wee wee pads and such?-New?'s

[Dumbo-lov'n]

I have alergies to dust and dust mites, which have recently begun to cause asthma  Therefore i am looking for alternatives to bedding and litter for potty training to keep my babies cage as clean and dust free as possible 

I have been reading alot, and have decided that eco-bedding, and yesterdays news would make good options, but i am wondering if anyone has tried wee wee pads, or something like that? I read on the reference forum, that people w/allergies should use absorbant pads, i was not sure if this is what it was reffering too?

I figure they are soft, easy to remove and keep the cage clean, i do not know much else about them though. I am also wondering if the agent in them that attract dogs to use them, is also attractive to rats, I'd like to litterbox train, so i don't want to confuse the poor babies...if they are rat effective, then perhaps i could put it in the litterbox, so at least that would be easy to clean

any thoughts would be greatly appreciated...also if anyone has any comments on the quality and odor control of eco-bedding that would be great too

Thanks

[trubandloki]

I have never used wee pads in my rat cage, so I can not comment on that.

I did use fabric though.  I had yesterday news in my litter pans and all other surfaces were covered with fabric pieces.  I normally used cloth diapers (bought them in the automotive section, they were tons cheaper there) and pieces of fleece.  The diapers are very absorbant.

In the areas where the girls peed I changed the fabric daily.

I would save the dirty rat laundry in a hamper with a lid that latched and wash it all at once,  one time per week.

[PinkPaws]

I would be wary of anything Diaper-ish. Most have a sort of silica gel in them that absorbs fluids. They swell imensly and if the rats ingest some of it, it may be really harmful. I'd check the label and see if it says anything about it being harmful to eat....

[Dearpie]

We use Healthy Pet Dust Free Fiber Cat Litter (Formerly EcoFresh Cat Litter) in our litter boxes.  Kaytee puts out a similar product, but I can't think of the name right now.  We don't have allergies, but this is a VERY dustfree product.  (Also, I linked it via the forum to Amazon, so the forum gets credit.)

[trubandloki]

I would be wary of anything Diaper-ish. Most have a sort of silica gel in them that absorbs fluids. They swell imensly and if the rats ingest some of it, it may be really harmful. I'd check the label and see if it says anything about it being harmful to eat....

cloth diapers do not have any filling in them except cotton cloth....

They are made to be washed and reused, not tossed out.

[PinkPaws]

I should of been more clear...I meant disposable diapers....

[Dumbo-lov'n]

for diapers how often do they need to be changed to control smell?

and dearpie-what is that stuff you reccommended, or what texture or size, is it strips? i couldn't tell in the picture

thank you 

[trubandloki]

I changed the cloth in the areas where my girls peed (two rats) every day. This was normally their bed area, they liked to marinate in their pee. 

The other levels were changed once per week when I cleaned the entire cage.

[Nan]

I've used the "piddle pads under the yesterday's news.  They immediately shredded it and pulled it up much like they do with paper towels.  It did help with the smell a little.  I didn't see that it did much better than yesterday's news by itself.  I tried the cloth and the YN in the litter box.  It was very smelly.  Do the cloth diapers absorb the smell better than the fleece.  If so, I may try again.
Diana

[trubandloki]

I do not think they absorb the smell any better than the fleece does.  They can absorb more pee it seems like.

I found with cloth bedding you have to be deligent about changing their pee area daily.  (that was with two rats in one cage, I assume if you have more than two you might need to change that area twice per day)

It was an easy change out.  Lift dirty cloth out, put it in the hamper (close hamper lid) and put in clean cloth.


My hubby is very sensitive to smells and with my daily removal of the cloth in the area where they peed (the most) he did not find the cage smelly.

[Dearpie]

The stuff I put in the litter boxes are round pellets, pea size.    It looks like a bunch of pea gravel, but soft.

[ratmomma]

I use news paper. I have a wire cage and they don't spend that much time on the floor. They have kleenex to shred and hammocks. When I get the Action shopper (free weekly), I know it's time to clean. I chuck the paper and other assorted messes in the trash and wash out the bottom. I like doing this more than having litter. Litter was much much messier. This is my preference. I could just be wacky. It saves money too, because the soy ink printed paper is free!

You may want to use a mask when cleaning. And keep them away from where you sleep if you can. Good luck!

[Dumbo-lov'n]

Thank you everyone!..more questions though...

I settled on eco-bedding the paper strips, for the main bedding; I figued if it doesn't work, at least it looks like fun, and can be a nest stuffer if i have to get something new.

The litter though, i messed up on. It was recommended by someone that i get corncob, but i have been reading and it doesn't sound good ..so now i must return that and find something else.

i saw something about walnut bedding-is that the same as the walnut reptile bedding?-thats all i could find

If not i think i will try yesterdays news or the kaytee version of what dearpie said..i think i found it in the store today

Any more opinions or ideas are greatly appreciated ...Thanks!!!!!

[Cricket]

The litter though, i messed up on. It was recommended by someone that i get corncob, but i have been reading and it doesn't sound good ..so now i must return that and find something else.

i saw something about walnut bedding-is that the same as the walnut reptile bedding?-thats all i could find

If not i think i will try yesterdays news or the kaytee version of what dearpie said..i think i found it in the store today

I'll toss in my two cents. ^^

I've tried just about everything in my small animal keeping lifetime, I hate turning the poor little things into experiments, but, its hard to find one thing that works for everyone.

I've tried the corncob, but, within a few days the smell was horrible, and I found *gasp* mold in spots they'd been pee'ing in and I hadn't known about (I spot clean daily).  It doesn't seem to deal with moisture too well (it swelled under the water bottle area and in "pee" corners.  Needless to say, it only lasted for me that one change.

I've never tried the walnut shells, never seen it marketed for small animals, just reptiles.  But, I know most reptile people don't reccomend it because its not digestible and can lead to impaction - I've not had an animal eat bedding, but, it makes me careful.  The only thing close to this I can think of is the Swheat Schoop (Wheat Based Cat Litter), which, I've not tried, but heard/seen people complain about the dust in it.

And, if you're talking about Kaytee Softsorb - avoid it like the plague our ratties carry!    I got a free bag of it when I bought a Super Pet cage, and geeze - I've been chasing that fluff all over ever since!  Its not fluffy, but, my bratty rat has been pushing it out of his cage for the fun of it (and clinging to the cage with a little smirk on his face when I'm fussing at him trying to vaccum it all up.)  Its really light and seems to control odor really well, but, unless you've got high cage sides, I'd totally avoid it and not reccomend it.

I've fallen in love with using Yesterday's News in the rats cage, and Aspen in my piggies cage.  I've got an unnatural fear of the guinea pigs eating the Yesterday's News (because it looks like thier Oxbow) and so I down allergy pills and sift out the little bit of dust in the aspen and use that for them.

I hope my little bit of info helps - if not - sorry! ^^