Alternative “green” litter?

[Lucy]

On another forum, I think it was memeber Hedi who mentioned using newspaper as litter.

I was thinking of doing that, 1) to keep the cost of litter down 2) to find alternative ways to recycling/reusing. Chicago does not have a very good household recylcing program.

So to member Hedi, or anyone else who has/knows those who do… what method do you use? Do you put a few sheets down? Is it shedded paper? So, if it’s thrown out everyday, the smell isn’t bad? Can you add a little of baking soda to the newspaper to absorb order?

I use care fresh now, and having two bunnies they are just plowing through it. I did try yesterday’s news, but it’s too expenisive- and I finished a huge bag in like three weeks.

[osprey]

The lowest cost solution for a prepared litter is to use wood stove pellets or pelleted horse stall bedding.  Both of these products are made from pelleted sawdust (usually pine), are very absorbent, and are cheap.  Around here, a 40 pound bag is around $5.  Regular pelleted organic little like Cat Country is close to $20 for 40 pounds.  It has been difficult finding wood stove pellets this year, I managed to get a bag early in the heating season and I got a couple of bags of horse stall bedding at a feed store.  If you are in a super urban area, this might be hard for you to do.

As for newspaper, I have never tried it, but if you are willing to change it daily or every other day you can line the bottom of the pan with several layers of newsprint to absorb the pee, then cover it with a layer of hay or straw.  The hay prevents the buns from standing in the pee.  The newspaper does not do much to control odors, so I am not sure how stinky this will get.  The hay will get soiled, so you’ll end up dumping some of it.

[x liddo bunny x]

i remember reading somewhere that pine for litter is very bad for your bun. the fumes from the pine mixed with ur bun can cause problems.

http://www.rabbit.org/journal/1/liver-disease.html

http://www.rabbit.org/faq/sections/litter.html#litter (8.4 What types of litter should i use)
“Stay away from litters made from softwoods, like pine or cedar shavings or chips, as these products are thought to cause liver damage in rabbits who use them. CatWorks litter has been linked to zinc poisoning. Swheat Scoop Litter should be avoided, because rabbits will often ingest it. Because it is comprised of wheat, it is very high in carbohydrates and can cause obesity, excessive cecal production, diarrhea, bacterial imbalance, and other health issues.”

i have a question, did u throw away yesterday’s news every day? in the instructions, it says to put about 2 inches of litter in the box. that is alot to have to throw away in one day. i agree, compaired to most litter it is very expensive for so little but here is the thing. in the instructions, it tells you to clean out the litter, you are supposed to get rid of only the pellets that have pee in them. how do you find that, they are the puffy expanded ones. and then pick out their poo. you dont throw away all of it every day. it is ment to use to the crumb. and waht i found out today with yesterday;s news is that u can leave it for them to use for up to 3 days and then a good majority of the news paper pellets would be used. and worried about it smelling, it doesnt actually smell that bad to be there for 3 days. the first thing you will begin to smell is the hay. if you put hay with their litter, that has to be replaced every day to keep from smelling. and it isnt hard to replace. =) i am pretty poor and i find it better than using these little litter balls. they are powdery balls that melt when they touch pee. that was a smaller bag than yesterday’s news and it cost 8 bucks. it smelled really bad by the end of each day and it HAS to be emptied every day. i would line it with news paper at the bottom of the pan for easy cleaning and absorbing but it just made the litterbox smell bad. ive heard that news paper is a good litter for absorbancy but it doesnt help with the smell. but for some reason yesterday’s news is. not sure if it is the absorbant pellets or what. i bought yesterdays news i think about 2 weeks ago and i still have a good amount left. yesterday;s news is good for me but it might not be the one for you and u should try different ones to see which would match u and ur buns. but plese dont use pine shavings! and remember than many litters will require you to separate the poo and pee from the litter. isnt that the purpose of the cat scoop litters? but any ways, ive heard of someone just usign the bun’s hay for litter. what ive noticed that hay seems to make things messier in their litter box and make it smell very bad when peed on. ive noticed this because my buns have lots of hay in their litter box so they will pee and poo on the hay. it makes it really messy and wet as well. (i full half of the litterbox with hay to the brim and i put like 2 cups of yesterday’s news on the other side and that usually lasts for 2 days except for the hay, it needs to either be refilled or re[placed everyday or it will smell and look bad) usually the yesterday’s news side is pretty dry but sometimes the hay will cross sides. =P hope that helped you. try maybe doing what i do with yesterday;s news with other litters to cut back on costs? let me know what u find. =)

