I use hides for my younger/smaller animals (anyone that goes into a 15 quart tub or smaller); once they get to the 32 quart tub size and larger, they don't get a hide anymore. I keep mine on paper and they do just fine with that. Some of them "burrow" under it more than others but all of them eat just fine sans hides, so I don't know that it would be a necessity unless it causes a hunger strike.