By Lynn Maria Thompson
If you’re newer to the cat world, you may not have heard of the Global Pet Expo trade show. It happens every March, hosted in Orlando, Florida by the American Pet Products Association (APPA) and the Pet Industry Distributors Association (PIDA). Upward of 3,300 booths showcase more than 1,000 pet brands at the show. That’s a lot of walking!
Each year, the Cat Writers’ Association (CWA) sends one or two of our members to “Global” to meet with our sponsors, find new sponsors, and learn about new cat products being released. This year, Dusty Rainbolt worked all three days of the show, with Lynn Thompson driving down on Thursday to join her for the day.
38 aisles wide and 80 exhibits deep. Photo: Lynn Maria Thompson.
New Product Showcase: Best New Products
These products claimed top awards in the Cat category of the New Product Showcase:
First Place: Best New Products
Best in Show: Lady N Pheromone Tofu Litter | Standard Box, which also took third place for the Human Animal Bond Breakthrough Award and Best in Show in the Modern Pet category. This pea-fiber litter has a soft, paw-friendly texture and is infused with botanical pheromones indicating the litter box is a place of safety to keep kitty calm and relaxed. Sustainable and eco-friendly, the litter is made with food-grade ingredients, so it won’t harm your cat if a small amount is ingested. The pellet formula for standard litter boxes is low-tracking, doesn’t stick to a cat’s paws, and is low dust and strong clumping. The pheromone litter is also available in a granular form more suitable for automatic litter boxes. One bag lasts a month for a one-cat household. It is currently available at online retailers in three options: unscented, boba tea scented, or Yosemite scented.
Second Place: Best New Products
2nd Place: BAYCAT Harness and Leash by BAYDOG (suggested retail: $29.99) were specifically designed for cats, yielding a better fit. The torso is longer than a dog harness, has smaller arm openings, and a martingale-style tensioning system across the back that all combine to reduce chances of escape. Its lightweight, low-profile feel is also more comfortable for cats. Available in light blue, pink, light green, and black, the harness has matching leashes available. The product was inspired by several cat-owning members of the BAYDOG team who helped design it. The harnesses launched at Global and should start becoming available from retailers by June.
Third Place: Best New Products
3rd Place: Cat Christmas Tree by Meowpy. Cats climbing your Christmas tree? No longer a problem! Made to order, this six-foot tree comes with built-in spots for your cats to climb and perch. Once the holidays are over, the tree part removes to put it into cat tower mode, with a four-foot column that includes two windows and perches above the floor-level entry. The tree branches and top can be added to the tower in around 30 minutes. Retails for $349 and will be available starting in September.
Other categories of new products also included items that would appeal to households with cats:
Product Category: Modern Cat
Best in Show: Modern Cat
Best in Show in the Modern Cat category was the Lady N Infinity Cat Litter Scoop (retail $10.99). The scoop is designed with ergonomic curves and a patented pattern of figure 8-shaped sifting holes. The blade is angled at exactly 35 degrees and its edges are curved to better fit along the litter box walls. The scoop is made from durable ABS, a thermoplastic polymer known for its high impact resistance, durability, and toughness. It is currently available.
Product Category: Pet Tech Innovation
Best in Show: Pet Tech Innovation
Best in Show in the Pet Tech Innovation category was Laundry Cycle Pro by Uproot Clean (30-load pack, retail $29.99). It’s a complete, multi-step laundry system engineered for pet households that includes a cleaner for your washing machine, detergent sheets, and hair-reducing dryer sheets that leave clothes soft and fresh without a waxy residue or overpowering fragrance. It’s already available at online pet retailers.
Second Place: Pet Tech Innovation
2nd place in Pet Tech Innovation was TiCK Test by LymeAlert,TM an at-home way to test a tick found on your pets (or yourself) to see if it is carrying Lyme Disease. Retails for $110.
The system crushes the tick as it is sealed into the crusher and releases the solution to test it. Results are available in about 30 minutes. With 476,000 cases of Lyme diagnosed and treated annually and treatment costing an average of $3,000 per person to treat, this should be a popular product. The company, an MIT-based startup, is currently seeking investors and FDA approval for the test, so it is not yet on the market.
Third place: Pet Tech Innovation
3rd place in Pet Tech Innovation was PetVet Flavored Activated Charcoal (retail $21.99). Useful for both cats and dogs, this is a good product to keep on hand in case kitty ingests something toxic. It binds and neutralizes the toxins while helping with gas, diarrhea, vomiting, and nausea and supporting your cat’s indigestion and stomach upset.
Watch for an upcoming article highlighting additional new products.
Cat Writers’ Association Sponsors
Several of the CWA’s sponsors always exhibit at Global, and we do our best to meet with them there.
World’s Best
World’s Best, a CWA sponsor since 1999, was introducing their new Good Habits litter, designed to attract cats back to the litter box. Great for multi-cat households, it combines their corn-based litter with natural, plant-based ingredients attractive to cats. The litter comes in 8, 15, 28, and 32-pound bags, and is currently available at online retailers and in Petsmart stores.
World’s Best also featured their Boosters line, which also includes Good Habits. These are designed to be sprinkled on top of any litter to offer their benefits. Boosters also come in the Poop Fighter and Health Check-In formulas and are now available.
Pioneer Pet
Pioneer Pet, a CWA sponsor since 2006, was showing their natural corn SmartCat line of all-natural litters, their fountains, and their products like Sticky Paws to prevent scratching of furniture, cat puzzle toys, and original cat scratcher — one of the best on the market for its height, safety, stability, and durability. Subscribe to the CWA’s YouTube channel to be notified of an upcoming interview with Shannon Supanich, the company’s marketing director.
Feline Natural
Feline Natural, who sponsored our 2025 CWA Annual Conference keynote speaker, was celebrating the company’s 20-year anniversary at Global and showing off two new flavors of freeze-dried and canned cat foods they recently released: Lamb & Venison and Chicken & King Salmon. Again, subscribe to the CWA’s YouTube channel to be notified of an upcoming interview with Heather Enajibi from the Global show floor, or watch their 2025 Sponsor Spotlight video that was recorded at our conference.
PetSafe
Photo: Lynn Maria Thompson.
PetSafe, who donated items to the CWA 2025 fall charity fundraiser, was showing off their new automated FreshFeed refrigerated feeder (retail $249.99) and their battery-powered fountain with power-saving motion sensor, which will be available later this year.
A World of Cat Care
With nearly 3,300 booths, the Global Pet Expo trade show is the place to go to learn about new pet products. Thank you to the American Pet Products Association (APPA) and the Pet Industry Distributors Association (PIDA) for hosting this spectacular event. It’s always exciting see to see Cat Writers’ Association supporters and sponsors among the exhibitors.
About the Author: Lynn Maria Thompson is the CWA’s immediate past president. She has worked equally as long in the corporate world and as a solopreneur, offering writing and editing services to clients. Lynn will soon be relaunching several of her past books written for authors and for leaders. Learn more about her at the Thompson Writing & Editing website.
Excellent recap! Someday I’ll get back over to the Expo, it’s meow-velous!
Very exciting article, Lynn. Thank you for saying “hi” to our sponsor friends and sharing about the new products.
I live our sponsors and their products!