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Forum BEHAVIOR Would This Litter Be Ok?

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    • Bad Habit
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        So, I’ve had ferrets before, they were litter trained, and I could not use clay litter with them, due to dust, dry feet and the danger of it being ingested, so I’ve used many of the recommended litters for rabbits before, since they are the most commonly recommended litters for ferrets as well.  After much trying, testing, and generally being disappointed with the results, I ended up moving off the recommended list and trying another type of litter, Swheat Scoop.  Has anyone tried this litter before?

        It’s all natural, made with wheat.  It’s clumping, but if ingested will not cause a blockage.  It’s not very dusty, and never clumped in my ferret’s fur or dried his feet.  I’m just wondering if it would be ok to try with the bunny.

         

        Sorry, this should have been in the care forum, but I was reading about litter training, lol


      • Bunniesandferrets
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          Good to know!!! i have four ferrets
          i don’t suggest using this on rabbits. however for my ferrets i use wood pellets! for my rabbits i used the corn cob bedding. but the wood stove pellets are highly absorbent and also do not cause blockages.
          they are about 5.00$ for a 40 POUND BAG and not too dusty either
          JMO though, i use it for both my ferrets and my rabbits when needed
          it is not clumping but its cheap and works well!

          The Swheat Schoop is not really a good litter for bunnies. my friend has a couple of buns and he said that it irritates them. they get bad poops when he used it and apparently it got stuck on their butts…
          it could have been just his rabbits though.
          Good lucK!


        • Sarita
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            Neither Corn cob bedding or the swheat scoop are not recommended as they can cause impaction.

            Your better bets are a pelleted wood or Yesterday’s News.


          • Bunniesandferrets
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              oh! i completely forgot about yesterday’s news, i used to use that a LOT a while back. it got expensive then i learned about wood pellets(ferret shelter i volunteer at) and researched it for rabbits ect.
              we don’t have them on corn bedding anymore but i never knew it caused impaction! the vet recommended it and he is a RABBIT vet O.O
              (sorry for the troll)


            • Bunnehs
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              115 posts Send Private Message

                your bunnies can eat swheat schoop too and since its wheat, not good for their health either. wood pellets bedding are great. yesterday’s news got expensive for me too but i heard other bunny owners use clay litter on the bottom with a layer of yesterdays news on top and also with a screen so their bunny can’t ingest any clay stuff!


              • Bad Habit
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                  Well, the swheat scoop isn’t supposed to cause blockages, it’s actually supposed to be edible even! But I got some foamy pellety stuff that the pet store recommended, it’s supposed to be pretty good for litter training. It’s not a giant bag, so we’ll see how I like that… If not, my sister actually has a wood pellet furnace, so I’ll get her to give me some pellets and see how THAT goes… I don’t want to be stuck with a giant bag if it doesn’t work out too well.

                   

                  edited – It’s called Carefresh FreshSorb Natural.


                • Bunsen Munch
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                    We use Critter Care (generic version of Care Fresh) and it works really well for my rabbit. It’s made of reclaimed cellulose fiber and is all-natural, very absorbent, and suppresses odor pretty well. My rabbits have never tried to eat it, but do enjoy digging in it and hanging out in it.


                  • Sarita
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                      Actually the sweat scoop has been known to cause blockage in rabbits – the part of the wheat they use is not edible and rabbits should not be eating wheat anyhow.


                    • Bad Habit
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                        Ferrets and cats aren’t supposed to eat wheat either, but the litter worked fine for their poop. I was not proposing that I feed the litter to my bunny. And since the litter is marketed as not causing intestinal blockages in kittens, I hope whomever had their rabbit blocked up sued the company at least for their vet bills.

                        As I said, I went with a different litter, so the pro’s and cons of swheat scoop are now a moot point as far as I’m concerned.


                      • Sarita
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                          I know you aren’t, just wanted to let you know what I’ve heard from other rabbit owners :~) Rabbits do digestive systems are different from kittens too.

                          It’s a good thing we have choices now for our rabbits so there are many options out there.


