Customer Reviews

Tidy Cats Breeze Litter Pellet Refill, 3.5-Pound Packages (Pack of 6)

5 star:		(615)
4 star:		(116)
3 star:		(35)
2 star:		(31)
1 star:		(47)

 

 

I've had this for a few weeks, and I'm really happy with it.

The hugest advantage to this system is the urine is separated from the 'litter' and odor is greatly reduced. The litter consist of pellets similar in shape/size to the wood-based natural litters, but they are of a hard clay, which doesn't break down with moisture, and they keep their shape. Thus, the urine drains straight down through a grid to the pad (in its own slide-out drawer), and the poo stays on top to be scooped away.

The pee will not ferment with the characteristic stench, and you don't have to deal with clumping litter which doesn't really clump, and is just plain stinky and messy to scoop up.

The proprietary 'pee' pads are kind of like a giant maxi pad, and absorb a lot of liquid. Also, the bottom side of the pad is plastic, and the pad fits into the tray in a way that the plastic is upturned to keep the tray itself dry. Maintenance consists of merely taking the drawer out to the trash, and sliding the pad out, putting in a new one, and sliding the drawer back into the bottom of the box.

The litter itself are hard pellets, which hardly get tracked, and it is 100% dustless. A pellet or two stick to paws, but are easily picked up and tossed back into the box. Scooping is easy, and if the poo is dry, you can kind of shake it around in the scoop to knock off some of the pellets, then throw it in the trash instead of wasting water with a toilet flush.

It takes mere seconds to maintain the box vs. 10 minutes of scooping and scraping soggy clumping litter which doesn't really clump, but falls apart.

When it's time to change the litter (once a month), it just pours into the trash, no scraping the soggy wet concrete of old.

Some say you get a 'poo' smell, since kitties can't bury it quite like they did with the old type of litter, but I'll take that over the overpowering stench of fermented urine any day. And, the smell goes away quite shortly, just like human smell in the bathroom. Note that you should just use one bag of the pellets in the box, the litter won't be as deep. I just give the box a quick shake daily to even it back out.

Cat adaption to the new box: This won't work for everyone, but this is what I did: I set up the new Breeze system next to the old box (which was fairly gross, as I let it get bad) to see what would happen. I placed a clump of the old litter into the new box to let him know it was 'his.' My 9 year old fellow was pretty much using the new box right away (probably out of curiousity more than anything). After 3 days or so, I removed the old box and inserted it directly into the garbage, never to be dealt with again. No problems, 100% compliance on Max's part.

If Tidy Cats came out with a fully hooded version of the box, it would be great for the folks who have standing pee-ers, but my fellow doesn't do that, so I'm lucky.

Finally, some say the pellets and pads are expensive, but I estimate the cost as about equal to the old style of box over the long run - and the convenience and ease of maintenance should erase any other doubt.

Also, this system has the potential of keeping tons of conventional clay litter out of landfills.

Highly recommended.

Back when I used the breeze cat system, there were 4 cats in the apartment (2 are my cats, and the other 2 were my brother's cats that I was temporarily taking care for him). I had the breeze next to the original litter box for 3 days and none of the cats used it. They all went on top of the pellets to check it out but did not pee/poop in there. One of the cats tried to eat a pellet and I took it away from him. I *think* none of them actually ate it.

On the 4th day, I took the original litter box away, and then they all started using the breeze. There were no "accidents" in the apartment and I did not find pee or poop on the floor or carpet. I think the fact that I placed some of the pellets with their original litter really helped them get accustomed to the product (and also since the breeze system was sitting there for 3 days, they were at least familiarized with it).

The pad that sucked up the pee worked really well. I experimented to figure out the right time to change the pad for the 4 cats. It turned out to be every 3 days. As for hard poop, I was ok with it staying at the top of the system and would pick it up with a plastic bag and throw it out (very easy).

The problem is with the runny/watery poop which will go all over the pellets and is tougher and takes longer to clean. A lot of the pellets ended up getting thrown out once the watery poop touched them. Also, this system does not do anything to help minimize the poop smell, which is the main complaint for my boyfriend regarding this system. In the end, we did not keep the breeze because the smell was too horrible. Even if you clean it up immediately after the cat pooped, the smell was still there.

