| In the beginning, there was dirt. Cats roamed freely, | | | | Then cats moved indoors, and it was people who |
| scratching a "cat hole" wherever they pleased, then | | | | decided where they should do their digging and |
| covering their business to avoid detection by | | | | dumping, and what they should do that digging and |
| predators. The really lucky cats roamed near a house | | | | dumping in. The first litterboxes held the familiar dirt |
| with children, where there was often a sandbox for | | | | or sand. The cats were happy enough with the |
| the tykes to play in. This sand was the luxury dirt of | | | | familiar materials, but people tended not to like the |
| the early days -- dirt that was easy to dig in, easy to | | | | odor or mess. It just didn't absorb very well and had |
| scratch over, and easy to shake from the paws. | | | | to be completely changed every day. |