# Testing: Bath mats.



## AdequateRat (Mar 12, 2015)

Okay, fellow rattle enthusiasts!

Just wanted to let you guys know I'm going to be doing a pros/cons thing with bath mats as liners.

Price: $19.97 (each) from Walmart.ca 
Size: 24x40.

(Day one)

Pros:

-My rats aren't interested in chewing them (yet! Lol)
-Bath mats, so therefore absorbent.
-Soft/comfier. Easier to fit in cage than fleece/towel liner. *No binder clips needed*
-No loops, so they can't get their claws stuck.
-Neater looking, can get a wide variety of colours (I started out with black.)
-Easy to close cage doors.

Potential cons: 

-The price of each bath mat ($19.97 CA. Could be expensive depending on your budget.)

-They're 24x40 bath mats, with latex no slip underneath. This I'm kind of wary about, but my rats never chewed on the fleece and I'll be monitoring them carefully. (They stick to cardboard.) 

The only adjustment I had to make so far, was to cut a diagonal line on one bath mat for the big top level, so I could fold some of it under the panel in order for my rats to enter/leave the upper level of the cage. This was a fairly easy process and only some fuzzies came off that I picked out. 

Pro: When tugging on the cut portion of the bath mat to see if it would rip further, it would not. 

This is only day one, but all things seem to be going good so far. 

Here's a picture:








I'll keep you all posted!

P.S. sorry if the post came out weird, I'm doing this all on my tablet. Bahaha


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## Amph (Apr 14, 2015)

I'm such a eager beaver to see how these work out long term! They look better than I had expected. ;D no longer will I get hit in the face by flying binder clips my rat has booby trapped during the night! Keep us up to date on how easy they are to clean and how they hold up after washing please.


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## DustyRat (Jul 9, 2012)

Hmmm, I have tested bath towels before, but never mats. Hope to see how it works out


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## kksrats (Jul 25, 2014)

I use bath mats in my dog crates and they seem to hold up well through washing. My dogs don't pee or poop on them though, so I'm interested to see how this works with rats.

@Amph--I totally understand the whole binder clip booby trap problem lol


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## Tao.and.Laughter (Jan 24, 2015)

I am WAY interested in this! Which mats did you use?


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## AdequateRat (Mar 12, 2015)

^_^ Since I'm receiving some responses, I guess maybe I'll do a Day 2 update.

*Tao.and.Laughter:* I'm using Mainstays Bath mats. (From Walmart. $19.97)
*Size*: 24x40 inches.
*Face:* 100% nylon
*Back: *100% non-slip latex.



So!* Day two: *

_Around 8AM (when my guys are their most active) I did catch my Neil flipping over the outer edge of the bath mat and did do a little damage.
*With a shout and a clap of the hands he stopped immediately and only did it once more.. Told him no again and he hasn't done it since.*_
*NOTE:* Keeping in mind, I had the front/top level cage doors opened. When I have the cage closed, it's near impossible for them to pull up said mat. So I wasn't too worried.








*
Sorry for the potato of a picture, I was sleepy. x)*

_*I made some adjustments and pulled the bathmat closer to the door entrance, so I could tuck it under the panel. *_
*This didn't affect the other side, it was all still covered. The matt is a little larger than my panels, which I like!

-_- Then Roger decided he wanted to play with the other side and tried to pull the area where I cut up out where it's tucked under the panel. x) He's too small, so he couldn't do it. 
I clapped my hands, he hasn't done it since. 

_Very well behaved young men, I suppose. 
_
***Noticed some black fuzzies (larger pieces) on the top/bottom levels. *
More than likely from them running around and accidentally tearing stuff up, they were easy to pick off.
*No bald spots, so that's good.

*No sign of smell yet.
*Fairly easy to pick up stray droppings and the mat is fairly absorbent, which I like a LOT.

So far, so good. With few little complaints yet.

I'm thinking if they get more interested on the outer edges, wouldn't be very costly to get velcro strips and attach them to the bottom of the mat.
I don't think I need to worry about it too much, yet.. They've only fussed with the top level, they haven't tried anything with the bottom level from what I've seen.

I'll keep you all posted! *Especially* how long it takes until I have to wash them and how they come out after. ^_^


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## Grotesque (Mar 19, 2014)

This is a great idea! 

I like the part where you said you clapped your hands and Roger hasn't chewed it since. I try that with Ginger. She just looks at me with a look like, "What are ya gonna do? Hit me? HAH! I'll do what I want!" Then keeps destroying.


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## AdequateRat (Mar 12, 2015)

Grotesque said:


> This is a great idea!
> 
> I like the part where you said you clapped your hands and Roger hasn't chewed it since. I try that with Ginger. She just looks at me with a look like, "What are ya gonna do? Hit me? HAH! I'll do what I want!" Then keeps destroying.


Hahaha. Most of my boys are well behaved, Bear Ninja on the other hand that's a different story. X)


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## AdequateRat (Mar 12, 2015)

DAY 3 & 4: 

DAY THREE I PRETTY MUCH JINXED MYSELF. SOMEONE CHEWED ON THE BOTTOM MAT WHILST I SLEPT. BUT I TUCKED IT UNDER MORE AND NO ONE HAS BOTHERED WITH THE EDGES (TOP/BOTTOM) SINCE.
-NO SMELL.

DAY FOUR: NO ONE HAS CHEWED ON THEM.
-NO SMELL.

I really like these mats, I think these were a good idea.
Still haven't washed them! 

Hope all goes well when I do have to wash them.


