cats smarter than dogs Archives

Cats have an instinct to cover their feces to avoid the smell. This instinct can be beneficial for you if you are keeping a pet cat in your home. Several types of litter boxes are available in the market, which offers you the best option to avoid your cat’s feces smell.

Traditionally, clay litter has been used as a best choice for this purpose. But nowadays, there are several types of litters having different qualities. This article will educate you about the qualities of various litter types available to select the best from all available litter types.

Some people don’t choose special cat litter; rather, they prefer using some things available near their home such as dust, sand, animal beddings, chicken feed, etc. But these alternatives are not useful for long-term use because of dust, smell, parasites, etc. Another important thing to take in mind is whether your car likes or dislikes the litter. It is an important thing to consider while purchasing a litter for your cat.

1. Clay litter

Clay litter is the most popular type of cat litter. Because of its easy availability and an established litter type, clay litter is the most used litter all around. It is available in low dust and dust-free options. Other varieties of clay litter include scented and non-scented, large clay pieces and fine clay particle litters. Clay litter turns into a softer wet cement-like structure after absorbing the urine.

Furthermore, clay litters are also available in clumping and non-clumping varieties. Some people prefer clumping clay litter in which the part of clay that absorbs urine becomes clumpy, and you can waste it. Some people prefer inexpensive regular non-clumping clay litter, which they waste as a whole when it is necessary.

2. Silica litter

Silica litter is more expensive than a same-weight bag of clay litter. But silica gel litter lasts longer than clay litter. Many companies advertise silica gel litter as a better option than clay litter. In addition, they claim it is not as dusty as clay litter, absorbs urine, and you don’t need to scoop it out, offers a great smell, lasts longer, and is preferred by cats over clay litter.

It is expensive than clay litter, and some varieties of silica gel litter possess color change indicators to indicate the urinary system’s health. Some pet parents don’t see a difference in price as silica gel litter lasts longer than an equal amount of clay litter.

This is one of my favorites litter material and this is what we use. I am a big fan of Kitty Poo Club, a disposable litter box delivery service. We have tried several of the litter options they have and have always come back to their basic silica. We live in a small space and it is effective especially in the summer when it is hot and the box seems to be more noticeable in the small space.

June Special Kitty Poo Club Disposable Litter Box

3. Pine litter

Pine litter is also one of the popular litter types because of its ability to fight off the odor. As the name indicates, pine litter is made of pine trees. In addition, it is famous for its lightweight and no dust characteristic. Because of its lightweight, it is softer than clay litter and easy to use and manage. Most people don’t prefer clay litter because of more weight and difficulty managing the litter box.

Pet parents prefer pine litter because they consider it more environment friendly and cherish its natural ability to fight off a bad odor. They are available in both clumping and non-clumping varieties.

4. Wheat litter

Wheat litter is just like pine litter and is famous for its eco-friendly nature. Furthermore, it is a good alternative for clay litter, but it comprises processed wheat. It is pet parent-friendly as you can flush its clumps after absorbing urine. They naturally control the odor as there are no added dyes or perfumes in the wheat litter. When your cat urinates, it converts into a sawdust-like structure, and you can easily scoop it out of the box.

5. Grass litter

Despite less commonly available, grass litter can also be an alternative to traditional clay litter. Structurally it is like pine and wheat litter types, but it is biodegradable dry grass seed litter. It also possesses the same characteristics of clumping as other litter types. When your cat urinates, it clumps so that you can easily scoop the waste out. Many pet parents avoid added dyes and chemicals, and to their desire, it doesn’t contain any. It is low dust litter and is soft and light as compared to clay litter.

6. Corn litter

In the list, the next better alternative to clay litter is corn litter. Mostly it is available in scented variety, but it still is biodegradable litter. Comprising of dry corn kernels, it is lighter than clay litter. When your cat urinates, it forms clumps that are to scoop out. There are some varieties of corn litter that attract cat’s attention. There are some concerns over corn litter about mold growth. The main issue is about the aflatoxins that can be deadly for your cat. Contrary to that, companies offer aflatoxins-free corn litters.

7. Walnut shell litter

Modern cat litter has expanded its varieties, and there is an available walnut shell litter type. Walnut shell litter has shown more absorbency than clay litter type, works great for odor control clumps. Low dust makes this litter type more popular, and some companies are offering red or brown color litter depending on your cat’s choice. Ground-up granular walnut shell litter is biodegradable.

8. Paper litter

Among all other litter types, paper litter is popular among pet parents with cat paw injuries. Paper litter is recycled and processed paper or simply the waste newspaper. These litter types have low dust, and they offer little or no concern for irritating wounds. They are softer than clay litter and have no fragrance. Paper litter doesn’t form clumps and doesn’t control the bad odor very well. For these reasons, pet parents use them for short-term periods.

Final thoughts

Concludingly, you should choose the type of litter that suits your household environment and is liked by your cat. You can select the specific variety of cat litter based on their characteristics and your ease of management. A variety of litters will make your choice and life easy with pet cats.

