After Treatment

Caring for your cat after treatment

Before your cat heads home from treatment, you'll receive detailed discharge instructions. Meanwhile, here are some handy tips to help prepare for their return.

Items Needed For the First 2 Weeks After Treatment:

Flushable cat litter OR a plastic storage bin with a lid* large enough to store 2 weeks of waste)
A traditional plastic litter box. (Not a litter robot.)
Plastic Litterbox Liners
A place to store the litter scoop like a small plastic bin
Gloves- Disposable or house cleaning gloves to use when scooping the litterbox.
Consider placing absorbent “puppy” pads around the litterbox if your cat sometimes misses the box.
A bin with a lid* to keep soiled items (like soiled bedding or paper towels)
Any disinfectant may be used for accidents and general clean ups. Remember! Soiled paper towels and gloves should be discarded in the dedicated storage bin, too.
Any hand soap may be used for handwashing after handling your cat.
Consider some new kitty entertainment like toys, boxes, or scratching posts to keep your cat occupied during their restriction period.

*Keep waste storage bins in a low traffic area like a garage or shed. Plastic storage totes or 5 gallon buckets with lids can be found at any local hardware store.

Here’s The Scoop on the Litterbox Situation

Litter Disposal

Care must be taken with litter disposal. Since your cat will continue to excrete a low (but detectable) amount of radiation for a few weeks after they can be released from the treatment center, we have special instructions on handling. Flushing is usually the easiest, if your living situation and plumbing allow it. If not, you may scoop the box every day and make arrangements to hold the litter for a few months (see below).

For security purposes, our local dump trucks each drive under radiation detectors before they can leave the load at the dump. While this is done to monitor for the production of explosives, it is also a sensitive enough instrument to pick up the low levels in your cat’s waste. While we can assure you the government is not interested in your cat’s litterbox habits, if the detectors are triggered the government is obligated to trace it back to the point of origin, and they can levy a significant fine for the extra work.

If Flushing

I-131 breaks down quickly and is present in such small quantities that, once diluted in the main sewer system, it poses no radiation threat. If you plan to flush, please use only flushable litter and be careful not to clog the pipes by flushing too much at once. It's a good idea to scoop and flush litter daily to prevent any plumbing mishaps. However, even flushable litter might not be ideal for sensitive plumbing or septic systems. If that's the case, please refer to our instructions on storing litter prior to disposal.

Storing

Each day, scoop your cat’s litter box into a garbage-bag-lined bucket or bin for two weeks. If you have more than one feline friend sharing litterboxes, combine their litter in the same container. After two weeks, pour any remaining litter into the container, seal it with a lid, and store it somewhere safe like the garage or shed for 80 days. Afterward, the contents can be disposed of during trash collection or taken to a dump. Feel free to recycle or reuse the bucket.

Remember: Scoop for 2 weeks, store for 80 days. (Don’t worry! Your dates will be on your discharge instructions.)