|
|
Post by Roo on Sept 10, 2014 18:35:56 GMT
What do people use as bedding for house rabbits? I've been using wood shavings, but where Rush and Tarka did and flick it about when they are in their cages, it makes a lot of mess. I have read that some people use paper based cat litter, but I would guess that this would leave the same amount of mess  Any less messy suggestions? At the moment Rush (the main flicker/digger) has newspaper lining the bottom, a little bit of wood chip and a lot of hay. |
|
|
|
Post by alfiemummy on Sept 10, 2014 20:36:32 GMT
I've never had an indoor rabbit but my cousins used to. If I remember correctly they had wood based pellet litter, which didn't make anywhere near as much mess as wood shavings do, but it still made a little bit of mess.
|
|
millicentbystander
Newbie
Posts: 49 
Pets I own: Millie & Axel (cats)
Mikey and Lyra (degus)
|
Post by millicentbystander on Sept 11, 2014 14:28:53 GMT
my sister uses the paper based pellets, but I think she still gets a little mess with them x
|
|
|
|
Post by SarahHound on Sept 11, 2014 21:46:15 GMT
Woodshavings generally aren't recommended because they release phenols when peed on which can affect small animals respiratory systems. I've always used a layer of newspaper and then hay. It also means they have hay to munch as well as the hay you give them  |
|
|
|
Post by Roo on Sept 12, 2014 5:48:55 GMT
That's odd, first I've heard of that ... Isn't the ink from the paper dangerous to them though if they ate it?  |
|
|
|
Post by alfiemummy on Sept 12, 2014 11:32:35 GMT
I used to give my rabbits a layer of newspaper to make it easier for me to clean their cages - it actually made it so much worse as they took great joy in pulling it all over the place and ripping it to pieces, they completely trashed the place haha. It worked for a little while before they realised how much fun it was so I gave up with newspaper after that.
|
|
|
|
Post by smilesbetter on Sept 12, 2014 17:21:14 GMT
I have also heard that wood shavings are bad, and likewise that newspaper is very bad.
I have never had a house rabbit (just some outdoor ones as a child), but I would go for just straw or hay bedding, either that or making them an insulated box, perhaps with a flap door to keep in the warmth. Do they sleep together or alone?
I find that a lot of the commercial rabbit beddings don't actually keep them that warm, wild rabbits would just stay in a burrow (which can be replicated with a well insulated box) and huddling together for warmth anyway.
|
|
|
|
Post by Roo on Sept 12, 2014 17:53:02 GMT
They aren't housed together, Rush is ginormous in comparison to Tarka. Our house never gets particularly cool, so I'm not too worried about the warmth aspect. Obviously in winter I will start to add straw in to their cages as well as the usual bedding. I am mainly after something that will absorb the pee and be easy to clean out. Our old outdoor rabbits had newspaper underneath wood chip, straw and hay. This seemed to work well, but not particularly practical inside re:mess. We've always kept our rabbits with wood shavings and I can't say there has ever been any issue with it |
|
|
|
Post by Roo on Sept 12, 2014 17:54:04 GMT
A box would be a good idea in Tarka's cage, he isn't much of a destroyer! Rush is a nightmare for wanting to rip and chew everything ...
|
|
|
|
Post by smilesbetter on Sept 12, 2014 20:00:06 GMT
Might sound weird but you could try soil/compost? People keep gerbils in large tanks of compost (so they can make burrow networks) and they're fairly easy to keep clean and can absorb urine very well (better if you're growing something like grass/etc in it haha which the rabbits would also enjoy). In fact if you are growing grass in it, which is easy enough to do, then you shouldn't need to clean it out at all, as long as it's kept fairly well watered and occasionally rotated (ie one out of action) to give the grass a chance to recover. Haha well that's what I'd do but I know it's not everyone's cup of tea. Then I am a bit of a mad gardener  P.s. Love Tarka's name, always reminds me of Tarka The Otter haha. |
|
|
|
Post by Roo on Sept 12, 2014 20:26:38 GMT
That's a reay good idea, I would never have thought of that!
We called him Tarka because his colour is otter black :-)
|
|
|
|
Post by alfiemummy on Sept 12, 2014 20:56:38 GMT
That's a fab idea smilesbetterThe only slight problem I can see with the idea is the grass dying off. My rabbits used to have run of the garden and they would always toilet in a few choice areas on the grass which caused it to burn and die off. Apparently if you put a lot of water down where they have been then it dilutes the urine and the grass can be saved but I don't know how well this really works as I used to do it and the grass never did recover. I haven't had them for nearly a year now and the grass has only just recovered from all the patchy bits. With regards to something absorbent and easy to clean, I definitely recommend wood pellet litter. I used this for my rabbit's litter trays and it was excellent. You can easily clean it daily too as the dry pellets can be reused again and again and you only need to remove the soiled parts that have clumped. |
|
|
|
Post by SarahHound on Sept 17, 2014 18:35:41 GMT
That's odd, first I've heard of that ... Isn't the ink from the paper dangerous to them though if they ate it? About the woodshavings, the chemical combo of the urine on wood releases the phenols which can cause skin complaints (burns) and irritations, drying. Plus as mentioned already, can do the same to the respiratory tract. It's a bit like Bakers/crappy dog foods. People can feed it for years with no problems, but we know better now, its not the best option, but because sometimes there's no obvious issues, people think its fine. Or there's stuff like Megazorb and Carefresh, they are better healthwise than shavings but just as messy. Auboise is one I see recommended a lot and very good value. In the olden days it was. Now inks have to be safe and its not toxic. However when covered with hay (I use about 3-4 inches depth), they wouldn't have access to the paper anyway unless they are diggers. If they do dig, you can provide digging boxes The other option would be puppy pads and fleece, I do that for my piggies but I know many do it for their bunnies.  Clean cage by Niseag, on Flickr  DSC_0647 by Niseag, on Flickr  Dandelion by Niseag, on Flickr It actually works out a lot cheaper than bedding, smells very little, and gives off absolutely no mess. I buy a box of 50 puppy pads from Home Bargains at £4.99, and use 6 a week. The fleeces were £7 each to buy, we got 4, and just wash them each time. I also got one of those wash bags for catching pet hair, so the washing machine doesn't block up (its about £10 for one of those bags). The bag and the fleeces have been in use for over a year and are still in great condition, so I suspect they will last a good few years. For indoor pets I personally wouldn't go back to bedding. It's a bit too cold for fleeces outside so I use hay for the bunnies and the 4 outside pigs because its warm. In the summer the bunnies have no bedding though, just newspaper which they love lying on. |
|