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Jamie

I’m a busy blogger pet parent to my senior-aged cat Pizza. We have traveled all over Los Angeles, endured several moves, jobs, roommates and now global pandemic together. Today we write, learn, and share information and our favorite products, in hopes you can experience your best life with pets too, We currently live with other humans and their beautiful dog.

awanderingpet.com/

Well, MY cat’s smarter than a dog O.K., maybe I am just a proud pet parent. I live with both here at home. My cat has lived with me for about 10 years, and I have lived with my roommate’s dog for a little over three years. However, after spending the last eight months indoors with the pup on my left and a cat snoozing on my lap, the three of us have gotten a lot closer. Has it taught me anything about who is smarter the cat or the dog? Well, I do know they both the cat and the dog are clearly in charge of this household. As far as who is smarter? Keep reading as the answer might surprise you.

My dog is not my cat: owner perception of pets living in the same household.

Cats have a reputation for being aloof, and unaffectionate. Personally, I think they are just picky about who they love and trust. Who can blame them? Only recently in the last several forty years or fifty years have scientists begun studying domestic-cat/ human interaction.We are still learning every year. They have come a long way from keeping the vermin population under control in castles.

How smart are cats? Is it A myth?

The dog has been breed for domestication in mind for approx. 30,000 years. Cats have only been domesticated for closer to 9000k years. Dogs have been protectors, workers, soldiers, and family members, cats, on the other hand, have been idolized by civilizations like the Egyptians.

We are still trying to discover how intelligent cats really are but we do know they form tight bonds with their humans, just like their canine friends. I have always said that Pizza cat and I are bonded. He cries when I’m not home in time, and he spends a ridiculous amount of time trying to groom me. Cats even try to speak to us, with chips and meows and other forms of body language. In fact, cats don’t speak to each other verbally, yet they have learned to speak their mind to their humans.

Cats are not motivated to please people in the same way dogs are, so it is harder to test their intelligence. Cats do not make good test subjects however, they can do all the same things as dogs. And many of them even choose to do so, on a good day.

Read people’s expressions
Learn by observing
Intuitive
Can follow a finger command
Excellent hunters -cats lead a solitary life on their own
Some concept of time
Long term memory (and tie it to an emotion)

Why do cats appear smarter than dogs?, NOT…

Despite their occasional apparent lack of interest or concern, the cat is a master of procedural memory and shows excellent cognitive ability. When cats seem to be staring at you they probably are! They are excellent observers and learn by watching. My cat is defiantly clever and always remembers where he watches me put his treats. When I had an older cat he was very instrumental at “teaching” the youngster the necessary manners, like using the litter box. (He also taught Pizza to drink from the toilet. Annoying yet extremely clever that Ricky still had that habit after months with me, also clever the kitten followed suit.)

Because cats are excellent hunters, we can conclude they have “object permanence” If they chase prey behind a shelf cats are tenacious and can deduce it is is still there and will wait. A dog can be tricked, by humans, a blanket, and a doorway. Alas, cats just are not good test subjects. When they are done with the testing, they are DONE!

They prefer to live on their terms (maybe there is lesson in that?)

Cats love human socialization more than food.– Time Magazine.

Dogs are Smarter than Cats then ?

“Unlike the brains of dogs, the brains of cats have an amazing surface folding and a structure that is about 90 percent similar to ours. The cerebral cortex of cats is greater and more complex compared to that of dogs. The cerebral cortex is the part of the brain responsible for cognitive information processing. A cat’s cerebral cortex contains about twice as many neurons as that of dogs. Cats have 300 million neurons, whereas dogs have about 160 million. In fact, cats have more nerve cells in the visual areas of their brain, a part of cerebral cortex, than humans and most other mammals.”-
“HOW SMART IS YOUR CAT?” AT PSYCHOLOGY TODAY (FEBRUARY 23, 2013)

However, four years later new studies suggest the opposite!

“And, perhaps most relevant to pet owners, the researchers found that dogs have more neurons than cats, or even hyenas, which have much larger brains than dogs. Hyenas are, in fact, more closely related to cats than dogs. Specifically, dogs have roughly 530 million neurons, while cats have about 250 million, according to the study. Humans, by contrast, have about 16 billion each.”
–Why dogs are smarter than cats 11/30/2017 – Newsweek

Clearly, there is more research to be done to answer this age-old question, Are cats are smarter than dogs?

We do know that dogs have bigger brains, it is undetermined if that equals a higher intelligence though. Scientists suggest over time dogs’ brains grew because they live in a social structure for so long, whereas cats have not. As we continue to domesticate, spoil, and share our lives with cats and dogs, I would imagine they are continually evolving as well, and that complicates things. Dogs still make great companions, where cats do in their own way, it is a different relationship.

Both cats and dogs have an excellent sense of smell yet, Unlike cats, dogs are able to respond to sweetness, thanks to their different genetic structure.

Both cats and dogs have been T.V. starts proving they can both be taught tricks and commands. In either case, personality may play a bigger part than intelligence.

In the End

While almost all pet parents I know like to praise the intelligence of their fur baby, the truth is we just don’t know if a cat or a dog is smarter. Comparing cats to dogs is a lot like comparing apples to oranges. Although they have common attributes, they do think differently. It just isn’t a fair comparison. Between temperament and breed and individuality, it is fair to say both are smart in their own way. Both are nice to spend time with and snuggle with. Fortunately, we as humans are smart enough to keep pets around.