[SustainableTompkins] dealing with cat litter

Wed Jan 30 14:17:57 PST 2008

I have enjoyed reading the recent string on composting cat litter. We do 
not recommend composting pet (carnivore) feces. More advanced composters - 
who understand the risks and recommended methods - may compost cat litter 
with some caution. In reading the various posts, I thought a number of 
sound recommendations emerged, such as: compost cat litter in it's own 
bin/pile, let it compost a long time and then use on non-food crops, wash 
hands and refer to Joseph Jenkins' book: 
http://weblife.org/humanure/default.html (free to read online) for 
information about pathogen kill.

As for the issue about what to do with the poops themselves, it makes sense 
to scoop every day before potential Toxoplasma oocysts "ripen" or become 
infectious. By burying the poop (some sources recommend doing so at least 
8" down away from wells, streams, the water table) or flushing it into an 
on-site system, you run the risk of spreading the disease. But disposing of 
it in a sealed plastic bag produces the waste we are all trying to avoid. 
(At least the volume and weight doesn't compare to the litter.) Lastly, I 
also imagine that the oocysts are destroyed at the waste water treatment plant.

I did some research on the various potential pathogens in cat feces a few 
years back. Included are various bacteria, enteric helminthes (worms) and 
enteric protozoa. Besides Toxoplasma gondii, other recognizable pathogens 
are Salmonella, E. coli (both bacterial), Toxocara cati - cat roundworm, 
hookworms, Giardia and Cryptosporidium (both protozoa). And there are more. 
The Cornell Waste Management Institute did a study of pathogens in backyard 
compost in 2004. Their 2-page factsheet from this study is available 
online: http://cwmi.css.cornell.edu/smallscaleguidance.pdf Many of the 
suggested guidelines have already been mentioned.

Lastly, I wanted to remind folks that Tompkins County residents with 
compost questions can call us at the "Rotline" at 272 - 2292 x 124.

Adam Michaelides
Program Manager, Compost Education
CCETC

At 02:06 PM 1/28/2008, Mark Darling wrote:
>To follow up on this fascinating string cat litter. According to the
>American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA)brochure on Toxoplasmosis:
>"Toxoplasma in meat can be killed by cooking at 152ºF (66ºC) or higher or
>freezing for a day in a household freezer. Cats are the definitive host
>for the production of the infectious and resistant Toxoplasma oocysts. The
>oocyst, released from the intestine of cats in their feces, is very hardy
>and can survive freezing-even several months of extreme heat and
>dehydration. Moreover, oocysts can be carried long distances in wind and
>water."
>(http://www.avma.org/communications/brochures/toxoplasmosis/toxoplasmosis_brochure.asp)
>
>
>I hate to say it but, cleaning the cat feces from the cat box litter daily
>and disposing of them in a sealed plastic bag in a sanitary landfill looks
>to be the preferred method for protecting human health. It would appear
>that if this is done, then composting urine soaked litter, a suitable one,
>has little or no risk of spreading toxoplasmosis.
>
>It would also appear that flushing the feces into an on-site septic system
>isn't such a good idea either. I suspect that the oocycsts are destroyed
>in a waste water treatment plant.
>
>The best protection is to "scoop those poops" every day. which we all do ,
>right? And wash your hands after cleaning the box.
>
>MD
>
>
>Mark Darling
>Program Coordinator
>Recycling/Resource Management
>201 Facilities Building
>Ithaca, NY 14850
>607-274-1777
>
>"We cannot solve the problems that we have created with the same thinking
>that created them."
>  - Albert Einstein
>
>
> > My imagination is working on this problem now.
> >
> > I like the idea of composting cat waste/litter. We have three cats
> > and now we are using litters that are not clay. Still we are throwing
> > it in the trash. I have heard about not being able to compost cat
> > waste in regular compost bins because it doesn't heat up enough to
> > kill the parasites. I hadn't thought about making a separate cat
> > waste compost and using it outside of the vegetable garden.
> >
> > Does this seem like a plausible idea, or just wacky. Segregate the
> > cat waste into its own compost pile. WHen it has baked down naturally
> > could it be cooked more say in a turkey roast tray on a covered
> > outside grill. Make it hot enough to kill the bad stuff. I forgot
> > what the temperature needs to be, something like 150 degrees... Is
> > this likely to work?
> >
> > On another pet waste topic, we also have a dog. Last autumn I bought
> > a Doggie Dooley, which is a plastic pail that works like a septic
> > tank. I dug a hole, put the thing in and fill it with water and a
> > plumbing/septic system enzyme. The dog waste is supposed to break
> > down and the water overflows the pail and goes in the hole where is
> > absorbs into the ground. We filled it before winter, now it is frozen
> > "something." It is supposed to work at temperatures above 40 degrees.
> >
> > Doogie Dooley
> > http://www.amazon.com/Dooley-2000-Septic-Tank-Style-Pet-Waste-
> > Disposal/dp/B0002DI34A/ref=pd_sbs_k_njs_title_5
> >
> > The Doggie Dooley website is terrible. So I linked to Amazon
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> >
>
>
>
>
>Mark Darling
>Program Coordinator
>Recycling/Resource Management
>201 Facilities Building
>Ithaca, NY 14850
>607-274-1777
>
>"We cannot solve the problems that we have created with the same thinking
>that created them."
>  - Albert Einstein

Adam Michaelides
Program Manager, Compost Education
Cornell Cooperative Extension
615 Willow Ave.
Ithaca, NY  14850
(607) 272 - 2292
acm1 at cornell.edu
http://www.cce.cornell.edu/tompkins/compost 