Bedding
+6
smokierat
Abdou
bikerwitch
Zoundz
Lew
redrach
10 posters
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Bedding
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.
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.
redrach- Oldie
- Posts : 551
Join date : 2011-09-26
Age : 33
Location : Newtownards / Bristol.
Re: Bedding
I use shavings. Never had a problem with them.
Lew- Technical Administrator
- Posts : 332
Join date : 2011-09-24
Age : 52
Location : England
Re: Bedding
What type of wood? Where do you get them?
Are they dusty or anything?
Are they dusty or anything?
redrach- Oldie
- Posts : 551
Join date : 2011-09-26
Age : 33
Location : Newtownards / Bristol.
Re: Bedding
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.
Lew- Technical Administrator
- Posts : 332
Join date : 2011-09-24
Age : 52
Location : England
Re: Bedding
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.
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.
redrach- Oldie
- Posts : 551
Join date : 2011-09-26
Age : 33
Location : Newtownards / Bristol.
Re: Bedding
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.
Lew- Technical Administrator
- Posts : 332
Join date : 2011-09-24
Age : 52
Location : England
Re: Bedding
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. (:
I have a little cardboard left from my old finacard, but not much.
Will see how I go. (:
redrach- Oldie
- Posts : 551
Join date : 2011-09-26
Age : 33
Location : Newtownards / Bristol.
Re: Bedding
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?
I use good dust extracted shavings 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! They have nice big flakes too, which the rats like to cart around and make beds with
xx
I use good dust extracted shavings 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! They have nice big flakes too, which the rats like to cart around and make beds with
xx
Re: Bedding
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?
That would probably explain how Bilbo ended up riddled with lice once, despite him and his cagemates never leaving the house.
Lew- Technical Administrator
- Posts : 332
Join date : 2011-09-24
Age : 52
Location : England
Re: Bedding
): oh i'll keep an eye out for lice then.
redrach- Oldie
- Posts : 551
Join date : 2011-09-26
Age : 33
Location : Newtownards / Bristol.
home made carefresh
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
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
bikerwitch- Member
- Posts : 70
Join date : 2011-09-27
Age : 42
Location : Dublin 3
Re: Bedding
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.
redrach- Oldie
- Posts : 551
Join date : 2011-09-26
Age : 33
Location : Newtownards / Bristol.
Re: Bedding
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?
I use good dust extracted shavings 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! They have nice big flakes too, which the rats like to cart around and make beds with
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 :-)
Abdou- Member
- Posts : 75
Join date : 2011-09-26
Re: Bedding
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
xx
xx
Re: Bedding
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 so cheap!i paid 21.60 for 3 bales
smokierat- Moderator
- Posts : 881
Join date : 2011-09-26
Age : 37
Location : Cork (city)
Re: Bedding
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
/rant off
Lew- Technical Administrator
- Posts : 332
Join date : 2011-09-24
Age : 52
Location : England
Re: Bedding
Theres nothing like a good rant 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
smokierat- Moderator
- Posts : 881
Join date : 2011-09-26
Age : 37
Location : Cork (city)
Re: Bedding
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.
Lew- Technical Administrator
- Posts : 332
Join date : 2011-09-24
Age : 52
Location : England
Re: Bedding
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
smokierat- Moderator
- Posts : 881
Join date : 2011-09-26
Age : 37
Location : Cork (city)
Re: Bedding
so it's pine that are okay and cedar that aren't?
redrach- Oldie
- Posts : 551
Join date : 2011-09-26
Age : 33
Location : Newtownards / Bristol.
Re: Bedding
I think it was cedar, it may have been spruce. Pine shavings are OK though.
Lew- Technical Administrator
- Posts : 332
Join date : 2011-09-24
Age : 52
Location : England
Re: Bedding
Red Cedar if I remember correctly - nearly any other shavings are fine it's very very difficult to get red cedar, even in the states - and the whole study was very dubious indeed
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
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
Re: Bedding
My lot are loving the shavings
smokierat- Moderator
- Posts : 881
Join date : 2011-09-26
Age : 37
Location : Cork (city)
Re: Bedding
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.
Steve- Member
- Posts : 83
Join date : 2011-10-28
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