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Bedding

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Bedding Empty Bedding

Post by redrach Mon Sep 26, 2011 4:34 am

I used to use cardboard bedding, like finacard but delivery was too expensive & i thought it was a little dusty and got too soggy.
I changed to hemcore but don't like it either, i find it even dustier, and while it reduces rat smell, the stuff itself smells and just makes me think of smelly horses..

What else do you guys use?

I'd like a paper pellet, like back to nature as it was perfect when i used it, but i don't want to be going to pets at home 'cause they charge through the roof & only do 5 litre bags.
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Post by Lew Mon Sep 26, 2011 4:37 am

I use shavings. Never had a problem with them. Smile
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Post by redrach Mon Sep 26, 2011 4:38 am

What type of wood? Where do you get them?
Are they dusty or anything?
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Post by Lew Mon Sep 26, 2011 4:42 am

I just get the standard pine shavings from Pets At Home. They're dust extracted and kiln dried to get rid of any excessive phenols so they're nice and mild. I usually put a layer about 2 inches (5cm) deep in the cage and mix a load of their food into it to encourage them to forage.
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Post by redrach Tue Sep 27, 2011 6:38 am

I was going to go for them or back 2 nature, but today I opted for carefresh. I think I read somewhere else about how some people don't like it, I can't remember why?
So far I really like it- no smell, no dust, springy & fluffy. AND for the first time ever my rats seem to like it, one was playing with it.
I guess it's a little expensive, I got two of the £4.99 packets and used one in each half of my srs. So that would be £10 a week. I guess I could have stretched it a bit and had about half a bag or so left, but I like it deep & bouncy. I saw there is a bigger bag at £19.99, so if it goes well this week i'm going to get the bigger one next week to work out how long that will last- i'm assuming 2-3 weeks.

Anyway, what else does everyone use and what do you think are the pros and cons?


ps. if Smelll is still here and reads this- I have a 3/4 full bag of hemcore for you if you want it, say £5? I can deliver it sometime.
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Post by Lew Tue Sep 27, 2011 7:17 am

If you have any shredded cardboard bedding you can mix it 50/50 with Carefresh to make it go further. I used this mixture for a while but in the end I wasn't happy with my supplier of Ecobed (a local stable supplies store) as they kept the bales outside where they could get damp.
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Post by redrach Tue Sep 27, 2011 7:41 am

I think that's maybe what happened with the hemcore I had bought. It was a little damp and so dusty.
I have a little cardboard left from my old finacard, but not much.
Will see how I go. (:
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Post by Zoundz Tue Sep 27, 2011 9:20 pm

The problem with carefresh seemed to be that it often carried lice. A lot of people found it helped to freeze it before use as it kills the lice off? Confused

I use good dust extracted shavings Smile I like them very much - I buy enormous bales of Woodpecker shavings for less than €10 - and they last a good while, even with our 3489723625 cages! Big Grin They have nice big flakes too, which the rats like to cart around and make beds with Smile

xx
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Post by Lew Tue Sep 27, 2011 9:23 pm

Zoundz wrote:The problem with carefresh seemed to be that it often carried lice. A lot of people found it helped to freeze it before use as it kills the lice off? Confused

That would probably explain how Bilbo ended up riddled with lice once, despite him and his cagemates never leaving the house.
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Post by redrach Wed Sep 28, 2011 4:00 am

): oh i'll keep an eye out for lice then.
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Bedding Empty home made carefresh

Post by bikerwitch Tue Oct 11, 2011 12:24 am

I didnt know carefresh in the shops have lice. So far our rats dont show the signs of lice. touch wood.
While i was searching for places to shops online that supply carefresh bedding i found a you tube video in how to make your own care fresh bedding. this might sort out the the lice problem i dont know.

i was wondering how do you go about in getting rid of lice in pet rats if they do start showning signs of lice?

many thanks
saby Smile
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Post by redrach Tue Oct 11, 2011 2:16 am

It carries mites, not lice, the difference being that most rats carry mites anyway but flare ups cause itching and sores around the face and ears. If you freeze carefresh for 24-48 hours it will kill of any mites. I used beaphar anti-parasite spot to treat mine.
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Post by Zoundz Tue Oct 11, 2011 6:09 am

Carefresh sometimes comes with lice, not mites Wink

xx
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Post by Abdou Tue Oct 11, 2011 7:42 am

Zoundz wrote:The problem with carefresh seemed to be that it often carried lice. A lot of people found it helped to freeze it before use as it kills the lice off? Confused

I use good dust extracted shavings Smile I like them very much - I buy enormous bales of Woodpecker shavings for less than €10 - and they last a good while, even with our 3489723625 cages! Big Grin They have nice big flakes too, which the rats like to cart around and make beds with Smile

xx

Zoundz - me again!! Where do you get the dust extracted wood shavings......what are they called?? Trying in vain to get some decent digging box stuff but failing miserably....

