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06 Nov 2016

Importance Of Small Animal Bedding

Posted By : Guest

The purpose of a substrate (bedding) used in small animal cages is to absorb bad smelling, urine odour. Small pets such as hamsters, gerbils, mice, rats and guinea pigs need a clean habitat in order to thrive and remain healthy. Therefore the more absorbent a bedding, the better it controls nasty smells. There are a wide range of substrates available, each with its own positive and negative aspects.

You can use shredded paper as a substrate, but it won’t absorb odours, so your pet’s cage could get stinky fast. Make sure to use only paper that hasn’t been printed, as ink can be very dangerous to small animals. Only newspaper with black ink is considered to be safe.

Another suitable option for substrate are paper and wood pellets. These pellets have the benefit of being very absorbent. It may be difficult for some pets to burrow through it, however, and can be a bit expensive.

Burgess Excel Bedding is also a good option and made from natural straw in compressed pellets. This bedding is 10x more absorbent than whole straw and shavings and naturally locks in odours as the rapid absorbtion stops the breakdown of urea into ammonia, keeping your room smelling fresh and odour free. The litter can be disposed of naturally as compost, or by simply putting it into your garden bin.

Wood shavings should never be used for small animals, because it contains aromatic oils which are toxic to little lungs. Another problem with wood shavings is that it is not very absorbent and you’ll need to clean the cage every 1-2 weeks before the room smells nasty. If your hamster is potty trained, the bedding may last longer, before it begins to smell badly.

Highly absorbent, paper pulp bedding such as Carefresh is typically better at masking odours for longer periods of time than wood shavings. Carefresh is the only company to craft their small animal bedding from scratch by blending naturally absorbent, reclaimed paper fibers with proprietary odour control ingredients. With Carefresh you only need to clean the cage every 4-6 weeks, making it very cost effective. And if your small pet is potty trained, then Carefresh bedding will remain fresh smelling for longer.

The amount of bedding you use is also important - inadequate amounts of bedding will not be able to absorb the urine, and liquid will be left behind and cause nasty smells. Remember never use wood shavings, wood chips, kitty litter or corn cob in your small pet’s cage. These types of bedding can pose a serious health risk to your small pet.