using aspen in litter boxes

In my experience, Carefresh is preferable but I use Aspen because it is much more affordable. I spot clean the litter boxes whenever I notice they need it--maybe every few days, depending on the size of the litter box. I change it completely when I change the fleece (once every 7-10 days, usually). I haven't noticed much of a difference in the absorbency, but I think Carefresh is a slightly better odor controller--some would argue otherwise, however. I don't think Aspen "hurts" the piggies, but it's not as soft as Carefresh. I don't know how much they really mind. If it's just in the litterbox, it doesn't really matter. The worst thing about Aspen is that it sticks to fleece awful bad. It's kind of like getting the hair or tiny pieces of hay off of fleece. It's frustrating, but I don't mind much since I'm already having to pick off hay and hair.

The best thing about Aspen is definitely the price.

Hope this helps!

Best advice I got was to use puppy training pads underneath the fleece. It catches and wicks away the moisture, and also stays drier than newspaper. I have 5-7 different pieces of fleece I got by the yard and cut to size and I just change the fleece very 2-3 days and rotate the puppy pads for about a week.

I also have several litter boxes. A big one where I put carefresh in the bottom. Hay tends to pile up in this litterbox and acts like a top layer. I can sometimes let it go for up to 4 days before emptying it. Before I used aspen as the base layer but I think carefresh is more absorbent.

I have a small kitty litter box underneath the hay and a small corner litter on the other end of the cage. I change the box under the hay every day since that's where about 65-70% of the business takes place. The corner box needs to be changed only every other day.

I don't have any problems with aspen shavings sticking to the fleece, I just give the fleece a good shake in the yard and everything comes off. I have to admit that I enjoy hand-picking stray pieces of shavings and hay off the fleece throughout the week because I like the piggies climbing up onto my hands when I do that. They are so nosey!

Smell? I suppose there's a slight odor coming from the litter boxes just before I clean them. But it's nothing that a nice pile of KM 3rd cut can't cover up beautifully.