[wendyzski]

I use Feline Pine, which is a pelleted wood litter – it turns to sawdust when it gets wet so it’s biodegradable.  It’s what they use over at Red Door.  I have found the 5lb bags at Dominicks and the 10-lb ones at Target.  I only have to change it once a week, though with 2 buns you may have to do it more often.  I put a sheet of newspaper or a paper towel under it when I change the box, so it will all come out in one big soggy lump when I dump it.

If you find a local source for those wood stove pellets that everyone raves about, PLEASE let me know – none of the hardware stores and chains I have gone to know what I’m talking about when I call them about it.

[x liddo bunny x]

f you find a local source for those wood stove pellets that everyone raves about, PLEASE let me know

wendyzski what ever u do, dont use pine~

[Hedi]

Hi Fujoe-

Personally I hate litter. I used carefresh forever but its kinda dusty and they always move it out of the way to go potty. I have tried shredded paper-bought a shredder just for that purpose but it makes a mess and gets all over the house.

I just take one small section of the paper-usually a few pages of newspaper-and in some of our boxes it fits perfectly. I will fold it if the box is too small or add additional paper if the box is too big. Just a few sheets is enough to keep the urine from soaking through into the box.

Then i put hay on top. I dont put a huge mound but I put two decent handfuls and then when I go to bed and during the day I make sure they have plenty to eat. I hate throwing away so much excess hay so I watch to see how they are eating it.

Their litterboxes dont smell and the girls have done great with it! My little pookie for some reason had a hard time with all that litter so she would never go in her box but would go in the same area of her house. By changing it to newspaper and hay she has perfect litter habits. If I notice before evening that they really pee’d a lot then I will change it out early so they aren’t sitting on wet paper. I have used baking powder in the past to help with smell when i used litter but I havent used it since i just use newspaper. I have noticed they spend a lot more time in their litterboxes, lounging and sleeping as well. We even have a "community" litter box outside of their cages but in their room that they all use and don’t seem to mind.

Each girl has two litterboxes in their houses. Not really sure why. For Carrera I wanted to make sure she understood she could only go there and since her cage in that area is close to Pookies I didnt want her pooping up they side of the cage on the floor. She uses both litter boxes everyday. Im fine with it-as long as she uses them i will clean both. Pookie has a big one she eats hay from and lounges in but does not pee or poo in. She uses a corner box for that and does really well. If the newspaper soaked the urine up and there is nothing in the bottom of the box then I dont spray it down with vinegar water. But I will spray them down if it leaks thru or every few days routinely.

Every once in awhile they may get bored and tear some paper out of their boxes. My new little boy isnt very graceful and tends to push everything to one side when he jumps in. But I just put everything back to the way its supposed to and its fine.

I do keep a large trash can in their room and every few days throw out the trash. I do use baking powder in my trash-just sprinkle it around to make sure it doesnt stink up the room.

The humane society in Columbus where I went this past weekend only uses newspaper and it has worked out well for them.

Any other questions let me know! Hedi

[osprey]

There is nothing wrong with using pine pellets as litter.  Pellets are heated while they are being extruded into shape, so the nasty phenols are gassed off.  The pine products to avoid are shavings.  These have the phenols intact, and can cause harm after long exposure.  Aspen shavings are supposed to be safe.

