Rat Bedding Question?

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Originally Posted by FatBoy

Would shreaded paper work the same? Where do you get the recycled paper bedding?

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Sorry I haven't checked back for awhile. I get the recycled paper bedding from walmart. It comes in blue pink white green and gray. I have always used gray because you have to pay a few dollars more for color :confused:

I don't think shredded paper would work as nicely because this recycled paper bedding his super expandable. You know how you start pulling the pine out of the bag and there's tons more of it then you thought? Well this recycled paper bedding is the same way. Only it doesn't expand as much until it gets wet. If you only use the RPB you're only supposed to cover the bottom with about an inch of it because it will expand so much.

Hope this helps. It's about $5 for enough bedding to fill a 4x2 foot area twice. Not sure, maybe a 55 gal tank?

Frankie,

Try using the pine you are getting with a thin layer of pelleted pine under it. Pelleted pine is sold under a few different brand names but I use Woody Pet. It really helps to keep the smell down!

Jamie

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Originally Posted by FatBoy

What do most of you use as rat bedding? I have a pretty nice sized breeding operation with around 100 females. The first 6 months or so I used pine shavings from the local feed store. About 6 months ago I started getting cedar chips to mix with the pine to help the smell. I know cedar is bad for small animals but I was mixing it weak, 2/3 pine to 1/3 cedar. Everything has been going fine with it. Now all of a sudden this week I have had around 10 breeding females die. Could this be from the cedar? and if so why? Or is it just a coincedience?

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You should use carefresh bedding because it asorbs odor well. and it wont hurt the rodents

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Originally Posted by Ballpython2

You should use carefresh bedding because it asorbs odor well. and it wont hurt the rodents

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Carefresh is a poor rodent bedding. It's very dusty which is bad for them, and also does not absorb odor (ammonia) or liquid very well.

Aspen is a good choice, although lab grade products like diamond soft are some of the best out there.

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Originally Posted by littleindiangirl

Carefresh is a poor rodent bedding. It's very dusty which is bad for them, and also does not absorb odor (ammonia) or liquid very well.

Aspen is a good choice, although lab grade products like diamond soft are some of the best out there.

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its bad? i used it for my other rats when i had some yrs ago and it seemed to work just fine for me and it wasnt dusty once they were walkin all over it and such. never had any health issues.

I've been using the pelleted pine for my ASFs. They don't smell as bad the the regular rats, but it still keeps the smell down. Its called Boreal Pellets, and its $8 for 30 lbs.

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Originally Posted by Ballpython2

its bad? i used it for my other rats when i had some yrs ago and it seemed to work just fine for me and it wasnt dusty once they were walkin all over it and such. never had any health issues.

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It is very dusty and will irritate their lungs and sinuses, and also goop up their eyes and noses. It's also supposed to be a great breeding ground for mold, and doesnt absorb very well.

I'm all pine. I tried aspen for a while but found it SUCKED at absorbing, and it made the smell unbearable after about 3 days. If pine is good enough for Ralphie, it's good enough for me. I've never had any problems.

Frankie
I use half aspen and half Cell-Sorb plus and it work great for me. The cell-sorb is basically newspaper pellets.

Well I tell you this has been a very stressful time for me. I hate walking to the Rat barn and wondering how many I will find dead this time. We have changed bedding and everything else. This is unreal. Hope we can find the answer and solve it soon. FatBoy and I are working at it hard.