Top 5 Best Cat Litter For Allergies

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What is the best cat litter for allergies?

Like humans, cats experience allergies to things like dust, pollen, and fleas. This causes skin itching, coughing, and difficulty breathing.

Dusty and scented cat litters are irritating to cats breathing. These types of litter may result in allergies.

In this article, I’ll help find the best cat litter for allergies to give your cat the best quality of life.

My name is Derrick, and I write for Simply Cat Care.

My goal with this website is to help cat owners learn more about taking care of their cats. I am not a veterinarian and I recommend seeking the advice of a vet for any further questions.

In this article, I’ll give you the best cat litter for allergies. I’ll also give you a buying guide and cover some frequently asked questions.

Let’s get into the article.

Why Do I Recommend This Cat Litter?

Petfive Sustainably Yours is low dust and biodegradable to help with allergies.

The main benefit of this product is the small size that is gentle on the paws and the use of natural materials to reduce irritation with breathing.

Downsides include increased tracking and mixed odor control reviews. The smaller size compared to pellet litter is more prone to tracking.

Specifications

• Weight: 13 pounds
• Material: Corn and cassava
• Scent: Unscented
• Brand: PetFive

Why Do I Recommend This Cat Litter?

Tidy Cats Breeze Cat Litter Pellets is a great low dust option that doesn’t track as much as other types of cat litters.

The other advantage of this product is the good urine absorption to reduce odor around the house. The Tidy Cats litter tray helps with keeping dust at bay.

The main downside of this product is you must buy the Tidy Cats litter tray system to go with the litter. Some customers use a separate pad instead of the Tidy Cats pad to save costs.

Specifications

• Weight: 7 pounds (2 x 3.5 pounds)
• Material: Mordenite Zeolite
• Scent: Unscented
• Brand: Tidy Cats

Why Do I Recommend This Product?

Dr. Elsey’s Precious Cat is a great choice for senior cats with allergies.

The main benefit of this product is bacteria control to reduce urinary tract infections and allergies in senior cats. This litter uses herb extracts which may assist in controlling the health of your cat along with the crystal litter.

Some owners report more tracking with this type of litter and some dust production. The dust does not contain the harmful silica dust that clumping clay litter contains, but may leave some small stains around the litter box.

Specifications

• Weight: 
• Material: Silica
• Scent: Unscented
• Brand: Dr. Elsey’s

Why Do I Recommend This Product?

Natural Paw Tofu Cat Litter is a natural low dust unscented cat litter to help with your cat’s allergies.

This package comes with four easy-to-carry boxes to make topping up easy. The product has 99% dust control, which is great for allergies.

The other main benefit of this tofu cat litter is the unscented formula. Many cats prefer unscented, as they are averse to odd smells. The litter also clumps for easy disposal.

I don’t like that this product is only available in a four-pack option. On the bright side, there are two (scented) single-pack options for testing. However, there are no unscented single packs.

Specifications

• Weight: 18 pounds
• Material: Tofu
• Scent: Unscented
• Brand: Natural Paw

Why Do I Recommend This Cat Litter?

Small Pet Select – Premium Pine Pelleted Cat Litter is a good budget low dust choice to help with cat allergies.

The main advantage of this product is the use of pine pellets. The larger pellets resist tracking and help to reduce dust.

The downside of this product is it needs a litter sifting tray to remove urine waste. Some cats also don’t like larger pellets on the paws.

Check out litter sifting trays over here.

Specifications

• Weight: 25 pounds
• Material: Pine
• Scent: Unscented (natural pine smell)
• Brand: Small Pet Select

What is the best cat litter for allergies?

It’s hard to know what’s best with the range of choices on the market today.

In this buying guide, I’ll help categorize the things you want to look for.

Let’s go!

The best cat litter for allergies is a large unscented and low dust litter.

There are many types of materials used for cat litter including:

• Clay
• Crystal
• Tofu
• Corn
• Wheat
• Recycled newspaper
• Wood
• Pine

Large pellets tend to stick less and don’t have the dustiness of clay. That means they track less and help reduce possible allergies.

The main downside of larger pellets (e.g. pine) is the need for a sifter tray.

Whatever material you go with, make sure to choose a low dust unscented type of litter.

Bottom Line: The best cat litter materials for allergy control are wood, pine, recycled newspaper, corn, wheat, and tofu.

Look for a low dust cat litter.

Litter dust may trigger your cat’s allergies.

Crystal cat litter is one of the dustiest litter choices. Clay, whilst not as dusty, releases silica dust that may be harmful to your cat’s health.

Many cat litter brands make claims about the dust production of their product.

It’s a good idea to check for customer review pictures and videos to get a better idea of each product.

New cat litter technology helps reduce dust. For example, glycerol and mineral oil help to reduce the dustiness of natural wood litter.

Bottom Line: Look for a low dust cat litter to help reduce allergy risk.

Unscented litter is the best cat litter for allergies.

Harsh perfume and chemical smells found in a scented litter are possible irritants.

Research shows that cats prefer unscented cat litter.

Cat’s also prefer litter that gets cleaned daily as this cuts down on unpleasant odors.

Bottom Line: Unscented litter is the best cat litter for allergies.

Cats prefer a soft texture on the paws such as clay or crystal cat litter.

However, this depends on your cat.

Unfortunately, clay and crystal are not the best cat litter choices for allergies due to dust production.

If your cat is a diehard clay or crystal lover then go for low dust and unscented for best results.

Bottom Line: Cats prefer a soft and small cat litter like clay and crystal. Go for low dust and unscented type if your cat prefers this type of litter.

It’s unknown if clumping helps reduce allergies.

However, it helps make cleaning easier for some which in itself, helps reduce irritating dust.

A clumping litter is a matter of personal preference and not an essential criterion for allergies.

