# what are you supposed to use as bedding???



## ~shopoholicfreak~ (Jul 26, 2006)

what are you supposed to use as bedding, how do u get your water bottle to stay on the cage and how do you clean the cages???? 
wut a mouthfull!!!!!!!!


----------



## ratwings (Sep 3, 2006)

Anything from aspen to shredded newspaper will do as bedding. Never use pine or Cedar as bedding. Rats are deathly allergic to the oils of cedar and pine. Getting your water bottle to stay on your cage all depends on what type of cage and water bottle you have. The cleaning also has to do with what type of cage you have. Empty the cage the of bedding and replace any boxes or hammocks. Also clean any toys in there. Wipe down any flat areas and balconies. Your cage will be pretty clean after that!


----------



## Squishy (Aug 3, 2006)

what Ratwings said.

With cleaning I spot clean every day then clean once a week


----------



## Rose24 (Sep 16, 2006)

Hi! I got a large supply of tea towels - I put a folded tea towel in their bed (an icecream container with no lid and lots of holes cut in the sides. On top of the tea towel I put a piece of polar fleece. I replace daily and just throw them in the washing machine. My girls don't have anything on the floor of the cage - just vinyl placemats. Very easy to clean - just a wipe over once a day. They like to burrow into the fleece and tea towels. Polar fleece is great because it doesn't shred.


----------



## TildaR8 (Sep 28, 2006)

In my cage i have a TOA-LÃ„TT. Do you now what it is ? It is a like "pellets" but there not are the. The are verry god. To bedding i have a material in the cage. The are varry god :wink:


----------



## Esmie (Sep 28, 2006)

Explaining what Tilda means;
Toa-lÃ¤tt, is a thing we have here in Sweden. It's sort of pellets but it's made out of paper. You probably have in the UK to..


----------



## ratwings (Sep 3, 2006)

Also I use this vinigar-lemonjuice-water mixture to clean my rats cage with. Its nontoxic to rats and leaves the cage smelling fresh. The lemonjuice/vinigar part of the mixture is 75 % . The rest is water. Just put a little bit of the lemon juice in, its only purpose in the mixture is to make the vinigar smell less strong. Just put that in a little sprayer and your ready to clean! It works great!


----------



## Tails (Sep 20, 2006)

ratwings, can u elaborate on the vinger/lemon juice/water ratios pls....im feeling a little dim today lol and cant figure out how much of what I need lol


----------



## Lexarius (Oct 23, 2006)

The water bottle I got didn't seem to be made quite right to go on the outside of the cage, so I twisted the spout backwards and attached it on the inside. Haven't had any problems with it being chewed on.


----------



## Bugsike (Oct 30, 2006)

I use an ink free recycled paper bedding on the first floor, all three floors are covered with that styrofoam filed poster board stuff. I have it sloped in from the sides so the "waste" goes down into the pan better. I have two water bottles, one came with a useful mount and has a little yellow rubber ducky floating inside so you can see the water level  The other is attached with a wire loop made from paper clips - if you tilt the bottle away from the cage, it will stay just fine. I wipe down the cage with a wet rag when it needs it and empty the tray when it looks nasty. I put a little baking soda in there to keep smells down.


----------



## Lorenna (Dec 19, 2006)

Someone wrote you can use newspapers. YOU CAN'T! Newspapers contain plumbum which is toxic for rats.


----------



## Tails (Sep 20, 2006)

You can use newspaper if you're 100% sure the ink is vegetable based ink....still not ideal as the ink rubs off onto the fur, but its ok otherwise


----------



## hjkaga (Dec 27, 2006)

ratwings said:


> Anything from aspen to shredded newspaper will do as bedding. Never use pine or Cedar as bedding. Rats are deathly allergic to the oils of cedar and pine. Getting your water bottle to stay on your cage all depends on what type of cage and water bottle you have. The cleaning also has to do with what type of cage you have. Empty the cage the of bedding and replace any boxes or hammocks. Also clean any toys in there. Wipe down any flat areas and balconies. Your cage will be pretty clean after that!


How do u figure rats are deathly allergic to pine and cedar? I have seen lots of rats and other small animals kept on both and they didn't just up and die quickly from it. People have used it for years. I know the oils can cause respiratory infections/problems, but thats it. I know they can die from this but it doesnt mean pine and cedar will automatically kill your rat. I am not saying you should use pine or cedar, but you shouldn't say things that aren't completely true. Just explain the dangers and that their are lots of other choices for bedding out there.


----------



## Tails (Sep 20, 2006)

hjkaga, although Pine and Cedar phenols wont "up and kill" your rat, most people wont bother to change, if they can get away with just using pine/cedar shavings. A lot of people also dont consider taking their rat(s) to a vet (I always get the comment from people "you take your rat to the vet??!" and I answer, "well, yes, wouldnt you take your dog to the vet if it were sick?"). Its better, in my opinion(!), to just tell people that its highly toxic to rats, which almost forces the rat owner to look for an alternate bedding source from the beginning.

Respiritory infections can be painful to your rat too.


----------



## hjkaga (Dec 27, 2006)

I see where you are coming from. Thanks for explaining your reasoning.


----------



## Tails (Sep 20, 2006)




----------



## JennieLove (Jan 2, 2007)

I use Kaytee Total Comfort Bedding. Its fluffy, soft, safe and my babies loves to haul it around everywhere xD Especially Jay! One mintue you see the food dish the next its completely Covered


----------



## King420 (Jan 6, 2007)

I just started useing Grassy Goodnite bedding, has any one ever used this before? It looks kinda weird if ya ask me.


----------



## rcropper (Dec 31, 2006)

Tails said:


> hjkaga, although Pine and Cedar phenols wont "up and kill" your rat, most people wont bother to change, if they can get away with just using pine/cedar shavings. A lot of people also dont consider taking their rat(s) to a vet (I always get the comment from people "you take your rat to the vet??!" and I answer, "well, yes, wouldnt you take your dog to the vet if it were sick?"). Its better, in my opinion(!), to just tell people that its highly toxic to rats, which almost forces the rat owner to look for an alternate bedding source from the beginning.
> 
> Respiritory infections can be painful to your rat too.


Yes, but people aren't stupid, and it's just as irresponsible to embellish the dangers as it is to not warn them. The government likes to do this (drugs, war, recycling, etc, etc - insert your favorite GW lie here), and none of us really appreciate it. Spread truth, not scare tactics. Also it doesn't seem to be as simple as all that - certain types of kiln dried pine are ok as the phenols have been driven out by the drying process. 

If you haven't done your homework, or don't care to and want a simple answer: Stick with paper based litter's with as little dust as possible, and change it weekly at least - more often if you have lots of animals or are just inclined to keep things clean.

Rick


----------



## carlylox (Jan 16, 2007)

We don't really use a lot of "bedding" for our boys. They prefer to sleep in their hammocks but we do have some plastic corner beds which we put shredded paper in (specially made for rodents,....no dust) and on the floor we were using wood based cat litter but after a bit of reading we're using "Yesterday's News" which is a paper based version.

You're going to have different products in different countries/states/counties depending on where it is you live. The idea is is no nasty dust making stuff and you should be ok.

You can have a cat litter that won't cause any illnesses etc but turns to mush and smells to high heaven, which is good for their breathing but will make them dirty and smelly.
I think you really just need to shop around and see what you can find & afford. Eventually you will find one that is perfect for you and your ratties


----------

