How do I go about this cat litter issue?

Question

We have two cats I’m currently 16 weeks pregnant and have a three-year-old toddler. I’m a stay at home mom so I utilize my time as much as I possibly can cleaning the home maintaining it doing laundry basic chores while my fiancé works his 9 to 5 job. The problem is my fiancé isn’t the best at maintaining cleanliness let alone doing the cat litter properly. I was advised to stay away from doing the cat litter normally this is my responsibility but after finding out I was pregnant we made an agreement for him to do the cat litter he normally does trash by the way I do the other house chores. My biggest issue with him doing the cat litter is that he doesn’t scrape all the P out of the litter it ends up sitting in the bottom of the litter and the smell of ammonia starts to spread in the air and it gets stronger and stronger. He also doesn’t do the litter often so I often have to kind of remind him and now that my senses are even stronger it seems to be annoying him that I’m reminding him to do the litter. When I do the litter I make sure the litter is fully cleaned out I try not to let it get past a few days of doing the litter of course. I also remove the litter box from where it’s placed sweep the floors mop and wipe down the area then put the litter box back where it was. I understand maybe I do an overkill of thorough cleaning but this is to illuminate odor and just maintain the litter area. The litter is located in our bathroom this is an area where I bathe her toddler and of course we use the bathroom so it’s a room that we have to use every day. The smell of ammonia it’s foul let alone it burn in your eyes when you walk in the bathroom or stinking the hallways just makes the environment uncomfortable to live in. I didn’t grow up with that older but my fiancé did. Unfortunately he grew up with his grandparents hoarded cats. The smell of ammonia reeked their house from a mile away, so he doesn’t even smell anything wrong. He’s not a tidy clean person that’s where I kick in but I’ve been feeling overwhelmed lately trying to get him to do the job “right”. Although I do not work and I stay home again I do what I Gotta do today I went ahead and just did the damn litter it was awful and I don’t want to put my health on the line just because my fiancé can’t do things properly if that makes sense. I don’t wanna come off uptight but I don’t know how else to approach the situation to him to get him to comprehend and understand and actively do things properly without him acting like a teenage boy and getting annoyed at what I’m saying. Any advice?￼￼￼￼

Answer

You need to have a sit down with your partner. He’s a grown man and can surely manage cleaning in and around a litter box. Maybe it’s time to tell him the home is also his responsibility, albeit you do the bulk he should be mature enough to participate without needing constant reminders or instructions. 
I promise you, if you continue doing everything for this man, instructing his every move out of necessity and doing everything yourself out of annoyance this will become a MAJOR MARITAL ISSUE.
And no simply doing it yourself isn’t the answer.

Answer

I would just put on a mask and gloves and do it yourself. As long as you wash your hands after the risk of toxo is extremely small if its 1. An indoor cat and 2. A cat youve had for quite some time

Answer

Just put a mask and gloves on. 
The chance of toxoplasmosis with indoor cats is pretty low.

Answer

Your fiancé needs to clean the litter box more often. Honestly the way you were doing it was not overkill at all. You were already under-doing it (if that’s a word), and now your fiancé is doing even worse. With 2 cats you should have at LEAST 3 litter boxes, all in different areas, and they should be getting cleaned daily. Switching to more litter-boxes will help with the smell, even if your fiancé doesn’t start cleaning better.

Answer

You need to talk to him. He needs to step up and do it the right way and not half ass it anymore. Have you tried litter liners in the box so he can literally just tie off the bag and take it? We get the XXL ones from Amazon and it helps my husband out a lot. We had to try a few brands before we found ones that fit correctly. I also had to get on him to pick up the litter catcher mat and shake it into the bag, then sweep and swifter the area. I was firm that if he didn’t start doing it right that I would do it every Sunday from now on. He knew I was serious, so he does it right now. It hasn’t been a topic of discussion since. I’m sure I’ll take turns doing it once the baby comes, but it’s nice that he can competently handle this chore.

Answer

Use litter box liners and it will be a lot easier to change. The box won’t have a strong ammonia smell after changing it. And maybe just scoop the poop everyday so the smell doesn’t build up and then change the litter once a week. Wear a mask and gloves and you’ll be okay. And then maybe you won’t have to ocean the area around the box as often. Litter box liners are a lifesaver and prevent the litter box from getting super gross.

Answer

I work for a small pet store, been pregnant 3 times and continued to work throughout my pregnancies. I wore a mask and gloves (I'm actually allergic to cats) when doing the litter boxes and washed my hands after. The only time I couldn't do my job was if we took in a stray kitten or one that's indoor/outdoor. House cats r fine to do. Sadly men don't always get the job done to our liking or how we usually do it.

Answer

We have a reminder that goes off every night for my husband. We use pretty litter and you don't have to scoop the pee. It's pretty neat and may work well for your husband. You can always get out the ppe and do it yourself though.

Answer

So I would personally just put on a mask and gloves. Do it myself and wash my hands really well after. My husband is really sensitive to any body fluids that are not his and ends up throwing up. So I do it myself. If they are indoor cats then the risk is lower even more. But I do still think it is worth having a conversation with him and just asking him to clean it a bit more regularly. I just throw the whole contents out every 3/4 days, cause even cleaning the litter does not take away the left behind smell. And as they recommended 1.5 litter trays per cat, I place one on my balcony, if it suddenly starts smelling and I can’t clean it straight away, and use my other one until i have a moment to sort it out.

Answer

We had a cat when I was pregnant. I put a mask on and gloves to clean it then washed my hands afterwards. As long as you take precautions when cleaning and changing it you’ll be fine.

How do I go about this cat litter issue?

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