Looking for a (very) durable cat litter scoop

November 16, 2014 7:49 PM

The title pretty much says it all. The last few litter box scoops we've bought have broken, which is getting a bit frustrating. Can you recommend any to us that can last?

Hubby and I have gotten a bit fed up with constantly breaking litter scoops. Our lovely cats enjoy peeing in the very corners of the litter box, which sometimes necessitates a bit of scraping with the scooper if we're not changing out the litter that day. That said, the last three plastic scoops we've purchased have all broken within a few months.

We were considering a metal one; are they really worth the money? If not, what recommendations do you have? Thanks!!

posted by Verdandi to Pets & Animals (20 answers total)

Best answer: this one
posted by miss patrish at 7:51 PM on November 16, 2014 [10 favorites]

I guess I should say that the oldest of our three scoops is maybe five years old? So yes, they are very well worth the price of admission. And they do a lovely job of dislodging the corner pee.
posted by miss patrish at 7:55 PM on November 16, 2014 [1 favorite]

We have two of these made by Petmate - link.

We have FIVE cats and lot of litter boxes. One cat is a senior cat who leaves large large deposits that resemble the gulf of mexico. This scoop is solid and has never failed. Long handle also a plus. Scoop life 6+ years and 2+ years of abuse.
posted by countrymod at 7:56 PM on November 16, 2014 [1 favorite]

Popped in to link the exact one miss patrish just did. The metal ones are worth it in my experience, because you can also clean them better. If you find one that is only metal you can sanitize them in the dishwasher, too. Obviously I don't wash them all the time or anything but if you have multiple cats or are using old things for a new cat it's good to control all the smells you can. My family had a metal scoop for twenty years that only needed to replaced because it got lost in a move. So I'd say they're worth the price.
posted by Mizu at 7:59 PM on November 16, 2014

Best answer: Our lovely cats enjoy peeing in the very corners of the litter box, which sometimes necessitates a bit of scraping with the scooper if we're not changing out the litter that day

My cats do the same thing. To eliminate the need to scrape, I use a litterbox liner and pick up the corner of it when I want to scoop the box. This dislodges the clump with the pee and I can easily scoop it up. Then I re-fit the liner (i.e. put it back the way it was). It took me a stupidly long time to figure this out and it has made scooping 100x easier. If you don't want to use a liner, pick up the corner of the box and lightly kick it with your heel of your shoe to accomplish the same thing.
posted by desjardins at 8:00 PM on November 16, 2014 [3 favorites]

We have two scoops: a thick plastic one that is broad with wider holes, and has proved bombproof,, and a thinner plastic one that has smaller holes and is kept in reserve for the bits that go through the holes of the thicker one. If you're buying new, a metal one with smaller holes is probably the best option.
posted by holgate at 8:02 PM on November 16, 2014

Gonna go ahead and third the one miss patrish linked to. We have one that's almost four years old and it's indestructible.
posted by pdb at 8:02 PM on November 16, 2014

I have had this Duranimals DuraScoop for over a year, using it on litter that clumps extremely densely, and it's still working very well. My previous plastic ones had lasted a few months.
posted by jaguar at 8:04 PM on November 16, 2014

4thing the metal scoops. This is the one I use. I've tried them all, but since I bought a couple of these, I haven't had to buy new scoops in years. It's perfect for getting at what a friend accurately calls "the sedimentary layer" that develops in the back corner of the box.
posted by ereshkigal45 at 8:08 PM on November 16, 2014 [1 favorite]

I own the metal one mentioned up top. Aluminum will do the job that plastic cannot. Definitely choose the correct material for the job and up your litter scoop game as the need seems to be.
posted by oceanjesse at 8:10 PM on November 16, 2014

We have seven cats. A metal scoop like the ones listed above (though my Petco one has a handle that annoyingly comes loose from time to time) is a necessity.
posted by bink at 8:13 PM on November 16, 2014

I have the one that miss patrish linked to and it gets two thumbs up from me.
posted by JimBJ9 at 9:18 PM on November 16, 2014

I have the same one as jaguar and it's quite durable.
posted by ethidda at 10:36 PM on November 16, 2014

Our cathold of four has two Duranimals metal scoops linked above and they work quite well. Another thing to consider could be the litter you are using--when I have done clay litter I have noticed it's much heavier (and thus more likely to break plastic with its weight) than the Schweat scoop I now use.
posted by foxfirefey at 12:20 AM on November 17, 2014

Definitely get a metal one, but if you can check them out in person, make sure that the metal extends up into the rubber grip part far enough that it has a good solid feel. We have two, and on one of them, the metal only just connects with the grip and it feels wobbly, like digging too hard with might cause it to come apart.
posted by briank at 5:09 AM on November 17, 2014

I'm catsitting for friends right now, they have the one miss patrish linked to, and I liked it so well that I planned to ask them where they got it when they got back to town. So I'll nth that one.
posted by tchemgrrl at 8:32 AM on November 17, 2014

Yup yup yup, another vote for the Duranimals.
posted by The corpse in the library at 2:23 PM on November 17, 2014

We have a metal scoop for our two cats. As far as I'm concerned it's worth its weight in gold.
posted by kathrynm at 3:21 PM on November 17, 2014

I have the duranimals one jaguar linked to. Had it for 6+ years no problem. If i got someone a new kitten kit that wouldbe included.
posted by misanthropicsarah at 6:59 PM on November 17, 2014

Response by poster: Just ordered the one that miss patrish linked to, and also marked desjardins' answer as best as well for the additional tip. Thank you guys for your anecdotes, I can't wait to try the scoop out (is that weird?).
posted by Verdandi at 8:06 PM on November 17, 2014 [1 favorite]