If you have a dog that loves to eat or dig up your cats’ litter then you might be interested in getting your cat a top entry litter box. And if you are unsure if your cat will easily use a top entry litter box then the Petmate Top Entry Litter pan with its reasonable price is a good place to start.
We all know cats can be fussy or finicky. Once they are used to something they may or may not take well to change. The same is true for their litter boxes. Therefore, if you want to try out a top entry litter box if you have not used one before then the Petmate is a simple box. However, for this price, you, therefore, do not have the luxurious and modern look of more expensive boxes, such as the Modkat or Iris boxes.
So why would you want to try a top entry litter box if your cat has always used a standard front entry box (or even just an open tray)?
Why Try a PetMate Top Entry Litter Pan
One of the reasons for using a top entry litter box is if you have other animals such as dogs in the house that can access the kitty box. Dogs can sometimes go digging in the cat litter (which can get litter all over your house) or they can try eating the litter. Therefore, with a top entry litter box, your dog will be unable to get near the kitty litter.
Because your cat also enters and exits the box through a hole in the lid this also helps to keep litter tracking to a minimum. If you have a normal side entry box or open box and have a cat that likes to dig then you will usually find that litter goes everywhere outside the box. In this case, if your cat digs in their litter then the litter will remain where it is supposed to be – inside the litter box.
Easy to Maintain?
No one likes cleaning out the litter box but the Petmate top entry litter pan does make this task quite easy. First, you can store your litter scoop on a moulded hook on the litter box itself. The lid also contains small holes so that when your cat exits the litter box any litter still stuck to their paws will come off on the lid and then fall back into the litter box through the holes. This non-slip lid also has a special grating which allows litter to fall back into the pan when opened.
You just need to snap open the lid and as it is hinged you don’t need to find somewhere to store the lid whilst cleaning. Whilst this sounds great in theory in practice it does have a flaw and that is that not all the litter will fall through the holes into the litter box. Therefore, when you flip open the lid then this trapped litter will then fall on the floor. Now you can completely remove the lid at the start of cleaning and then shake the collected litter into the box. However, this does seem to negate the design of having a hinged lid.
As the box also has moulded handles it can then also be easily picked up and litter emptied out. You can then just wash out the inside of the box. With older Petmater litter boxes there was a small design flaw in the floor of the box which has now been resolved. There used to be a raised area or divot on the base that meant used litter could congregate around this area and could then be difficult to remove. However, it seems as though Petmate have rectified this. So if you do get a box with the non-smooth base then get it replaced for the later model.
Size
The size of the Petmate top entry litter pan is actually reasonable. The dimensions are 20 inches by 15 inches by 15 inches and the entrance hole is a reasonable size and will let even large cats through easily. This entrance hole is about 1o inches across and is curved on one side. So this is pretty comfortable for your cat to get through.
The Petmate Standards
Unlike newer companies, Petmate has been making cat products for around 50 years and are internationally known. Many of their products are made in the USA at their manufacturing facility in Texas and they also use green manufacturing techniques.
Conclusion
As an entry level litter pan into the top entry litter box market then the Petmate is well priced for anyone wanting to see if their cat will take to a top entry box. There are a number of pros and cons to using a top entry litter box which you may want to consider first as well. However, these boxes are very good for anyone with toddlers or dogs in the house who want to keep them out of the cat litter for reasons of health and hygiene.
This is however a very simple box and does not have the stylish and modern look of more expensive boxes. It actually does look like a litter box so will be hard to disguise if you don’t have a private space for the box. If you leave it in your living room then people will realise that it is a litter box.
Cleaning though is pretty easy and you can get actually get litter box liners to fit in this box as well which makes clean up even easier. However, litter can get trapped on the lid so if you flip back the lid then you may want to clear the litter from it first.
Pros
- Easy to clean
- Good sized entrance for even larger cats
- Reasonably priced
- Lid is textured to trap litter from your cats’ paws
- Holes on lid help some litter fall back into the litter box
- Moulded hook for a litter scoop
Cons
- Not as stylish or modern looking as some other top entry litter boxes
- Top holes do not allow all the litter to fall back into the litter box
- Can trap smells inside the box if not regularly cleaned and emptied.
If you want to try out the Petmate Top Entry Litter Pan then it is currently a best seller on Amazon.