                        • Sam and Lady's Human
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                            Just an FYI, I’ve read that carefresh causes blockages and GI Stasis if eaten, so I wouldn’t use that for litter for rabbits either…


                          • Bad Habit
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                              ok, well, I give up. Apparently I can’t pick a suitable litter to save my life, or my rabbit’s life in this case.  Anyone know if this carefresh crap is compostable? I’ve already opened the bag so can’t return it for my money back.


                            • LoveChaCha
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                              6634 posts Send Private Message

                                These are just suggestions, please don’t take them personally.
                                http://www.carefresh.com/environment

                                In my experience, wood stove pellets (without additives) are great. 1 bag is 40 pounds and about $5 dollars. You do not need to put a lot in the litter box at all.


                              • Tipsy Bunny
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                                  I am not totally sure. You can always contact the company itself and ask. But, for another litter to look at, I use Exquisicat Naturals: Paper. It’s 100% recycled paper cat litter you can find in the cat area of the pet store, inexpensive. Same price for Carefresh, sometimes cheaper.


                                • Bad Habit
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                                    I’m not going to bother litter training her. And tonight’s garbage night anyway, so I’ll just trash the litter. No point in contaminating my compost for the sake of a three dollar garbage tag.


                                  • LoveChaCha
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                                      Litter training will make your life, and her life a lot easier. Less messes on her, and less stress on you.


                                    • Monkeybun
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                                        Honestly, I use carefresh, and wouldn’t use anything else. It works great, and even if my buns nibble at it occasionally, a small amount won’t cause issues.


                                      • Tipsy Bunny
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                                          oohhhh yeah I second that!!! Beats walking behind your bun with a pooper scooper and yelling at your dogs for eating its poop and getting yelled at by your sister for her dog eating your bunny’s poop cause you werent fast enough to pick it up, can you tell I have been through this?


                                        • Monkeybun
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                                            Definitely litter train. It’s worth it.


                                          • Bunnehs
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                                              😮 just get a litter, im sure your rabbit won’t die from using carefresh. blockage in your bunny’s tummy probably happens because it ate a lot! otherwise, carefresh is so safe and expensive for me. i had no trouble using dusty litter either!!


                                            • Bad Habit
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                                                thank you all for your input.


                                              • Beka27
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                                                  I read this thread and I’m not sure why it’s getting hostile. You were given input on your original post as requested.

                                                  ANY litter can cause blockages if eaten in ridiculous quantities. If your rabbit is a persistent litter-eater (as some are) your best bet will be to find a suitable litter like Carefresh, Yesterday’s News, Aspen pellets, or Woodstove pellets, and then cover the litter with a washable litter screen. Urine will go thru and get soaked up, poops will sit on top. It was not suggested that you were PLANNING on feeding the Swheat Scoop, but “best-laid plans” don’t mean much where rabbits are concerned. If a rabbit wants to, he/she will eat their litter. This is where the litter screen comes in, if necessary.

                                                   

                                                  Also, it’s in the site’s best interest to answer every question fully, even if (as you state), you’re going with a different litter.  We have many, many members and only a small minority will ever post a question.  This is the nature of public forums, a whole bunch of lurkers and the same faces day in, day out.  Therefore, if someone does a search for the safety of Swheat Scoop, we want the most recent thread that comes up (this one), to hopefully be able to fully answer any concerns they may have.  So it may seem as if we continue on a tangent for a bit longer than necessary, we just want to be sure all of the facts are out there.


                                                • Bad Habit
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                                                    I’m sorry if I seem hostile.


                                                  • RabbitPam
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                                                      That’s OK, Bad Habit. Beka makes a point we need to repeat now and then, which is that we answer for the readers of the site, not just the member who posted, so appreciate your patience with our elaborations.

                                                      Btw, a bunny actually litter trains itself, given the supplies it prefers. My bunnies made it clear which litter they liked best. Spockie liked Carefresh so I loved it. Samantha prefers aspen pellets and shavings, which she made clear by NOT scattering it out of the litter pan like she did the other brands. I took the hint, she climbed in and hasn’t peed anywhere else ever since. The poos pretty much stay in the litter pan too, unless she wants it cleaned, in which case her not-so-subtle hint is to poop outside the box.

                                                      So, if you give them the tools they like, they’ll ask for a magazine to read and go use their “bathroom” just like us.

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                                                  Forum BEHAVIOR Would This Litter Be Ok?