Hi Donna! My memory from fostering newbies is that they eat the litter WHILE they use it!!! I worried about it and would pick litter off of their tongues but it never harmed them.. Long as it's a box shared by just the family, I didn't worry! It's roughage and ok in the small amounts they fool around with. I always kept a litter box available cuz of the mother and noticed babies using the box at various ages depending on mother's decision on when to stop eating the stuff. Cats don't like the poop and pee just anywhere so if mom stops taking care of it, they have gone right to the litter box! Let us know how it goes!