[poopy]

I just use Carefresh and I get it online at petco when its on sale for $9.99 for 50L (50% less than instore). I only put it in the back half because she only pees in that area, so it takes a really long time for her to go through the 50L. The carefresh is biodegradable, so you should be able to put it in the Foliage recycle trash

[BinkyBunny]

To ditto what Osprey said. Pine woodstove pellets are okay! They are the exception. The reason that pine is okay under these circumstances is because they have dried out the toxic oils/phenols. It’s the phenols in the pine that are bad, and the pine shavings still have the oils in so that is why pine shaving are bad, but pine woodstove pellets and feline pine are okay.

[x liddo bunny x]

ahhhhhhhh!!! that is good to know. i was just fearful of pine because i saw that. thanks for the info. =)

[Lucy]

Wow- thanks everyone…

I’ll start looking around for the wood stove pellets -I’m shocked Wendy that you can’t find them in Chicago.. it’s not like it’s hot here, though at the same time I don’t know anyone who has a wood stove in their apt. It’s something new to try to see if it works.

Hedi- thanks for all of the info! It seems like that is a really cheap and clean way to deal with litter! After the carefresh finishes I’m going to try it- possibly before I look for the wood stove pellets. I just need to find out where to get newspapers that would otherwise be thrown in the trash.

xiddobunnyx- Thanks for your input, but I’m not going back to yesterdays news. I used it like you used it. I didn’t throw everything out, just scooped out the bad stuff.. but with two bunnies- one of them being a male, it’s just impossible for me to keep up with it.

As of right now, Patina and Fujoe have two littler boxes- the end up soaking through 80% of one box and 50% of the other box everyday. I don’t know if it’s because they are still “marking” the box.. but it’s really bad.

Poopy- the thing with chicago, is that there isn’t any in-house recycling. Which is really difficult to deal with when coming from LA. They have “blue bags” where you put all of your recyclables in blue trash bags and throw them into the big trashcans with everything else. Then they pick out the blue trash bags at the dump- it’s bull, I don’t buy it. But I do attempt to recycle plastics and glass in this method. Anyway.. even though I use carefresh and it’s biodegradable, I can’t push it in that direction.

The newspaper seems like such a good idea! Anyone else use this method?

[Hedi]

Someone told me you can buy those wood stove pellets at The Home Depot and Lowes. But have no idea what section or anything.

[Anita Stark]

If Yesterday’s News was working well for them, you could look for store brand of the same thing.  We started out with Yesterday’s News for Sable but it was expensive even for one little bun.  I found a product called MewsPrint at PetValu.  It’s their store brand and it’s a whole lot cheaper than the name brand.  Plus they often have sales and I can stock up.

[Lucy]

so… we have tried the newspaper.. they have two litter boxes and ended up soaking through for each litter box. I put down 8 pages (4 pages folded in half). today we are trying 14 pages. I don’t understand how two little bunnies can pee so much! The house is a little stinky… but I don’t know if it’s because I’m trying to smell something really hard. I don’t want to give up on this newspaper thing… Their pen is A LOT neater right now. There’s no litter everywhere and they seem to be keeping the hay in the box.

It was really nice to just pick up the newspaper and dump everything out. I did put some baking soda on the bottom of one box today to see if that will do anything..

has anyone tried the corn litter? I stopped by petco to see their litter collection and there was a corn based one.. does anyone know anything?

[wendyzski]

I don’t know about hard numbers but I have read a couple of stories about bunnies trying to eat the corn and wheat-based litters and developing blockages.

I used to use the corncob stuff for my hamsters and it worked great with no dust. 
But you already know I’m biased towards the feline pine litter for buns. 