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## Hey-Fay (Jul 8, 2013)

I've used bathmats like these before and I still do on occasion. I've found that it you zip tie the edge of the mats to the floor, just poke a small hole through the bottom and thread the tie through, they can't pull them up. But the cons of them with my mischief is that they get bored and will rip up the fuzzy carpet stuff :/ I prefer carpet squares from the dollar tree. They're tough, absorbent, heavy, and can be tossed in the washer (but must be line dried).


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## AdequateRat (Mar 12, 2015)

My guys seem to be bored with the mats. I haven't seen any fluffy stuff. So, I think I'm going to stick with. Thanks for the zip tie idea, love.


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## AdequateRat (Mar 12, 2015)

*OVERALL CONCLUSION*:

I'm sticking with the bath mats. (I decided to wash them *in cold water/dry in low heat*) they turned out absolutely perfect.

They didn't even stink when I washed them, either. Extremely absorbent.

Only draw back is if your guys are big liner chewers (mine have seem to have lost all interest in them, thankfully) and possibly the price depending on your budget!

I would suggest these indefinitely!


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## Grotesque (Mar 19, 2014)

Nice to know there is another option out there. Sadly, I KNOW for a fact these would be destroyed in a matter of minutes with my crew. This is probably a fantastic option for most rats.


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## Tao.and.Laughter (Jan 24, 2015)

I may have to give these a shot, although I'm concerned about the cost of it... My two hairless boys in particular are a force to be reckoned with. They're more like puppies than rats (Can I kill that? I CAN TOTALLY KILL THAT! I MUST DESTROY THAT COMPLETELY!! AHHHHHHHHHHHH). 

Sigh.

Maybe I'll try it with the girls. They're less likely to murder everything.


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## kksrats (Jul 25, 2014)

I'm not sure if it was mentioned in a previous post, but how many rats do you have? I'd love to try this option, but there are some things that just don't work for more than 2 rats. Are your rats also litter trained?


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## AdequateRat (Mar 12, 2015)

*Grotesque: *(_Can I also just say, I love your username?_) Yeah, I'm pretty lucky with my dudes. They stick to chewing cardboard which I'm really thankful for. I only had a problem with Cornelius chewing them for like the first 2 days, but I yelled at him and he never did it again. Hahaha. I think he was just more curious than anything because they were new. My boys now prefer sleeping on them because they're so soft compared to their tunnels. 

*Tao.and.Laughter* Yeah, the price may be a little expensive. I had some extra money lying around. I honestly think it's worth it, they're pretty sturdy. I left them in the cage for a week and they didn't even smell. But I decided to take them out and clean them as I just adopted 2 more little guys. (I had 6 in the cage with the liners for a week straight, no smell.)

*kksrats* : As of April 24th, I now have 8 ratties in total! ( As I said to Tao though, I had 6 rats in the cage with the bath mats for a week straight - No smell, most of my rats paid little to zero interest in chewing, expect Neil and Roger once.) My guys aren't really litter trained, I never tried to get them to poop in designated areas... I just tend to scoop the poop and place it in the boxes when I spot clean if some does not get in the box, so I guess they've kind of learned on their own. Especially cause they're guys, they pee everywhere. On the big panels, I have the bath mats and flat stacking boxes with bedding in them. MOST of the time, they get the poop in the box. 

The two new guys I just got, were too busy playing and meeting their new Rat family to even have time to try to chew on the mats, so I'm not worried about them either. 

I honestly think this is a good idea and I'm definitely not going back to fleece/towels for the big panels. Takes too much effort placing them in snuggly. (I can't sew haha, so the towels and fleece were separate and they would smell after a few days because of my 6 pooping machines.)


I was also thinking if your ratties tend to flip up the edges, velcro might be a good idea. But Hey-Fey also had a neat idea with the zip ties if you're worried about that too!


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## moonkissed (Dec 26, 2011)

Are they just normal bathmats? Nothing special about them? I looked around walmart & didnt see any for that price but perhaps I missed them. Are they the mainstays brand?


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## AdequateRat (Mar 12, 2015)

moonkissed said:


> Are they just normal bathmats? Nothing special about them? I looked around walmart & didnt see any for that price but perhaps I missed them. Are they the mainstays brand?


Yeah, they're just mainstays bath mats. 24x36 inches, if I do recall.
Nothing special!

It's been 2 weeks and I haven't washed them.
They don't smell at all.

I officially have 8 rats.


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## moonkissed (Dec 26, 2011)

Thanks. I think I will pick some up and try them out.


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## Sowa (Jan 24, 2015)

I need something...mine chew a little depending one what it is...I may go out and try this today.


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## AdequateRat (Mar 12, 2015)

moonkissed said:


> Thanks. I think I will pick some up and try them out.


Let me know how it goes!  
I really want to buy purple ones. XD Even though I have boys. Haha.


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## AdequateRat (Mar 12, 2015)

Sowa said:


> I need something...mine chew a little depending one what it is...I may go out and try this today.


I recommend it. I like them. They still don't smell. :3


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## moonkissed (Dec 26, 2011)

AdequateRat said:


> Let me know how it goes!
> I really want to buy purple ones. XD Even though I have boys. Haha.


I'll definitely get pink or purple  Right now my boy guinea pig has a pink fleece in his cage lol


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## vokar (3 mo ago)

AdequateRat said:


> Okay, fellow rattle enthusiasts!
> 
> Just wanted to let you guys know I'm going to be doing a pros/cons thing with bath mats as liners.
> 
> ...


Do they actually work? We've had a few slips recently, nothing serious, but enough to make me think we should probably put something down. So do you have one you'd recommend? Or is there another product that I don't know about?


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