# Yesterday's News Warning



## moonkissed (Dec 26, 2011)

IDK if anyone else has seen this but I thought I would share just in case.

Alot of people seem to think Yesterdays News is purely paper but actually it is only like 50% paper and 50% woods including softwoods like Cedar and Pine which are not safe for rats.










Originally shared by Little Paws Rattery
& also posted directly on Yesterday's News Facebook page


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## RatAtat2693 (Jan 13, 2016)

Greeeat... now I gotta throw that out too. Well, not really. I have a cat.

I was told you can use rabbit feed? It's mostly alfalfa pellets, so the rats won't eat it. Works the same, from what I understand. 

Anyone else tried this?


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## Angel_Rat (Feb 17, 2016)

I heard about it too but haven't used bunny litter yet. Rats don't like the taste of pure alfalfa and I heard it wasn't dusty and was absorbent. 🙂 If u try it tell us about it!


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## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

I use Eco Bedding. It is 100% dust free, and 100% crinkle paper. Odor control ok, but I also daily clean. Easy to lift it up and put it in a container so I can easily vacuum the poop.


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## Kelsbels (Aug 12, 2015)

I tried using Alfalfa as litter. They did taste-test it a lot, but they didn't seem to actually eat it. The Alfalfa had a smell to it too I can't say if it was good or bad. After hearing about the snak shak thing (item made out of alfalfa and honey, and a rat passed away from eating too much of it) I decided I didn't want to chance them eating it. 

Now I'm using some paper litter, and it seems to work well for them. I don't think it's available in the USA though.


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## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

Kelsbels said:


> I tried using Alfalfa as litter. They did taste-test it a lot, but they didn't seem to actually eat it. The Alfalfa had a smell to it too I can't say if it was good or bad. After hearing about the snak shak thing (item made out of alfalfa and honey, and a rat passed away from eating too much of it) I decided I didn't want to chance them eating it. Now I'm using some paper litter, and it seems to work well for them. I don't think it's available in the USA though.


 the problem with the Snak Shak is that there is pine/cedar in it.


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## Love My Rats (Sep 3, 2015)

ok but I just changed the liter pans today and cleaned their cage , go figures , I have been using yesterdays news for months and never seem to have any problems with it and for sure my rats don't eat they like to get in there and scatter it all over the place , so now what can I use for their liter pans ?


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## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

Love My Rats said:


> ok but I just changed the liter pans today and cleaned their cage , go figures , I have been using yesterdays news for months and never seem to have any problems with it and for sure my rats don't eat they like to get in there and scatter it all over the place , so now what can I use for their liter pans ?


Aspen, Yesterday News (although has baking soda in it), Eco Bedding, Kaytee clean cozy. That's the ones I'm familiar with. The cheapest would be aspen.


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## Love My Rats (Sep 3, 2015)

ok what about this , it sounds good http://www.petsmart.com/small-pet/b...-catid-600012?var_id=36-21582&_t=pfm=category


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## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

it doesn't say it is dust free or 99% dust free, so I'm not sure. Otherwise it is 100% paper so that's good. I never tried it.


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## kksrats (Jul 25, 2014)

Perhaps someone should ask them if the softwoods are kiln dried. That, in theory, would make it safe to use. After going through most of the commercial bedding options, I've personally found that aspen is the best (and probably cheapest) when it comes to loose litter.


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## Love My Rats (Sep 3, 2015)

I think I'am gonna stick with yesterdays news I never have had any problems with it and I can get it for a good price , I do plan on using the All Living Things Paper Bedding but just for the dig boxes I'am making them , I have a few old shoe boxes going to use some of it in them plus some wood toys and maybe a few plastic easter eggs with some treats


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## Rugrats (Jul 29, 2015)

I really like Oxbow blend paper bedding. It's really clean to the touch and doesn't get dusty. It's a little more expensive but I use litter boxes so I don't use very much at a time.


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## RatAtat2693 (Jan 13, 2016)

Just got 50 lbs of cheap rabbit food for $15 USD. Gonna try it out. Let you guys know how it goes after a week of testing. 

I would get the paper bedding, but ignoring how pricey it can get, it tends to mix with the fleece and is next to impossible to shake out.


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## Kelsbels (Aug 12, 2015)

Gribouilli said:


> the problem with the Snak Shak is that there is pine/cedar in it.


 and Alfalfa which they can't digest. Bad product overall.


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## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

Kelsbels said:


> and Alfalfa which they can't digest. Bad product overall.


Correct


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## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

RatAtat2693 said:


> Just got 50 lbs of cheap rabbit food for $15 USD. Gonna try it out. Let you guys know how it goes after a week of testing. I would get the paper bedding, but ignoring how pricey it can get, it tends to mix with the fleece and is next to impossible to shake out.


That is very cheap let us know how it goes. My females were eating, or at least chewing the Yesterday News with baking soda so that is why I went 100% paper and dust free. Was it bulk buying from a bin or a sealed bag?


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## RatAtat2693 (Jan 13, 2016)

Tractor Supply Co.

Doesn't have an ingredient list on the bag, but since I'm using it for litter, I don't really care.

However, I did take a minute to look it up afterwards, and my findings justified that this is the only good use for this brand of food.

I don't own rabbits, but if I did, the last things I want to see in the top five are mystery by products.