[cookie627]

well i have heard ofthe corn based litter. But i use aspen supreme pellets.(recycled)

[Lucy]

ok- so I tired the newspaper stuff, and I just couldn’t do it. I have a really bad gag reflex in the morning, and just couldn’t clean their cages. The bf had to do it : ) I just couldn’t believe how quickly they would soak throught.

anyway I went out and bought feline pine. I know that wendy dumps everything once a week, but since I have two bunnies, it might be more often. Can anyone else tell me how they clean and interact with feline pine or wood stove pellets (which I don’t think Chicago carries…) thanks!

[MooBunnay]

Hi! for those of you using newspaper, thats what I do as well, and here are a couple things that I have found help a lot:

1) If you have problems with the newspaper sticking to the bottom of the box, I put a teensy bit of vegetable oil on the bottom of a clean box before putting the newspaper down.  This keeps the newspaper from sticking.  If you have a bunny that digs and eats the paper a lot maybe don’t use this technique as I am not sure that buns should be eating vegetable oil (even though it is just a small amount to cover the surface.

2) I keep a hay bail in my garage that I feed my bunnies from, and so I always cover the newspaper with the small hay pieces (the stuff that would be left at the bottom of the bag if thats what you feed buns from) because that puts a nice covering over the newspaper so the buns don’t get black feet from the ink! then I put the normal hay over that.

[osprey]

I have 3 bunnies and I use pine based litter (I am using horse stall bedding right now).  They all share one large box for the most part, we have a second box for run around time that doesn’t get used that much.

I change the box twice a week, usually Wendesday and Sunday.  If the weather is hot, I’ll do it once more.  I dump the whole thing into my compst, rinse the box with the hose and dry it.  For the Sunday cleaning, I also clean it with vinegar.  The whole bottom of the box is covered with pellets, then I place several handfuls of hay in and spread them over the pellets.

If the smell of the pee is getting to you, you might try one of the Aspen based pelleted litters (I used something called "Green Pet Aspen Supreme" ).  This stuff has amazing odor control, but you have to like the smell of the Aspen.  It has a very distinctive, woodshop kind of smell to it.  Reminds me of the smell of my father’s table saw when I was a kid, very sawdusty smell.  Here is a link to the stuff on PetCo’s site:

http://www.petco.com/Shop/Product.aspx

[jellyrose]

I’m the same as Poopy. I use carefresh and just put a little in the corners (I have nice deep trays I got from Walmart for $3) and put news paper on the bottom and hay on the top….. I change it every day and it usually takes them about 6-7 weeks to get through a 50Litre bag (and I have 4 litter tays!). If I had a compost bin I’d put all the yucky stuff in there…. but not enough garden now. I used to give it to my Dad for his veggies, now we’ve moved he complains he has to buy chicken poop! I’m not sure that you could send rabbit poop via air mai, don’t think UK costoms would be impressed. Some one gave me a bag of oxbow ecostraw the other day…. haven’t opened it yet and maybe I wont if you’ve read about blockages Wendyzski.. that doesn’t sound good! Has anyone else read this?

[wendyzski]

hrm – I’d heard that stuff but then again I have great respect for anythign Oxbow – maybe call them and ask if you have any concerns?  They are really cool about that kind of stuff.

I’ve been just dumping my used litter in the trash – I’m told it is flushable but I’m not sure if my old building’s plumbing could handle it.  But I have a friend who is an avid rose gardener. so I’ll be scooping out the poos, setting it aside so it dries, and meeting up with her every couple of weeks to hand over a bag of poop.  She could probably take the used litter too but I don’t want to carry ammonia-soaked sawdust with me on the bus! 

[Deleted User]

I only use old newspapers, flyers and any other paper I can get my hands on to use in my buns’ littertrays. Generally, my family keeps their newspapers for me too. On top of the newspaper I plonk a pile of hay and some shredded paper. The shredded paper I get from work. Some hay is wasted but I buy in bulk form, generally a bale which costs me $11 (Aussie dollars). So cheap as chips!

I don’t have access to wood stove pellets or those other brands mentioned in the posts.

I have no problem with the smell as I clean out every day. All gets dumped in a rubbish bag and popped into the bin. I find it really easy.

