About.com Rating



I used to be a clumping clay litter person, even though most products made my house resemble a beach due to tracking. Then I got married, and my husband's insistence on trying something new, coupled with concerns about clumping litter, led me to try various silica crystal litter brands. Overall, I prefer them to the various other cat litter options on the market.

I've tried many brands, from budgetary to premium, and ExquisiCat Crystals are not my favorite, but they're a decent choice.


I buy them when I catch them on sale.

Performance

In general, I find crystal litters to be great odor controllers. I don't like heavily-scented litters that just mask the problem. ExquisiCat Crystals are unscented, so there's no cloying perfume, and they only get a smell if I let litter box cleaning duty go a little too long. They suck up the urine and dry out the feces, which attacks smells on both major levels. That's a big contrast to Yesterday's News recycled paper litter, which lets the liquid waste accumulate on the bottom of the box and can make quite a stink if you don't scoop the box diligently.

ExquisiCat Crystals track about the same amount as other litter crystal brands, although the crystals are easier to spot and sweep because they are larger than many other brands. Problem is, that size makes them more painful to step on in bare feet. I used anti-tracking mats, but I've never found one that can stop the majority of litter from making its way all through my house. The closest I ever came to controlling litter scatter was with the Clevercat Top Entry Litterbox, but most of my cats are too large to use it comfortably.

Comfort

My biggest criticism of ExquisiCat Crystals is its larger size compared to Fresh Step Crystals and especially to the Dr. Elsey's Precious Cat Litter versions. My cats are adaptable and readily accepted crystal litter, but I've noticed they have a marked preference for brands with smaller-sized crystals. I suspect this is because the small "rocks" are easier on their paws, while larger ones might feel a bit sharp. I suspect it would be particularly uncomfortable for cats recovering from declawing surgery.

I have four cats, which means multiple litter boxes scattered throughout my house. The cats don't refuse to use boxes with ExquisiCat Crystals, but I've noticed they prefer the brands with smaller crystals if I happen to be using two brands at once. Two of them also try to perch on the edge of the litter box when possible rather than letting their paws touch the litter, but they do that with all crystal brands.

Convenience

ExquisiCat Crystals are exclusive to Petsmart, so I tend to stock up on it when we're there if there's a special with the store's Pet Perks discount card. We only have one Petsmart within reasonable striking distance from our home, so Fresh Step Crystals (sold at many stores) is my main brand, both for convenience and price.

ExquisiCat is a couple dollars more than Fresh Step for an eight pound container, but the Pet Perks card often brings it down to almost the same cost. Dr. Elsey's Precious Cat Litter is in the same price range, and the jugs usually contain a coupon good toward your next purchase.

I prefer the convenience of ExquisiCat's eight pound plastic jug over the Fresh Step bags, but I work around this by saving empty jugs and transferring Fresh Step into them whenever we buy it.

Recommendation

I recommend ExquisiCat Crystals if it's the most convenient choice or you run into a good sale. It comes in convenient jugs and works as well as the other brands I've tried. It's unlikely your cats will reject it if they're already used to litter crystals, and it will keep your litter box as odor-free as possible.