I am thinking of getting a self cleaning litter tray, and cant find any one talking about them. I would love to know if you have seen them in action either because you sat for a home that used one, or your an owner who uses one. I would love some practical advice about them - not necessarily how it works but if you like it, think its worth it etc. I have the space for one, so size isnt an issue, but I live in Switzerland so not all models and brands are available here.
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Hello @PepsAndPrince and a warm welcome to the Community Forum 
I have attached an article from the Good Housekeeping which has the 3 Best Automatic Self-Cleaning Litter Boxes for a Happy Cat and updated for 2023.
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I don’t have direct personal experience with self-cleaning litter trays, but I can provide you with some information that may be helpful in making a decision.
Self-cleaning litter trays are becoming more popular and are available in different brands and models. They typically use sensors to detect when your cat has used the litter box and then automatically clean the litter box after use. This can save time and effort for pet owners who don’t want to clean the litter box manually.
Some models require specific litter types or may not work well for larger cats, so it’s important to do your research and read reviews before making a purchase. Some brands that are popular in the US include Litter-Robot, PetSafe, and CatGenie.
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I’ve done sits with automatic litter boxes, and they were mostly great!
But they do sometimes malfunction or get stuck, so it’s best to keep an eye on them regularly, and maybe have a little backup litter box if the auto box won’t be checked for over a day.
They do make noise while shifting the litter, after the cat leaves a deposit… So some cats are afraid of them. But it seems like most cats adapt.
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I am a sitter and homeowner. I have a Litter Robot for my two cats and IT IS WORTH EVERY PENNY. We paid $600 initially and we didn’t know if we would like it, but we LOVE IT. Have had it for about a year and a half. The cats had no problem transitioning, we just removed their litter tray and put the robot in the same space with the same litter. I’m not sure if Litter Robot brand is available is available in Switzerland, but they did ship to me in Hawaii (which can also be a difficult location to get things to).
PROS: your cats always have a clean litter box, no scooping, NO smell, less litter on floor, less stress.
CONS: you do have to keep an eye on it to make sure it is functioning properly. Occasionally it needs to be reset (turn off and on), or it gets stuck in the cleaning cycle and needs reset. I look at it about twice a day and empty the bag below the litter chamber every one or three days. We keep a back up litter tray in storage in case the litter robot were to break but we have not had to use it.
I hope this helps!
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I’ve sat for 3 different pet parents that had this type of litter tray.
From what I’ve seen, they do the job, and have been improving as time goes by (the first time we had a sit with this device, it kept getting blocked, but was easy to “fix”, following that, the others seemed to work fine.).
I would just recommend reading all the reviews and verifying the date of the reviews.
I have an upcoming sit where the owners have a automatic litter robot but the cats are refusing to use it and they are using a regular waste basket, which requires daily scooping. The owner has tried everything to get the cats to use the robot - adding old litter from the manual bin, adding catnip, turning off the power etc. They have given me the green light to try again and train them. Any advice is appreciated.
If you can get Cat Attract litter, that’s worth a try.
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I have one and love it. The brand does not seem to be well known but it works well. Leo’s Loo Too – Casa Leo
I sent back the new Litter Robot before getting this one because it got hung up all the time.