Environmental Issues
There is a potential health risk of flushing your cat’s poop in the sewerage. Some cats have a harmful bacteria in their intestine named Toxoplasma Gondii, which can cause harm to human health, especially to pregnant women and children. So it is strictly suggested that pregnant women should never clean the cat’s litter. The baby may be affected by this detrimental parasite which can cause brain damage to the baby. If you flush a cat sitter in the toilet, then there is a real chance that other humans could catch that parasite. The cat’s litter might also block the sewage and poop as the poop is kind of hard when it is dried. This cement-like substance may cause bad clogging in the drainage that will be costly events to handle. However, the public water supply system might be contaminated with the cat’s litter and poop.
Degrading Aquatic Culture
Have you ever noticed that when you have flushed the poop, where all of the poops go? If the answer is no, then I shall tell you the secret. When you flush your toilet, the filth gets down to the sewage, and in some cases, these are released to the ponds and canals, which is actually not a decent solution for the disposal system. If there is cat loo present in the flushing, then it will potentially flow down to that water body and cause harm to the aquatic animals like the fish and other aquatic lives. So you should avoid the practice of flushing your cat poop into the flushing toilet.
Solution: Use different types of cat litter for poop disposal
Cat litter is a must nowadays. If you want a healthy and safe environment, then using a litter box is necessary. There are different types of cat litter in the market, which are discussed below,
Silica Gel Cat Litter
These are not the traditional type of cat litter. They are produced from silica gel and look marvelous as they come in the shape of crystals. Sometimes they are produced as blue crystals, and sometimes they are red or pink. The characteristics of the silica gel match with the clumping litter as both of them swell up when they absorb moisture. So it is strictly prohibited to dump them in the toilet and flush them. If you somehow flush them in the toilet, they may cause serious water pipe clogging.
Clumping Clay Cat Litter
This type of litter is most common in the USA. Most cat owners feel comfortable using this. The main concept of clumping clay is that it is turned into hard clumps when they reach water or moisture. The clumping clay soil may swell up heavily if it absorbs moisture. So if you are in the evil practice of flushing them, then my recommendation is to avoid doing that in case you want to save your sanitation system from being damaged.
Non-Clumping Cat Litter
There is also non-clumping litter available in the market. Yes, they do indeed t swell or expand, but flushing them can eventually cause blockage in the pipe. Flushing Clumping litter may slowly clog the drainage but regularly flushing the non-clumping cat litter may cause instant clogging.
Paper litter
It is a pretty special kind of litter in the market. All the glitters are not as clean and absorbent as the paper litter. The cats like this type of litter as they are soft, comfortable, and less dust prone. But it has a serious dump issue. It is not soluble in water and hardly breaks down the components of the paper itself. So it is wise to dump them elsewhere but not in the washroom pan.
Flushable cat litter
It is pretty much a marketing gimmick. Actually, there is no such thing as flushable litter. All types of litter more or less create clogging to the washroom and the drainage system. The thing should be advertised as mostly flushable litter because this type of litter can cause clogging in the main drainage pipe if it is being flushed regularly.
Pine litter
One of the most salubrious and nature-friendly types of cat litters you can ever find. It is naturally produced from the pine tree and is less prone to dust and grime. Your cat may like this kind of litter very much due to its natural aroma and cleanliness.
What to do if you accidentally flush cat litter?
Look, as I have said earlier that it is not a good practice to flush your cat’s poop; that does not mean that if you accidentally do that, it will clog your drainage system suddenly and eventually. By mistake, dumping the cat poop may not show a sudden reaction; it takes a long time to clog the pipe, Though you should not continue this practice.
How to maintain a cat litter box?
Cleaning a litter box is a regular chore if you have a pet cat. But those who are new to fostering a cat do not know what to do with the litter, so here I am giving some easy guidelines to maintain cat litter.
Add baking soda: Baking soda is an ingredient that helps reduce the foul smells of cat poop, and it can also be utilized as a germ killer. The cat litter remains dry and fresh if you spread a small amount of baking soda all over the litter, But keep in mind that do not pour so much soda that your cat feels uncomfortable, and it may be difficult for the cat to bear the excessive smell of the baking soda.
Purchase a new litter is the healthiest option: The experts opined that you should replace your cat’s litter box at least once a year. And you need to clean the litter box once or twice a week. If it feels challenging to clean the litter, try at least once to clean it every week. If the litter box gets too dirty and smelly, then purchase a new litter box as the cats do not like to poop in a shabby and dirty place.
How To Dispose of Cat Poop Without Flushing Down the Toilet?
We all love to reside in a clean and healthy environment. When you have a cat as a pet, cleaning its potty is a common chore. But where will you dump the cat’s poop? As we have seen that it is unethical to flush the cat’s poop, so selecting a proper place to dispose of those poop is a very monumental decision. Let’s see what we can do with the cat’s poop,
Use plastic bag
The easiest way to dispose of your kitty poop is to seal them in a plastic bag and dump them in your dustbin. Later, the authorities will collect that filth and throw it away at the dumping site. Though this practice is not nature friendly as plastic won’t be degraded in the soil. But for now, it is the best possible solution as the other solutions are way more dangerous.
Biodegradable litter on rescue
One of the better options to maintain the cat poop is to use biodegradable litter. These are usually manufactured by using wood shavings, sawdust, recycled and compressed paper, pine, wheat, grass seed, and many more natural items. But keep in mind that these biodegradable litters can cost you a lot. But this is one of the most efficient ways to maintain the cat’s poop. These can be dumped in the soil, and the microorganism present in the soil will eat them. Thus it is considered the most efficient way to dump the cat’s poop.
Brown Bags
This type of bag is also biodegradable. It is another efficient way to dispose of cat waste without hampering nature. Just simply put the kitty poop into the bag and seal this tightly; you can also wrap it if you wish. Biodegradable brown bags break down easily in contact with soil.
Compost Cat Litter
Some people recommend making compost from cat litter, but I don’t think it is a wise option as cat poop is a very pernicious element that can cause irreparable harm to nature; though you want to use them as compost, follow hard precautions.
The Bottom Line
So what’s the moral of the story? Can you flush your kitty poop in the bathroom or not? The answer is a short NO. You cannot flush the cat’s poop in the toilet as it will clog up your entire sewage system, and the burden of repairing costs will fall you into depression. Flushing cat poop surely clogs the drainage now and then, even if it is a no-clog toilet. Your septic tank can not get dissolute cat loo; on the contrary, they damage the entire system. In flushing the poop, you can follow the above tips to dispose of your cat poop. It will surely help you out with the problem.
Hi, this is Robert Crossan, the owner of this website, has 17 years of experience in the installation, maintenance, and repair of toilets and plumbing systems. After completing the Level 2 Basic Plumbing course in 2005, I started working in both domestic and commercial buildings as a professional plumber. So I can figure out the core difference between different toilet models and brands. It also helped me monitor their work performance and setbacks.