Hi Diane - I have two cats and have been using a Littermaid for years. I love mine - I think it was the best thing ever invented ;>) My cats weren't afraid of it - they use it and then about 10 minutes later the rake scoops the debris into the reservoir. I had heard some bad things about the Littermaid - that they don't last long, that some people have had operational problems with them. Mine lasted about 7 years. When it finally died, I purchased another one. I hate the new model - it doesn't scoop the debris as well as the older model did - after the rake scoops, I have to sometimes finishing scooping myself. I expect an automatic Littermaid to scoop everything - like my old one did. Maybe I purchased a defective one - I don't know. I ended up getting rid of it and have gone back to using regular scoop-by-hand boxes. I have heard of the Omega Paw but don't have any experience with them.

My DD has the Littermaid (3 cats) and loves it.She's had it 4 or 5 years and so far no problems.I still use the regular scoopable one.I have contemplated getting the Littermaid but I guess I'm just too cheap to spend that much on a litter box.LOL I did get one with 2 tubs that has the sifter tub in between.You lift out the top tub with the stuff in it,dump it in the sifter tub that sits in a clean tub,re stack and you're good to go! Easier than scooping but it does miss some of the smaller stuff that will go through the sifter holes.Those are also the pieces that even the scooper won't catch though.