# What to use?



## Starlite (Sep 9, 2009)

Me and OH have been discussing adding a rodent to the family (either rat or hamster) and its going to be from the SSPCA but one thing i was wondering is what to use in the bottom of the cage?
When i was young and had hamsters we used sawdust from the pet shop to line the cage floor, but from a few posts this isnt good for the animal, is this true?


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## thedogsmother (Aug 28, 2008)

Shavings (not sawdust) is fine for hamsters and its what I use for my hamsters but can cause respiratory problems in rats and mice, for rats I use fleece to line the bottom of the cage because its nice and warm and have paper based cat litter in their litter tray they also like to dig in this , you can also use paper based cat litter, and you can buy low dust products like carefresh or cardboard squares (sorry I cant remember what they are called),
I use ripped up toilet roll for all the rodents in their beds/hammocks because its easy to get hold of, warm, and cheap. Sorry they arent very good pics but Ive tried to show what I mean about the fleece.

The rat cage


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## Starlite (Sep 9, 2009)

lol, shavings is what i meant  Sawdust is what my mum called it when she bought it for me (shows the last time ive had a hammy lo!l)

Thank-you


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## thedogsmother (Aug 28, 2008)

I think you can still buy sawdust in some pet shops but it isnt very many luckily, I remember when I had a hamster as a kid I used sawdust and that horrible cotton wool type bedding in a little hamster starter cage:blush:, Im surprised any hamsters managed to survive back then lol.


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## Paws&Claws (Aug 29, 2009)

TDM  you have a lovely rattie cage! where do u get ur fleece from?  might try it with the degus! x


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## MerlinsMum (Aug 2, 2009)

One thing to consider is, you can't really just have one rat on its own.... they need company and don't do well by themselves.

However, Syrian hamsters do have to be kept on their own, so that might be a consideration if you only want one new pet.

There are lots of different substrates you can use for rats - have a google for:
Finacard
Ecopet bedding
Megazorb
or
shredded paper/newspaper
plus any paper-based cat litter although that can work out quite expensive if you have a very large cage.


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## thedogsmother (Aug 28, 2008)

Paws&Claws said:


> TDM  you have a lovely rattie cage! where do u get ur fleece from?  might try it with the degus! x


Thanks hun, I get the fleeces from Asda 2 for £3 so I can have loads of spare ones, at that price it doesnt matter if they get chewed and they can be changed every couple of days, they love to dig underneath it and make little tunnels.


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## Paws&Claws (Aug 29, 2009)

Thanks  Do you buy the big fleece blankets and cut them up? I think i might have a look in the market to see if they have any scraps in there bargain bins... or maybe the poundshop for them paw fleece blankets  x


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## thedogsmother (Aug 28, 2008)

Paws&Claws said:


> Thanks  Do you buy the big fleece blankets and cut them up? I think i might have a look in the market to see if they have any scraps in there bargain bins... or maybe the poundshop for them paw fleece blankets  x


I cut the blankets up for the shelves and fold them up for the floors so they are nice and thick.


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## happysaz133 (Jun 5, 2008)

Woodshavings is good for hamsters. Good for you going to adopt. There's a lot of gorgeous hammies at the SSPCA centres, I keep seeing them but sadly, I have no space at the moment!


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## Paws&Claws (Aug 29, 2009)

Thanks TDM  Might have ago with the degus  x


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## ajgibbon (Dec 8, 2009)

Starlite said:


> Me and OH have been discussing adding a rodent to the family (either rat or hamster) and its going to be from the SSPCA but one thing i was wondering is what to use in the bottom of the cage?
> When i was young and had hamsters we used sawdust from the pet shop to line the cage floor, but from a few posts this isnt good for the animal, is this true?


hey

I noticed a few people mentioned the cardboard squares, in Scotland ecobed is hard to get a hold of (or so I experienced) but I get a product called BedXcel from an equestrian shop. It's just the same as ecobed (chopped, dust extracted cardboard squares) and it's excellent stuff. Really good for the money as it comes in huge bales (lasts ages) and I have noticed no smell at all since I started using it. I use this for my rats and Im also a huge fan of using fleece and paper towels as they love shredding them. The fleece blankets from ikea are great, really cheap and you get loads of material!


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