[x liddo bunny x]

i dump mine once every 2-3 days becuase i have two as well. well if anyone needs to know, feline pine can be found at target. 3.49 for a 9.1 lb bag. =)

[Hedi]

What does the feline pine bag look like? I need to get some for the shelter buns. Is it in with the cat litter stuff?

[osprey]

It is usually in with the cat stuff:

[x liddo bunny x]

make sure its not feline pine SCOOP i almost got that one… =P wow, i used it today and boy does it puff up…… lol =P it smells funny but i think it smells better than their pee, their pee makes me gag when it comes into contact with hay. lol. but this seems to do the trick. and its cheap too. $3.49 for 9.1 lbs u cant beat that. usually the news paper ones are more expensive and i personally think its better becuase it doesnt turn to saw dust but this one is really really good when it comes to smell. if you dont mind ur place smelling a little woodie. =P

[Gravehearted]

we also use carefresh and I change the litterbox every 4- 5 days. Since everybunny loves to save up all their poops until they’re out (to mark the territory between their houses) we have 5 litterboxes for 3 buns.

I had heard good recommendations for yesterdays news (or the copy version called yeterday mews I think) but wasn’t so thrilled with it. i think it’s not as good as Carefresh with odor control and my kids really liked to dig in it 🙁

[poopy]

I use Cats Rule scented filters on top of Medusa’s vented cover litterbox- neutralizes any odors. Its mostly the odor of the hay that bugs me though, can’t really smell the urine.

[wendyzski]

The makers of Feline Pine offer discounts to shelters!

From their website"

Programs We Offer:
• Shelter
• Vet
• Breeders
• Cat Shows

As a qualified animal care partner, you may qualify for our subsidized purchase program, where you may buy our product direct at discounted pricing.

We will also supply free bag rebate coupons for you to include in adoption, post-surgical or buyers kits. Each rebate is good for one free 7lb bag of Feline Pine.

The free bag rebate coupons are available to any qualified animal care partner, even if you do not carry our products in your office or choose to opt-out of the subsidized purchase program.

You’ve been able to read all about the healthy benefits of Feline Pine – so pass this on to other cat owners today!

If you have any questions please contact:
Claire Bouchard
Customer Support
1-800-749-7463
Email:cbouchard@naturesearth.com

• © Nature’s Earth Inc. 2006

[osprey]

Great find Wendyzski, I am going to contact them about providing the coupons for a free bag of litter with our adoption packets.  It makes total sense for the company to do this, get people with a new pet using the litter right away.

[wendyzski]

I got a rebate for my first bag, and they will also send you a coupon for a free bag with UPCs from 10 bags.

I started using it because it’s what my local shelter used, so i figured she’d be better at her litterbox if it smelled like she was used to, and I’ve stuck with it because I love it. She’s never peed outside her box at all and only the occasional poo in the general vicinity.  I can go a week or even more without dumping the box with no noticable smell.  It’s not the cheapest around but it’s not bad and I figure that since I empty the box less often I’m actually saving money.

It’s supposedly flushable, but I’m not willing to trust my building’s cranky old plumbing.

[Hedi]

Great find! Yeah!

I will send this on to our shelter mgr. We use that nasty, dusty, clumping clay cat litter for the cats so we could use this for the cats and buns!

 Did you see that for anyone you can log on and fill out a rebate for the entire cost of one bag?

Thanks!

[BinkyBunny]

Posted By osprey on 05/22/2007 9:52 AM
Great find Wendyzski, I am going to contact them about providing the coupons for a free bag of litter with our adoption packets.  It makes total sense for the company to do this, get people with a new pet using the litter right away.

Osprey – just wondering how they responded to your request.   If they seemed open, I’d like to share your idea with SaveABunny if you don’t mind.

[BinkyBunny]

Posted By Hedi on 05/20/2007 4:06 PM

What does the feline pine bag look like? I need to get some for the shelter buns. Is it in with the cat litter stuff?

