What can i line my rats cage with, sawdust making then itch and sneeze?

Question

What can i line my rats cage with, sawdust making then itch and sneeze?

Answer 1

Yes, definitely do away with the sawdust. Rats are prone to respiratory infections and sawdust could definitely cause that.

Do you mean for bedding? Or between the bedding and the cage? If you mean bedding, you could purchase Aspen bedding, Carefresh, Yesterday's news, or use fleece blankets or towels to line the bottom. Carefresh can be a bit dusty, so if you have rats with sensitive noses that might not be a great choice either. Yesterday's News is very good, and not at all dusty.

Answer 2

I breed rats and I find the easist and cheapest bedding for them is shredded office paper. It easy to get hold of and the ink and paper is usually good quality, so the ink won't run.

Answer 3

you can use eco bedding, there is carefresh which you can get from any good pet shop. It is expensive though.

Answer 4

we use shredded paper in our cages

Answer 5

Carefresh Bedding is AWESOME. I work at PetSmart and that's what we use for our rats and guinea pigs. Wood shavings can give them respiratory problems but carefresh really helps with the smell, honestly, I have 5 rats, used to have 9. It's soft for their feet and stuff and it doesn't make as big of a mess as other beddings.

Answer 6

cut up old news papers and scrunch them up the rats will do the rest

Answer 7

No that could cause isues with breathing I really wouldnt i would use fluff bedding or not populare news paper shreddings not reall news paper get from stores FOR rats

Answer 8

Sawdust is not healthy for them. Woodwise-aspen bedding is the best bet. Otherwise, you could use recycled paper pellets. I don't suggest regular newspaper. Laying it flat wouldn't give your rats anything to play in or hide. Rats love to hide their food. They are scavengers...they hide it for later. Flat paper wouldn't be very cozy for them to lay on either. And ripping it up would be annoying. If the itching and sneezing doesn't stop, I suggest you take them to a vet. Or look into a better diet. Sneezing usually means they are sick, and itching could be mites which is very common in rates.

Answer 9

I had a pet rat for she lived till she was 7 all i did was buy printer paper and cut it up. She did the rest and it was cheap too!!

Answer 10

i use dust free cat litter. its really good and they dont smell. its just really noisy when they charge about on it and scrap on it, especially in the middle of the night

Answer 11

there is also this like cotton kinda stuffing looking material that's meant for lining cages its very comfy for them and soft so maybe try that.

Answer 12

I had alot of problems with lining for my rats cages - i used to use non toxic old newspapers shredded up but my new rats just take that all into their house at night then the cage has nothing on it...seriously they could barely get into their house it was that full! lol

but yeah iv tried old towels - this worked really well but unfortunatley they get smelly pretty quickly.

then tried the fluffly cottonwool type stuff but I don't like it because it sticks to their claws and feet and they pull it with them when they walk and they hate that

then i tried the recycled paper stuff, a bit like tissue paper - but that just slides of their shelves, its quite dusty and also the cage was smelly

anywho...i finally found carefresh bedding which is surprisingly hard to come by in these parts, and anywho it is amazing!!

looks c**p

but its amazing

cannot smell the cage for a week!!

a whole week!!

and i have 2 big smelly boys!!

also it doesn't make them sneeze and it doesn't get stuck in their claws, and they love digging in it if i put it quite thick at the bottom of the cage...great for hiding little treats hehe.

gud luck

xx

Answer 13

try some of the fiber based beddings.  They are actually healthier becuase natural tree oils or chemicals on them.  That might be what is making your rat itch.  Plus, using fiber saves trees!