Providing comfort to pets through mineral-based cat litter
Bentonite clay creates a clumping pet litter that is convenient for cat owners.
About 600 million cats live with their human owners around the world. If you consider that your kitty can go through about 200 kilograms of pet litter every year and healthy cats live to the age of 16 or 17, keeping our feline friends comfortable during a call of nature is of great importance.
“Cat litter is like toilet paper”, says Imerys’ Sigve Arentsen, who has worked in the cat litter sector for more than 20 years. “It’s a necessity. People invest a lot of time and effort in their pets, so when it comes to cat litter they search for the best.”
Like many everyday items, there’s a mineral behind the contents of your cat’s litter tray.
Bentonite-based clumping cat litter is the preferred product because of its unique property to absorb moisture and liquid (urine). Bentonite increases its volume several times after coming into contact with liquid, causing cat litter to form clumps that can be easily scooped up. Voila! An instantly clean toilet for your pet.
Bentonite does all this without requiring chemical additives. Imerys is a bentonite supplier to cat litter manufacturers, with the raw mineral coming from its mine in Milos, Greece. Most bentonites are formed by the alteration of volcanic ash and rocks after intense contact with water.
“There are many options for pet owners, depending on their preferences”, explains Eleni Ipsilanti, Marketing Manager for Animal Welfare within Imerys. “Bentonite’s efficient clumping ability makes it convenient, it has good water retention and is a natural drying agency, so it doesn’t support bacterial life.”
Non-clumping cat litter products with moler
In addition to bentonite-based clumping cat litter, there are also non-clumping solutions offered by Imerys. This non-clumping litter is mainly produced from a natural material called moler, which is composed of diatomaceous earth and clay. Moler is a unique, highly absorbent and lightweight mineral found only in the Danish islands of Fur and Mors. Its diatoms were deposited more than 54 million years ago! “Moler is non-clumping, but provides excellent odour control and moisture absorption”, summarize Eleni.
A wide choice of products to suit cats and their owners
Owners want to ensure their pets are well looked after, which means not only providing healthy, tasty meals and a cozy place to sleep, but ensuring their toilet time is comfortable and stress-free.
So, clumping or non-clumping litter? If that is the question, minerals are the natural answers to both!
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