Just FYI  – if you get woodstove pellets or the wood pellets that are used in horse stables. They are sooooo much cheaper.  At least they are here.  The woodstove pellets for a 40pound bag was around $4.00 here, and the larger bags of pellets for the horse stables averaged around $8.    And that’s here in CA, so maybe it would be even cheaper there?

The woodstove pellets I find at Lowes – which is a Home Dept kind of store.  And the horse stable pellets, I find at feed supply stores.

 

[osprey]

BB,

The Feline Pine folks sent me a bunch of info about their various programs.  The direct litter purchase is still quite a bit more expensive that the wood stove pellets (it came to around $12 for a 40 lb bag vs $5-$6 for pellets), but she said that she would send me some coupons for a free bag of litter (7 lbs. I think) for our adopters.  I’ll let you know if she actually sends them.

 

[skunklionshow]

I’ve found that the rabbit litter is sometimes cheaper if you buy the formula for cats.  This is true w/ Yesterday’s news (I don’t know why).  Also, the feline section tends to have the larger sizes.  Apparently, pet shops believe that bunnies don’t potty as much as cats?!?!?!

[osprey]

I have noticed that too.  As near as I can tell, Cat Country and Critter Country are exactly the same thing, and at least around here the prices are the same.  Critter Country comes in a smaller bag (5 pounds).  I think that these litters are marketed at a catch all "small animal" market, which includes rats, mice, gerbils, hamsters, etc. as well as bunnies.  The littler animals use less litter, they make the smaller packages, and jack the price up a bit.  In cat litter, there are also a lot of competeing products that helps lower prices. 

[Hedi]

I bought a bag of Feline Pine for the shelter and one for us. Kinda tired of cleaning out litter boxes every single night so I figured I would give it a try. So far so good I think. I gave Cooper two litter boxes since he just got fixed and isnt potty trained. He keeps one perfectly clean to lay in and munch and then the other one he munches and potties in. Of course there are  a hundred other poos hanging out in his cage that have to be swept up all the time. I counted one day when he was out with me. I counted one poopie every 5 minutes! That boy can eat and poo!

[wendyzski]

I am totally jealous of those of you who can find wood stove pellets or horse bedding!  Not much call for either within the city limits of chicago – not even at Lowes (I called).

Next time I have an out-of-town gig I shoudl try and remember to keep an eye open for feed or farm supply places on the way.

[Lucy]

well- I’m really gald this got a good discussion going. We have now switched to feline pine in this household- going from carefresh, to yesterday’s news, to newspaper and now feline pine. It really doesn’t smell, which is great- and we’re not plowing through it…

There have been a few problems…

There was a lot of hay wastage by putting it over the litter.. And because of the hay and the nice smell of the pine.. we have both been seeing how long we can go without changing the litter box (Wendy said she goes a week, osprey said a twice a week, so we did it in between). But now they are having bad litter box problems (NEVER has this been an issue for me). I went to clean their cage and they had peed all over the rug in their pen, totally soaking it. So I had to wash it. Last night the rug wasn’t dry enough so I didn’t put it in. We also made a hay box- very similar to the one wendy had posted on some other forum topic. They ate out of it last night, but didn’t touch it this morning and were ravishing. There is still a lot of hay in it.

I also found two pee spots on the floor…

I don’t know what to do.. We took down Patina’s little condo thing and just have Fujoe’s (which is still huge- they weren’t spending any time in the smaller cube condo at all). Andy we moved both littter boxes into one space.. should I just get a larger one?

[Lucy]

also wendy- if you find wood stove pellets and somehow make your way back into chicago with them- I would pay you for some…

[osprey]

I currently have Feline Pine, Critter Country, wood stove pellets and horse stall bedding in my garage.  Binky, would it help if I were to take pictures of what all the different litters look like?  I happen to have a bunch of different ones right now because I got some donations to use at our next adoption show, and I managed to get two bags of wood stove pellets while we were in Tahoe last weekend.

