What Litter Do You Use?

[Buneary]

I have a lionhead so I can’t use paper based litter for her. I’ve tried oxbow’s wheat pellets, in 20lbs. they’re expensive though and don’t last me that long. I just bought small pet selects pine pellet based litter. Hoping to give that a try. Their description says “Made from safe clean pine, with no additives or irritants. Free of the toxins associated with wood stove pellets. ” I thought I heard somewhere that pine was bad for buns litter? Also have heard great things about wood stove pellets, are they a good alternative? I’ve also heard how cheap they are. I’m paying $50 for a bundle of 20lb Timothy hay and 25lb of the pine bedding. How much do you spend on litter each month? I feel like I could be saving money a lot better… I have two buns and four litter boxes. I change their litter once a week. Let me know what you guys think!

[Millie]

Do you have a Tractor Supply CO. near you? They sell 40lb bags of pine-based wood stove/horse stall pellets made for horses costing only $6, for a whole 40lb bag! It’s a super popular litter, and I understand why! It’s a great deal and works just as/if not better than other litters. No, pine in litter pellets like that is completely safe, its the pine wood shavings that you stay away from. I think that what you’re doing at the moment for your girl’s litter is great

[Wick & Fable]

Have you tried a litter screen which will prevent litter from getting on your Rabbit?

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Boymom4]

I am curious about why a lion head can’t use paper based litter?

[Buneary]

Are litter screens useful? I’ve heard of them, where could I get one? Also – from what I’ve been told, paper based bedding such as Carefresh get stuck on lionhead’s fur. I personally had carefresh as my first litter for her and I found myself constantly grooming her trying to get the little pieces off.

[Wick & Fable]

Very useful! Easy clean up and reduces litter tracking.

http://www.instagram.com/p/BXsXo28FTcG/

Read the comments on the post for some Q&A.

I use Kaytee paper granules.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Buneary]

Omg, I need one! Cleaning their litter boxes have always been such a hassle, so you cut it to fit the litter box? Does their pee go through the holes so they’re not stepping on it?

[Wick & Fable]

Yes, I cut plastic knitting mesh (7 count size; dictates how many holes in an inch) to fit the box. It’s very easy and pliable, so no sharp dangerous corners after cutting.

Pee will seep through. Sometimes it takes some time, depending on the pees viscosity, but it will never stay there for longer than 10sec. It gets through very easily.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Mr Bean]

Mr Bean is about 2.5kg. His bum is abit too big for a triangle litter box.

After a few months search, I found out a transparent 14 liter storage box and a 44cm non-stick bakeware cooling rack were perfect match (found them both in W supermarket). The small rectangle holes of the rack are just big enough to allows the poo to drop through. The depth of the container builts four solid walls to stop the urine spraying from all directions as Mr Bean likes to change positions from time to time.

For daily usage I rinse it with water twice a day depends. Once a few days I use hot water to soak it to remove the residue. His litter box is in the toilet room and it is easy to monitor. So far so good.

[Heaven]

I have just started using the paper pellet cat litter “Bio Catolet” covered with a thin layer of grass hay for my lion lop and it’s been going well so far. It doesn’t stick to his bum fluff can be annoying to clean though – got to give Wicks idea a try!!

[Boymom4]

We use shredded paper from the local school. We don’t use any wires or mesh since the paper soaks up the pee. We do have to empty it once a day but it’s free and never causes any issues. Our rabbits are very content to use it since their food dishes are set up inside the box.

[LittlePuffyTail]

I’ve used Yesterday’s News for well over 10 years.

[Azerane]

Just to cover a couple of your unanswered questions, pine can be bad for rabbits mostly in the form of shavings. Pine that is kiln tried (which includes wood pellets) is safe to use as the kiln drying process removes the phenols which is the cause for concern.

I use wood horse stall pellets in my bun’s litter tray. I also use it in my kitten’s litter tray, and also soaked and expanded in the catch tray of my parrot’s cage. Between them all a 15kg bag of the pellets lasts me roughly 5 weeks and costs me in the range of $12-15 a bag. I use it with a sifting tray for both the cat and rabbits which really helps cut back on usage.

