Litter: Which compressed wood pellets are safe?

[moonbunny]

[Oops! I posted this is the wrong section! Sorry, admins! How can I move it?]

Hey guys,

I recently posted an update on my “Is using litter worth it?” thread, but unfortunately that thread’s pretty dead so I thought I’d re-post it as a separate question. Here we go:

UPDATE: So I went to three stores today (two large pet stores and one large supermarket), but I was unable to find any paper-based cat litter. Pretty much all the cat litter was the crystal kind 



I managed to find two types of wood pellets, but I didn’t buy anything just yet because I’m unsure if they’re safe. I will check with my vet as soon as possible (after the Christmas period), but I was hoping that some of you could weigh in too. 



The first brand advertised their “Eco-Cat Wood-Based Pellets” as non-clumping and free of chemical additives, but it also said “natural pine fragrance” on the bag and that makes me wary. 



The second brand was basically the same thing (organic, wood-based, no chemical additives), just cheaper (the bag was 15kg). This one didn’t mention a fragrance or scent but didn’t specify if the pellets were clumping or not. Are all compressed wood pellets non-clumping? 



Both brands were local (the second looked like a knockoff brand—they even used very similar sentences on their packaging). I tried looking for any information about the processing of the wood, but couldn’t really find anything. Both brands said that the pellets were made from “compressed wood fibre” and that they were organic, natural and biodegradable. 



Thanks again for all your help, guys! It’s really comforting to be able to reach out on this forum.

[Bam]

All wood pellets are non-clumping. They fall apart into (wet) sawdust when peed on.

If the natural pine is subtle and comes from the wood itself, it’s not a problem if you use it in an open litterbox. I’d be reluctant to use it in a closed cat-litterbox though, because buns often like to lounge in their litterbox.

I use wood stove pellets and compost them after use. The type of wood is never specified here, but it’s pine or spruce.

[moonbunny]

Posted By bam on 12/30/2017 3:16 AM

All wood pellets are non-clumping. They fall apart into (wet) sawdust when peed on.

If the natural pine is subtle and comes from the wood itself, it’s not a problem if you use it in an open litterbox. I’d be reluctant to use it in a closed cat-litterbox though, because buns often like to lounge in their litterbox.

 I use wood stove pellets and compost them after use. The type of wood is never specified here, but it’s pine or spruce.

Thanks, bam! I think I’ll probably go with the second brand since (a) it’s cheaper/bulk, and (b) the first brand mentions a fragrance and there’s no way to know if that’s just the wood or if that’s been added in. 

Nibbles uses an open box, but she does spend a lot of time in there and once she decided to take a nap in it!  (She was fine, but I had to dry her butt a little.) Do you perhaps know how to move this thread into Diet & Care? I posted it under Behaviour by mistake.

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