Yesterday's News Softer Texture - It Ain't Heavy
Written: Mar 25 '02 (Updated Jul 16 '02)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Made of recycled paper, environmentally friendly. Can be partially recycled after use.
Cons: Waste due to difficulty scooping, light weight - box tips over more easily.
The Bottom Line: Due to its money-back guarantee, this is worth a try. Use a scoop with large enough slats to allow unused pellets to drop back into the box when cleaning.
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| patriciak's Full Review: Yesterday's News Softer Texture |
Yesterday's News Softer Texture has a lot to initially recommend it. Made of "75% post consumer recycled content" (from the side of the bag), this is a made from newspaper, pellet-form litter, which in small amounts (2 oz.) can be flushed, and which can be composted or recycled in your flower beds (moist portion only, Never compost your cats solid waste). This version Softer Texture claims to be softer than the original brand, or the Lemon Scent version.
Into the Litter Box
I was very pleased, as I poured in the 4.4 lb. (2 KG) bag of Yesterday's News Softer Texture litter to see No dust rising to torture my nostrils. The pellets are in varying sizes, due to some breakage having occurred in the bag, dark gray in color, they are as hard as pebbles, and there is No difference in softness as compared to the original that I can tell. Picking up one of the clean pellets from the bag, I can not crush one in my fingers, they are rock hard.
Directions for use from the side of the bag remind you that you may need to ease your cat into use versus just presenting it with a brand new litter type (this is very different if your cat is used to scoopable). To do so, they suggest pouring a 1/2 inch of your usual litter atop the pellets for the cat's first few uses.
The Claims
made by the company that created this litter, Canbrand International (acquired by Ralston-Purina in 1999 per the website on this litter - see address at end of review)are that the litter is up to 300% more absorbent than clay litters. Additional claims (as listed on the product bag)are that this has superior odor control, is longer lasting, and is super absorbent.
The Results of the past 36 hours of Use
My testers eagerly gave this product a serious trial, giving it their full attention. I was pleased to notice that the pellets did a superb job of absorbing liquid waste, expanding into softer, larger pellets that were fairly easy to scoop and remove from the box. Solid waste was sometimes buried, sometimes not, but even when buried, it was not as completely as would occur with a soft sandy scoopable litter or a clay litter. So for Odor Control I have to give this a 2 on a scale of 1-4 (paws, you know...). The liquid waste odor was very well controlled, but not the solid waste odor.
I don't know about the cats in your household, but some of mine are not exactly svelte. Unfortunately, this, plus the fancy of at least one for balancing on the edges of the box prior to "doing their business", can be a problem, and that was exacerbated with this lighter weight litter. I had a very sheepish looking cat this morning who rode the capsizing box with incredible skill, forcing me to delay my trip to the store, for immediate "Pick-up" duty.
Difficulties in Use for the Human
I had extreme difficulty in scooping the litter. I know, your eyes are zipping back up this review to where I said the liquid-soaked pellets were easy to scoop out. Unfortunately, the problem for me is that the unused pellets were scooped right out as well. I tried using a honey-comb patterned scoop (as was designed for the crystal-format litters) but the pellets did not fit properly for the unused, hard pellets to be sifted back into the box. Perhaps a litter scoop with wide slats will work better for those who wish to use this litter. Because I had trouble scooping out only the used portions, there was a fair amount of unused pellets tossed, making this not as cost-effective as it could be.
Is Yesterday's News Softer Texture Worth Trying?
I recommend this litter with the qualifiers that it depends on your number of cats, and your needs. If you have just 1 or 2 cats, an appropriate scoop, and a covered box where tipping is unlikely to occur, then try this product. Take advantage of the companies 100% Money Back Guarantee, to see if this product will suit your cats fancy. The Original product comes in a 13 lb. and 26 lb. size, but I could not find if this newer Softer Texture did as well. I found this product at Petco and know that Petsmart carries at least one of the three varieties (Original, Softer Texture, Lemon Scent)in the larger sizes.
To contact the company, you can call them at 1-800-267-5287 or visit the website, Epinions provides a click-through link!
Thanks for reading my review! And for the record, this was tested by American Curls, not "American Curs". Epinions has a charming typo in the spelling of this breed's name!
Recommended:
Yes
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patriciak
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About Me:
I will always carry you in my heart, my sweetlings. I miss you so.
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