We went back to the original litter box. I am going to keep my eye on this product to see if tidy cats come out with better pellets that will do something about poop smell. If that time ever comes, I would buy it because I know my cats will use this system & it did wonders for the pee... now if only the poop situation works out!

I got this yesterday and so far it looks good, I've been using silica litter but even the cheap stuff is not that cheap and is fairly dusty, so I've been looking for an alternative and this seems to be it. The silica works great for drying up odors until it gets pee saturated. I sprinkled at little of the old wet litter on the breeze litter and the cats used it right away. The pee does drain through and the pads are good, they've used it quite a few times and the pad still feels dry. I'm actually hoping they DON'T poop in it and continue to use the silica for that, then I'll have the best of both worlds, the poop will dry and the pee will be able to be gotten rid of so the expensive silica will last longer.

After a week, still on the first pad and haven't noticed any odor problems. Have 3 cats and left the silica so they are using both but they are using the breeze a lot. Adding crystals or enzyme spray to the pad might stretch it's life out even longer. They've pooped in the breeze too and I haven't noticed a smell but lots of pellets glue tight so I'm losing quite a few each time. I'm used to the silica, which is much cleaner than clay or clumping and I haven't noticed any increased odor with the breeze.

Changed the pad on the 8th day because, well really how far do you want to push it, and no sign of trouble. It was HEAVY with no sign of leakage or deterioration (I didn't really try to stress test it, but it came out of the tray and into the bag with no problem).

We have 3 long haired cats and have tried every litter box under the sun that promised "no tracking". This system is the first that truly delivered. WE still get a few pellets outside the boxes but they are easy to pick up with our hand vacuum.
We've been using the system for 4 months now and here are some tricks we found to make it work. We find that Pet Fresh (made by Arm & Hammer and usually used for carpets is a BIG help in keeping the odors under control. It's really cheap too.)

1. Right after they go number 2, we sprinkle Pet Fresh on it. This is because one of our cats doesn't cover his poops after he goes. The scoop works best after they have a chance to dry out a little.

2. The loose stool issue. It can be a real mess trying to get them out with a scoop. I found that using paper towels or toilet paper to pick them up is the easiest and cleanest way to get them out.

3. The pan that holds the pads starts to retain the smell of urine after a month or 2. Solution: Sprinkle Pet Fresh on the pan, then put the pad in the pan.

4. Issue: the sides of the pan start to smell and poop gets stuck to it. Solution: We keep Wipes, paper towels and spray cleaner near the box and wipe the box and scoop whenever it gets dirty.

5. Expense: We have found that if we look out for coupons and sales we can get the pads for about a dollar each and the pellets last a month in each box. We used to change the litter ever week and went through so much that we have found this system to actually be cheaper. The worst place to buy the pellets and pads is Petco - they are triple the price. Best place for us has been Target and Stop & Shop - we stock up when they are on sale.

6. Transitioning: It took us almost a month of increasing adding the pellets to the old litter. Every time we scooped the old litter we added more pellets. The whole time we had the new system right next to the old one. By the time the old system was almost all pellets they were using both so we got more breezes and got rid of the old. We did have a couple times where they went outside the box, but that was it.

It wasn't easy to change, but to not have litter and urine tracked all over the house is such a god send that it was well worth the trouble. My greatest fear is that they might stop making the refills! I was glad to read that someone said you could use the system without with the pads if you dump the urine every day. That would be not be ideal but it's nice to know it works. I was also thinking you could use doggie pee pads if necessary. As for the pellets, I'm going to try "Yesterdays' News" pellets and see if they would work. or may even tiny river rocks that are washable? washable pellets you don't have to replace would be awesome for the environment. Trouble is they won't get to make as money off them - but I"m going to be on the look out for something that works!

I have two cats (male, 12 pounds & female, 7 pounds) and just switched from the Scoop Free (because I had to scoop constantly due to my cat's litter habits) to the Breeze.

I love the Breeze because it is very easy, low maintenance, and has excellent odor control. The only negative is the maintenance cost, but I figured out the usage for my household and it's virtually the same cost as the Scoop Free system. It is not an economical system compared to scoopable litter, clay litter, or all natural litter alternatives. You are paying for convenience and the neatness. It's really mess-free and I never have to touch the pad, just dump the tray into the trash.