 

 

[BinkyBunny]

Osprey – Yes, that would be great if you have the time. I think it helps people to visually be able to pick out the different kinds. Thanks!

[Lucy]

*I’m reposting this because I don’t want it to be overlooked since it’s at the bottom of page 2*

well- I’m really gald this got a good discussion going. We have now switched to feline pine in this household- going from carefresh, to yesterday’s news, to newspaper and now feline pine. It really doesn’t smell, which is great- and we’re not plowing through it…

There have been a few problems…

There was a lot of hay wastage by putting it over the litter.. And because of the hay and the nice smell of the pine.. we have both been seeing how long we can go without changing the litter box (Wendy said she goes a week, osprey said a twice a week, so we did it in between). But now they are having bad litter box problems (NEVER has this been an issue for me). I went to clean their cage and they had peed all over the rug in their pen, totally soaking it. So I had to wash it. Last night the rug wasn’t dry enough so I didn’t put it in. We also made a hay box- very similar to the one wendy had posted on some other forum topic. They ate out of it last night, but didn’t touch it this morning and were ravishing. There is still a lot of hay in it.

I also found two pee spots on the floor…

I don’t know what to do.. We took down Patina’s little condo thing and just have Fujoe’s (which is still huge- they weren’t spending any time in the smaller cube condo at all). Andy we moved both littter boxes into one space.. should I just get a larger one?

[BinkyBunny]

Okay, so this started happening when you used feline pine right?  If so, then they are not happy with the wood scent, some rabbits don’t like strong scented litters and end up doing just what  your talking about.  But don’t worry, you may still be able to use it.    What you can do to help them get used to it is slowly mix it in with the old.   And overtime increase the feline pine.

If you want them to eat hay in their box, you can get a hay rack and hang it by the litterbox.  (unless that’s the hay box you’re talking about is basically that, I haven’t seen that post yet, or I don’t remember it) 

It will also help  to put a paper towel with their pee on it into the litterbox.  This will let them knowthat the pine scent will not ruin their "lovely" pee scent (which is what they want to be able to smell).  

Also, if boxes get tooo messy, some bunnies won’t go in there.  It really depends on the bunny and how particular they are.    I know Jack & Bailey don’t care.   But Rucy does not like it when Jack has filled it with poo.

[x liddo bunny x]

what i did with the hay problem was i got one of those cubbie organizers for knives and hung it with a zip tie (make sure its at a slant and it would not support their weight or they will sit on it… mine did that even though my dad put it up really high….. not sure why but i moved it) i put it right next to the litterbox and under it i cut out a piece of cardboard so the litterbox doesnt slip under. i still have alot of stray poos though…. i recently put their cage on the floor and it limited the amout of strays but there are still some….. but there has not been the repeat of the peeing…. thank god!

[ubergoober]

Posted By wendyzski on 05/31/2007 6:20 PM

I am totally jealous of those of you who can find wood stove pellets or horse bedding!  Not much call for either within the city limits of chicago – not even at Lowes (I called).

Next time I have an out-of-town gig I shoudl try and remember to keep an eye open for feed or farm supply places on the way.

I feel your pain…I have been scouring my town for wood stove pellets too and a lot of stores remove them from their shelves in the summer. 

My vet was not happy about my use of Carefresh for litter.  She said that a lot of bunnies like to nibble it and she has had a few cases of blockage because of it.  So off I went in search of another alternative.  We now use straw pellets.  Like stove pellets but they are made of compressed straw.  Miffy has no inkling what so ever to eat the stuff so it works.  Excellent odor control too.  You can not smell her urine at all until you go to dump the pan and disturb the used pellets.  

I found the straw pellets at the grocery store (of all places) in the pet section

 

[osprey]

"Cat Country" and "Critter Country" are both straw based litter pellets.  At least around here they are pretty common, sold with the cat products at PetCo.

 

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