"...Ingredients

Processed grain by products, forage products, roughage products, molasses products, calcium corbinate, grain products, salt DL Methlonine, choline chloride, ferrous sulfate, Vitamin D3 supplement, Vitamin E supplement, Vitamin A supplement, calcium pantothenate, niacine supplement, riboflaven supplement, Vitamin B12 supplement, cobalt carbonate, manganese sulfate, ethylendiamine dihydriedidle, zinc sulfate, basic copper chloride, sodium selenite."

http://www.chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?t=44536


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## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

Nice kitty Yep the pelkets would be horrible to feed to a bunny. The actual ingredients can be pretty much anything when it says "products" or "by products". Will be good for litter though. Let us know iff it is good for ifor control and if your rats start eating any.


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## RatAtat2693 (Jan 13, 2016)

"Nice kitty."

Thanks - I pulled her out of a parking lot.

Phase One: Introduction of the litter.

Daisy and the Itty Bitty Girls ate the majority of one pellet before deciding the taste was about as good as the quality of the ingredients. Daisy once tried to eat earwax, though, so it really means nothing. I think the only thing that got them that far was the fact that it has "molasses products" in it. That probably explains the super sweet smell emanating from the bag.

The Flatlander Gang didn't seem to care, save for Miss Piggy (Peach) who would straight up eat cardboard if I let her. (She stopped after the fourth/fifth pellet.) Rome mostly made a dash for his Oxbow after I introduced him to the litterbox. I don't think they really understood that it was litter, so I'll be mixing what's left of the dirty litter in so they might get the hint.

And lastly the King Brothers wanted to know why the heck I was offering them peasant food. Bruté humored me and took a pellet before hiding it under his tail.

I'm going to let the litter sit a few days and let you guys know how bad (or good) my room smells. I'm not having high hopes for that department since it's quite literally grass and molasses, but hey, maybe the sugar will cover up the nasty smell.

I not-so-secretly want someone from TSC to see this so they know that their "Pride" product is only good to squat in and nothing more.


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## RatAtat2693 (Jan 13, 2016)

Update: The King Boys seem to avoid walking on the rabbit pellets. Not sure if it's because the pellets shift a lot or because of the actual pellets. (They haven't had anything but fleece as bedding in a while.)

Mixed some of the old litter in with the rabbit pellets in the Flatlander Gang's litter box. Only saw Rome use the box, but I'm pretty sure I could put quicksand in that old gentleman's box and he'd use it. They are using it, though.

The Itty Bitty Girls aren't really litter box trained, but there isn't any rabbit "food" in their stash pile, so they definitely aren't eating it.


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## moonkissed (Dec 26, 2011)

do rabbit pellets turn to dust when wet?

I used wood pellets in the past for my guinea pigs and the wet parts would turn to dust and you could just scoop and sift out and mix the other pellets back around and use them for a long time.


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## artgecko (Nov 26, 2013)

I wouldn't be too concerned about the wood content in the paper pellets... I use horse stall pellets in my litter boxes and underneath my shredded aspen and have no issues from it.. They are made from pine, I believe, but do not have a strong smell and when they do turn to dust, it falls below the whole pellets. When I used paper pellets, I used the petco cat litter brand and had better results than with yesterdays news or any other brand... I am not sure if they still make that brand or not though, so cannot recommend it (I haven't seen it at my local petco for a couple years now).


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## RatAtat2693 (Jan 13, 2016)

End of Week Update: My room smells like a rabbit hutch.

I notice it mostly in the King Boys' cage. They aren't neutered, and the bottom of their Rat Manor is ultimately all just rabbit pellets. I'm not terribly surprised that it stinks from them. The RM, as I've discussed in previous posts, has zero room for a litter box, but I'll hopefully be getting them a CN soon. (Long story as to why they're not in their DFN, but it involves not having cute but vicious oopsie babies.)

The Flatlander Gang only has it in their two litter boxes, and the only male of the quad is neutered, so the smell is about average. Nothing remarkable. 

The Itty Bitties are still in the "let's kick everything out of our litter box and bite her when she tries to clean it up" phase of socialization, and I'm really just over their attitudes. But they were never hugged enough as children, so I'm currently not expecting them to use a litter box. *insert grandiose eye rolls here* Gotta take care of their other, more serious issues.

Overall:
Affordability: 6/5 (30¢ a pound)
Liquid absorption: 3/5
Easy to remove from fleece mixture: Yes - shake it like your mama taught you.
Turns to dust when wet: Not really? Kinda cake/pudding-like. (Sorry if I ruined your dessert.)
Odor control: 2/5, though most, if any, odor "control" comes from the overbearing smell of the pellets.
Will use again? Yeah. Mostly because I bought fifty pounds of the stuff and have nine rats. Would be good for if money gets tight. Litter is kind of one place where going cheap is okay. 

Synopsis: If you don't have to sleep in the same room as your rats and they use a litter box, it's decent litter at a can't-be-beaten price. If you're worried about smell, you'll be changing this out every other day for two unaltered males. But like I said, it's cheap, so not a big toss. (And please, please don't feed this crap to your rabbit.)


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## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

I'm bumping that thread as I noticed a few people with sick rats who were using Yesterday's News... If you have sick rats, switching to a different bedding is definitely worth a try. For sick rats avoid fleece as bedding too as it doesn't control ammonia at all.


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## Ladylazerstar702 (Sep 15, 2016)

Love My Rats said:


> ok what about this , it sounds good http://www.petsmart.com/small-pet/b...-catid-600012?var_id=36-21582&_t=pfm=category


I've never used this exactly but I use critter care paper bedding which is like generic care fresh. It's about the same price and does say it's 99% dust free.


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