I'm confused by some of the poor reviews because it really is a simple system. Honestly, you'd have to be really drunk or half brain dead to screw it up. It has to be used as a complete system. It doesn't work if you try to not use the pads or take some other random cost-cutting measure. I cannot figure out how the urine pan could leak at all if you are using the pad (right side up with the green plastic side down and the absorbant white side up) and you are changing it when it becomes full. It functions like a diaper, once the absorbancy has been exhausted, that's it. You get longer life/better absorbancy if you rotate the tray since cats tend to pee in the same area of the box every time. If you have multiple cats and one box, or a large cat that pees a lot, you may need to change your pad more often, but that's specific to your cat. If you are using the box properly with any amount of common sense applied, it will not leak.

The bag of pellets is sparse, but that's because it is just supposed to let the urine pass through and give your cat a comfortable environment to allow burying. The pellets are not meant to absorb the urine, or stick to the poop. They do recommend that you completely change the pellets every month, so you don't really want to put in more than you need for your cat's comfort. Both my cats are quite content with one pack. There is no tracking with these pellets, I rarely find more than two or three pellets on the floor near the box. I do not find that the pellets remove any odor from the solid waste. I do notice an odor right after my cat has a bowel movement, or if the box is left longer than day without scooping out the solid waste. I scoop daily into a litter locker and have no odor in the general areas of the box (unless there is something very fresh). My pads last a full week, I do have to rotate them once. I have never smelt urine from this box.

I do want to point out that because we have two cats and three levels of the house we did add additional boxes per the mfg recommendation (which I thought was crazy initially), however, it really did improve my cats' litter habits. One cat was using alternative (and undesirable) areas to relieve herself (like my suitcase, laundry basket, etc.) Once I put in multiple boxes, that behavior completely stopped.

We have three boxes for the two cats, one at each level: basement, 1st floor, 2nd floor. The pads generally last at least a week for all boxes, occasionally one box will be used less and a pad will last two weeks. The pellets are still odor free after 6 weeks. I agree that the refill costs are high, but as I said, comparable with the ScoopFree system, but this was actually cleaner and easier given the unique habits of my cats. For me, the cost is worth the ease, convenience and general cleanliness of the system.

I purchased 2 of these systems for my 5 cats (we have 3 other litter boxes). One of my cats injested some of the litter pellets and has been in the veterinarian hospital in bad shape for the last 3 days. After xrays, and sedatives, enemas and iv fluids and blood tests, the vet removed 9 pellets, found a raging UTI and his kidney values are through the roof! I called the manufacturer to find out what was in the pellets and was told: zeolite, silica, cement, and polysomethingorother.
Their website does not tell you that, just says no problem if your cat ingest - it'll will pass thru. Not so! I already have a vet bill in excess of $500 it is climbing because they have to keep him there!!
Update September 15, 2008
Vet bill in excess of $1000, kidney failure and Freddie died on Saturday, September 13, 2008.

Previously to receiving this system, hubby and I were attempting to train our 2 young kitties to use a human toilet, to no avail. I learned about this system and decided to give it a try, thinking I'd buy some reusable training pads instead of the ones made for this system (which were more than I wanted to pay). That way we would be able to save some money and the earth a little bit as well.

Then, I realized I could potentially skip the pee pads entirely and just replace our toilet training system with the Breeze litter box...on top of the toilet, sans tray (and toilet seat/lid/mounting parts). This is exactly what I did this morning when I received the system, and the kitties were ecstatic not to have to use the wretched toilet training system anymore. They took to it immediately... probably because they were glad to go back to a litter box and also because we had been using Feline Pine with them, so they were used to pellet-type litter. So we're all happy... the kitties are peeing in the toilet, although they don't know it, and all we have to do is scoop the poo, which doesn't smell as bad when the kitties bury it.

I was really hoping they would be able to use the toilet on their own, but I think we've reached a pretty good compromise. I did have to cover up part of the grid with some clear mailing tape, however, because the corners of the rectangle grid did not quite fit over the oval toilet bowl. Had to clean up a puddle of piddle after I realized I had miscalculated. :P

All that being said, it would be great if a company came out with a Breeze-like system made for toilets. That would be AWESOME... *nudge nudge to the litter companies*

I was skeptical, as I'm sure you are! I read review after review just to make sure I knew of any known issues. Which are few are far between. To say the least, I am absolutely amazed by this litter box and wish it came out 10 years ago!

