CatGenie Self-Cleaning, Self-Flushing Cat Box Review
CatGenie
$240
Pros
- Fully-Automatic
- No Litter = No Dust
- Multi-Cat Friendly
- Programmable timers
- Greenest Cat Box on Market
Cons
- Requires plumbing
- Pricey up-front & ongoing costs
- Proprietary granules & cleaning solution
- Long cycle times (30+ minutes)
- Not recommended for cats with loose stools
Summary
The CatGenie is the only fully automatic litter box on the market. Not only does it do the scooping for you, but it also disposes of it through a drain line. If the thought of never having to scoop or even throw out kitty litter is appealing to you, please read on. While the CatGenie is the most hands-off design we’ve seen, there are a few drawbacks that are worth considering.
Overview
The CatGenie has been on the market since 2012. The company has a great reputation and they stand by their product by offering a 2-year warranty and 90-day money-back guarantee. The CatGenie is a fairly large apparatus that has some limitations on where you can put it due to its required connections.
What You’ll Need:
- Electrical Connection
- Cold Water Connection
- Drain Connection
- Proprietary Washable Granules (need to be replenished every 3-6 months – $20/box)
- Proprietary SaniSolution (need to be replaced every 240 washings – $22/cartridge)
- Proprietary Maintenance Cartridge (each cartridge lasts about 8 months – $25/cartridge)
How it Works
The CatGenie uses non-absorbent, biodegradable granules instead of traditional litter. Liquid waste drains and the solids get scooped. The waste is then liquefied prior to flushing it down the drain line. The entire litter bed including the granules gets washed, rinsed with SaniSolution, and then dried. A full cycle takes approximately 30 minutes!
Pros
- Only Fully-Automatic Litter Box on the market
- No Dust – washable granules are dust-free, unlike traditional kitty litter
- Green – washable granules are reused and any that escape are biodegradable; no trash bags
- No need to touch litter at all
- One unit will accommodate 2 cats (and sometimes 3)
- Above-average litter bed size (227 square-inches)
- Programmable cycle timers
- Longest Warranty on the market (2-years)
- Generally Odor-Free* (see below)
Cons
- Pricey
- Requires plumbing
- Limited areas where you can place the CatGenie (bathroom, laundry room, utility closet)
- Washable granules get lost and are pricey to replace
- Proprietary SaniSolution & Granules are pricey ongoing costs ($250/year)
- Very long cycle time (30 minutes)
- Extreme Odor can be caused from the CatGenie drying (heating) loose stools that don’t get raked out prior to the final drying cycle.
Summary / Recommendations
The CatGenie is one of our top-rated self-cleaning litter boxes. The majority of CatGenie customers have nothing but positive things to say about their experience with this product. But with that being said, this product isn’t for everyone.
If your cat is prone to having diarrhea or loose stools, we DO NOT recommend you purchase the CatGenie. Customers with this issue complain that their entire home reeks of “baked poop”.
With that exception, we DO recommend the CatGenie to single or multi-cat households with adequate space to accommodate this unit in a laundry room or bathroom.
Because of its sanitary, no-contact with waste design, we recommend the CatGenie to cat owners who are pregnant or have weakened immune systems.