Boymom4, paper based litter can be used for lionheads, but due to their long fur it has a tendency to stick to them and you end up with a rabbit covered in litter, which results in a house/bunny pen covered in litter

[Buneary]

Wow guys! I feel like I’m wasting money. Do wood stove pellets/horse stall pellets have good absorption? What’s the longest you have gone using these without cleaning the litter box out? I usually clean them once a week, it gets pretty stinky.. I might have to change my routine to twice a week, I just don’t want to be wasting litter since I have multiple litter boxes. I like to wait until their full, but I hate the stink (specifically the pee) Also – where do you guys get your hay and pellets? I usually use oxbow’s orchard hay and their young rabbit pellets ( I have a 4 month old and a 6 month old) and I’ve had no problems with them. I usually buy the hay for about $25 for 9lbs. 9lbs lasted me roughly 3 months. I’ve recently purchased hay from Small Pet Select, 20lb Timothy hay. I’ve purchased 10lb Timothy hay from them before, and a lot of it was brown..I’m giving them another shot. They’re based in Washington (where I am) so I like how it’s local. I’ve also seen pictures of oxbows pellets vs small pet selects, and small pet selects pellets are much greener than oxbow’s brownish color. I’m thinking about switching them to their pellets. Any thoughts? I’ve learned from you guys I don’t need to splurge on litter, what about hay and pellets though?

[diggityd77]

I use the Equine Pellets from Tractor Supply and find they absorb really well; granted, I use it as a “base” layer and put a thin layer of Carefresh on top, but when I change the litter I can see the pellets have absorbed the pee and there is no smell. I clean Oreo’s litter every other day or every third day.

I buy Oreo’s hay from Small Pet Select b/c he was turning his nose up at the Oxbow bagged hay from the store, but he does love Oxbow Pellets. I have bought both Timothy Hay and Orchard Hay (to mix in) and have not had issues with hay quality – super green and fresh.

I’m with you though – I don’t splurge on on the litter but I do like to make sure he gets the good hay.

[PumpkinPie]

I always use Living World Fresh N Comfy Bedding, you can find it on Amazon if they don’t have it at your local pet supply store. It’s extremely absorbent, dust free, it doesn’t stick to my rabbits feet, and he loves to chew at it since it’s recycled newspaper. Cedar shavings are known for being unhealthy for small animals (respiratory system) so I’d advise to stay away from that, even if it is cheaper.

[Bam]

I use wood stove pellets. They’re very absorbant. You just have to make sure that there are no accelerants added.

I rarely clean out the whole box, but I scoop out used litter almost daily.

Katsavvy makes a good point about cedar shavings, both pine and cedar shavings have strong fumes that can harm a bunny’s airways, especially since rabbits often like to lounge in their litterboxes. Alder shavings are fine, but they’re more expensive.

[MountainBuns]

Am I the only one who puts hay in the litter box and a separate thing of hay for food?

[ThorBunny]

I use wood stove pellets. They are super absorbant and good for odor! I’m not sure if they would be non-smelly for a whole week though… What I do is spot clean Thor’s box every morning. I scoop out the wet litter (she only goes in 1 or two corners) and put back some new pellets. Then I dump out and do a full box clean once a week.

I like the system since her box is always clean and it saves a lot of litter one 40lb bag can last me about 6 weeks or more. It doens’t really take that much time to spot clean either.

[Buneary]

Next time i buy litter I’ll definitely have to try wood stove pellets.. these other brands are killing my wallet! Spot cleaning is something I have to try too. I hate how smelly it gets after a week. where did you guys get your scoop? Thank you for all the advice.

[MountainBuns]

I put on gloves and then pick up the poo’s with my hands. 

[ThorBunny]

I just use a square drinking glass now. But I have also used a small plastic shovel (like from a beach bucket kit). You just want something without holes that can scoop and get into the corners

[Azerane]

I clean my box (that has wood pellets and is a sifting box) daily. However I don’t dump the entire thing. There was a thread somewhere where I posted pictures, but basically I throw out all the wet litter and scoop out as many poops as possible in the top tray (leaving unused litter behind). Then the bottom tray which has few pellets in it to absorb wee that falls through I dump the whole thing and rinse out. In a fresh bottom tray I add a sprinkling of pellets (less than half a scoop) and then I top up the wood pellets in the top tray (usually around a scoop). So it really is only a spot clean, but a reasonably thorough one and I’m only using 1-2 scoops of litter a day. I know plenty of people clean their wood pellet trays less often, but firstly my buns pee a lot and secondly Apollo starts to pee outside the tray if I leave it longer than a day.

I’ll try to find the thread that has my litter tray pics in it.

ETA: Here we are, about a third of the way down this page. There are pics of other people’s litter setups in that thread too  https://binkybunny.com/FORUM/tabid/54/aft/152834/Default.aspx

[MountainBuns]

I do not use a scoop, the only thing I use is gloves and my bare hands. Gross when you think about it.

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