I am, now, the un-proud owner of a Litter Mate litter box. For the last year I have used it as a regular litter box (where I would scoop myself. Just too frustrated with the mechanism of the whole thing.) Anyway, I finally found a litter that did a decent job in that box, it's hard to find one! I settled on Tidy Cats scooping litter. Well, one day I was comparing prices online at my local grocery store and at Target when I came across this system. I decided to check out Amazon and the reviews.

With little hesitation I ordered the litter box, pellets, and pads. I also put the pellets and pads on Amazon subscription to receive 15% off each order and I could cancel at anytime. I ordered the pellets and pads because I didn't think the litter box came with anything and I was anxious to use it once I received it. Well, it did come with a 4 pack of pads and a 3 lb bag of pellets, enough to get you started.

I set it up right away, right next to their usual litter box. I checked the pad the next day and a cat, or two, had used that box! I was so excited! I left it there for 3 weeks because neither one of my cats went #2 in the new box. I was getting discouraged. I did what was suggested by putting some of the pellets in the regular box so the cats could get used to the feel of them. Still nothing. So finally, with fingers crossed, I eliminated the regular litter box and only made available the Breeze litter box. I came home from work that evening and prayed they would use the box for both duties.....AND THEY DID!!! I was thrilled!!

I have never smelled the #2 like some reviewers have mentioned, I don't know if they do it while I'm away or asleep, but there has been no odor.

I would suggest either getting more than one box if you have 2 or more cats. Tidy Cats suggests 1 box for each cat plus one. I only have one box and change the pad 2 times per week and it has worked perfectly, but knowing how well it works and how easy it is to maintain, I will be buying a second one!! I love that there is no litter to vacuum up or get tracked on the wood floor only to step on in bare feet!

I love this litter box!!

August 9, 2008: UPDATED I still LOVE this litter box!! It is by far one of the best things ever invented! I am telling all my cat owner friends about it and insist they buy this! I have to admit, I am a lazy litter box care taker, because of a busy life. This litter box makes it a lot easier to care for and it's so quick to clean! I plan to move it to a bathroom soon so I can flush the solids since I tend to scoop them out every day or two, it would make it that much easier.

If you are hesitating at all, you really should give it a try. I bought it before they reduced the price by $20! I risked $40 to try it, you can risk $20!

I got my 6-pack in a larger bag that was packed in a cardboard box about 2 weeks ago - no tears or rips in any of the packs. Thanks to the Amazon Subcription Service, cat litter is now delivered to my door with free shipping and I don't have to lug a 20lb bag from the store anymore.

Reason for the 4 stars: Poop still sticks to the pellets and I lose a few everytime I scoop, and it does not control poop odor. But that's ok, I just use an air freshener spray. I use 1.5 bags each time since 1 pack doesn't seem to be enough.

Anyway, the pellets are washable! I was curious - so I tried and the pellets weren't all that dirty anyway as I had already scooped the dirty (pop-covered) ones out. I poured the used litter into the bottom part of an old hooded litter box that had hot water and detergent in it (I use the hood for the Breeze litterbox!). I let it soak for about 20 mins whilst I washed and dried the Breeze litter box, changed the pee pad, and poured in a new bag of litter. I used an old kitchen/dish brush that has a long handle and sort of "scrubbed" the used pellets in the soapy water for a few minutes and then drained the water into the toilet bowl and then rinsed it out a number of times until the water was clear. Drained it as much as I could, and then left the box in the bathtub with the window open to air-dry it, and closed the tub screen so my cat wouldn't think he had an extra litter box in the bathtub! The pellets were clean and completely dry within 2-3 days. Kinda interesting that it can be washed and we're not generating more garbage to pollute the earth. Plus, for anyone wanting to save some money....

I have tried many different litter products for my Siamese Princess. From traditional littler boxes to automated ones. They all left the roomwith a litter box odor even the automated ones which scoop and hold in a closed container. None of the products out there did not create an odor. BUT NOW I tried the new Tidy Cat Breeze Litter pads and litter. To my surprise there is no odor. I can go for a whole week and change the pad once in seven days and there is no odor at all. Even my husband who has a very sensitive nose can not smell anything. Your product is the first to live up to the claims. Thanks for making such a good product. PLEASE DO NOT DISCONTINUE THIS PRODUCT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!