Another option I found was Chipsi Extra Soft wood chips......what do you think??

Thanks in advance :-)

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Post by Zoundz Tue Oct 11, 2011 8:21 am

I don't know the chipsi stuff at all - but we used woodpecker. I now use ones that are unbranded. If the flakes are a good size then you're usually OK - and usually the bag will say dust extracted, but nearly all shavings sold for bedding are dust extracted anyway Smile

xx
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Post by smokierat Mon Oct 17, 2011 7:18 am

Just got some wood shavings to try out for the first time,usually use hemp from maxizoo which im happy with except its getting kinda expensive when ive got the three cages going..im thinking im still going to use the hemp aswell as the shavings,il put hemp in the corners where they wee its quite good for soaking it up and absorbing the smell etc.I got the dust extracted wood shavings from Crowleys in Bandon,out of curosity where do you get yours Laura?to be honest i had always heard bad things about using wood shavings but i think that comes from people seeing the dusty stuff,and when i saw lauras ratties having fun digging around in theirs i decided to give them a try Smile so cheap!i paid 21.60 for 3 bales Love
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Post by Lew Mon Oct 17, 2011 7:29 am

The problem is that a lot of the bad feeling about shavings is based on a report done in the US some years back. What a lot of people fail to take into account is that the shavings used in the US aren't the same wood as the ones used this side of the pond so problems caused by cedar shavings aren't necessarily going to happen with pine shavings. Unfortunately the "rat police" tend to read the article, take it at face value without giving it any thought and come to the conclusion that shavings = bad and that anyone using them is obviously the most evil pet owner to walk the face of the earth.

/rant off
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Post by smokierat Mon Oct 17, 2011 7:37 am

Theres nothing like a good rant Grin the girls dont know quite what to make of the shavings,Pixie spent the first ten minutes racing around the cage,testing what seemed like each individual shaving to see if it was good to eat,deciding it wasnt and moving on to the next one Laugh
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Post by Lew Mon Oct 17, 2011 8:12 am

The fun thing with shavings, if you scatter-feed rather than using a food bowl, is to mix their food into the shavings so they have to forage for it. I usually mix a couple of handfuls of food into the shavings when I clean out the cages. It's quite fun to see them digging to find an elusive bit of food.
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Post by smokierat Mon Oct 17, 2011 8:33 am

Yeah i did that this evening,and mixed in some mountain meadow herbs,more for the nice smell than anything else.i stopped using food bowls quite a while back but didnt find the hemp great for hiding the food in,unless you used loads so i tend to wrap it up,string it from the cage bars,stuff it in boxes using kitchen towel so they use it as bedding after but am defin gonna be mixing it up a bit from now on,its always nice to feel like theyre being challenged Grin
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Post by redrach Mon Oct 17, 2011 7:58 pm

so it's pine that are okay and cedar that aren't?
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Post by Lew Mon Oct 17, 2011 10:50 pm

I think it was cedar, it may have been spruce. Pine shavings are OK though.
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Post by Zoundz Tue Oct 18, 2011 7:53 pm

Red Cedar if I remember correctly - nearly any other shavings are fine Smile it's very very difficult to get red cedar, even in the states - and the whole study was very dubious indeed Wink

Not sure which shop we get ours from Grace - it is in Bandon - it's the Arro shop at Kilbrogan (I think that's right!)

xx
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Post by smokierat Wed Oct 19, 2011 6:08 am

My lot are loving the shavings Grin
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Post by Steve Thu Nov 10, 2011 11:45 pm

Doing a bit or research at the moment in preparation for receiving my boys. I have discovered two places recently that have woodshavings suitable for equine bedding needs. One is large shavings the other seems to be medium shavings, all wood and dust free. Good to go along to a farm suppliers outlet or other such outlet in your locality, I just simply asked around and made a few enquiries, didn't let on I was looking for bedding for rats, only said bedding suitable for small animals, they all thought it was for rabbits and guinea pigs. Only about €7-8 per large bale, much less expensive than pet shops i'd imagine. So shop around, you might be surprised. Good luck, Steve.

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