Bottom Line: It’s unknown if clumping helps reduce allergies. A clumping litter may be easier to clean.

The larger pellets of tofu cat litter resist tracking more than smaller clay granules.

Small granules tend to stick to paws after litter box usage.

This may increase the risk of allergies (e.g. grooming paws after litter tray use).

Check out my article on the best non-tracking cat litter for more choices.

Bottom Line: Larger cat litter pellets resist reduce tracking. This may help reduce allergy risk.

Low dust and unscented cat litter help stop sneezing and coughing.

Some cats are sensitive to strong scented litter and dust may trigger allergens.

These types of litter choices help your cat live a happier life.

Bottom Line: Hypoallergenic cat litter helps stop your cat from sneezing and coughing.

Symptoms include:

• Digestive symptoms
  • Vomiting
  • Diarrhea
  • Weight loss
  • Poor appetite
• Skin symptoms
  • Itchy skin
  • Excess grooming
• Breathing symptoms
  • Shortness of breath
  • Open-mouth breathing
  • Pallor
  • Wheezing
  • Cough
  • Intolerance to play and exercise

Note, that some of these symptoms aren’t always caused by litter as a primary source.

For example, uncleaned litter may be a source of allergens from dust build-up and fleas.

Bottom Line: There are many symptoms of allergies that involve the skin, digestive system, and breathing.

Yes.

Feline atopic skin syndrome (FASS) is the clinical name for allergenic skin disorders.

There are a variety of possible causes including environmental allergens such as cat litter. Cat litter may also harbor allergens such as dust and fleas if not cleaned often.

Female cats are more likely than male cats to experience skin allergies. Abyssian cats are also at a higher risk of this problem.

Bottom Line: Cat litter is a possible cause of skin allergies.

Clay litter may contain silica dust which is a harmful irritant.

Whether this is bad for cats depends on how dusty the litter is.

In general, it’s best to err on the side of caution and use a safer cat litter.

Bottom Line: Clay litter may contain silica dust, a harmful irritant.

Yes.

There are many possible allergens in the indoor environment. These include:

• Dusty cat litter
• House dust mites
• Chemical smells
• Perfume
• Cigarette smoke (for indoor smoking)
• Dietary allergens

Check out my best dry cat food for allergies to learn more about diet.

Bottom Line: There are many indoor allergens including cat litter, dust, perfume, and diet.

Possibly.

House dust mites feast on the dead skin of humans left on the ground or carpet (I know this is gross).

Dust mites thrive in dark, warm, and humid environments with lots of carpets. Walking causes dust on the ground to become airborne, which may result in dust landing in the litter tray.

Air purifiers and HEPA filters may help reduce 25-50% of dust particles in the air.

This helps to reduce dust mites in the home. Regular cleaning, vacuuming, and improved ventilation also help reduce dust.

I recommend placing the litter tray away from any carpeted areas in the house.

Bottom Line: Dust mites may be in your cat’s litter, especially in carpeted areas of the house.

Change your cat’s litter weekly to reduce the risk of allergies.

Remove waste daily to reduce the risk of parasites from feces.

Use a gentle scent-free cleaning agent to avoid irritating your cat.

Maintaining your cat’s litter box is also beneficial for your cat’s wellbeing.

If your cat isn’t able to use the toilet properly (e.g. not clean, bad scent) you might experience behavioral issues such as:

• Spraying
• Toileting out of the box
• Pawing at surfaces around the litter box

Bottom Line: Change litter daily for your cat’s wellbeing.

Contact your vet.

There are many causes of allergies and asthma in cats. Medical conditions also cause similar symptoms to allergies (e.g. congestive heart failure).

If left untreated, the problem gets worse and impairs your cat’s breathing.

Vets rule out other causes of allergies including:

• Diet
• Lungworm
• Heartworm
• Pollen

Bottom Line: Contact your vet for help if changing litter doesn’t resolve your cat’s allergy symptoms.

Gradually add new litter to the existing litter.

Use the following method:

• Replace 25% of current litter with new litter
• Increase the ratio with each new replacement (e.g. 50% > 75%)

One other option is to give your cat a ‘cafeteria’ of litter (i.e. two trays with separate litter types). Let your cat decide what they want to use.

The downside of this is your cat may go to their old litter.

Ultimately, your cat must be happy with its litter. Try to find a hypoallergenic cat litter similar to the type you are using for best results.

Bottom Line: Gradually add new litter to the existing litter to transition your cat.

Keep your house as clean as possible and avoid smells (e.g. strong perfume).

This reduces the sources of allergens in your environment.

If this doesn’t help, contact your vet.

There are many causes of allergies and asthma in cats. Medical conditions also cause similar symptoms to allergies (e.g. congestive heart failure).

If left untreated, the problem gets worse and impairs your cat’s breathing.

Vets will rule out other causes of allergies. A dietary allergy requires an elimination diet, for example.

Bottom Line: Keep your house as clean as possible to reduce dust and avoid irritants. Contact a vet for further support.

Choose low dust and unscented litter for best results.

Find a product your cat enjoys using.

Remember to change your cat’s litter weekly to reduce the risk of allergies. Also, make sure to remove waste daily to reduce the risk of parasites from feces.

Use a gentle scent-free cleaning agent to avoid irritating your cat.

Bottom Line: Choose low dust and unscented cat litter for allergies. Find a product your cat enjoys using.

In this article, I talked about the best cat litter for allergies.

Like humans, cats experience allergies to things like dust, pollen, and fleas. This causes skin itching, coughing, and difficulty breathing.

The best cat litter for allergies is low dust and unscented. These types of litter choices help stop irritation.

Keeping your litter tray clean, avoiding harsh chemicals, and dusty areas help to stop allergies. If symptoms persist, speak with your vet for more help.