Hamster Bedding
Nov 29th, 2009 by Kenny
For decades if you had asked someone who kept hamsters what type of bedding they used, more than likely the answer you would have been given would have been wood shavings or sawdust. And even today, if you were to go to your local pet shop, chances are you would see many wood shaving types of bedding on offer for your furry friend. These products have many beneficial properties in them, they insulate well, absorb well and some even have some insecticidal elements in them. However, research is now suggesting we might be doing harm to our hamsters by giving them this type of bedding to sleep on.
Many people have argued that the wood used is mostly cedar and pine, and this produces certain insecticidal chemicals which could harm your hamster and have been linked to many conditions such as liver damage, eye infections, respiratory diseases as well as certain cancers. Another problem is when you have shavings from other sources and the wood used has been treated with chemicals before entering the factory. This normally always causes problems, as the treatments used are often toxic to small furries like hamsters.
This has now lead to a gradual shift away from using wood as bedding for hamsters, and is now often replaced by wood fibre pellets. The wood fibre pellets used is normally dried, sterilized and has had the dust removed at least twice throughout the whole process. The advantage of using the wood fibre pulp pellets is that it is normally relatively cheap, efficient to use and is easy to clean. It also has a wonderful insulating property and absorbs very well, which helps decrease the odors from hamster urine. If you have a huge storage area, these pellets can often be bought at equestrian suppliers very cheaply in large quantities.
Another alternative to wood shavings or sawdust that is also commonly used is paper based cat litter or shredded paper. While these do possess wonderful insulating properties when dry, they have a poor absorbency that results in wet paper lying around and would need to be changed as soon as it became wet. Also, if the paper has any ink on it, this has sometimes been suggested that it would be harmful to hamsters. The cat litter that is used has a great absorbency rate and soaks up the urine very well. It is also however normally very dusty and often than not the major cause for eye infections and respiratory conditions as well.
However, hamster bedding is normally down to personal preference and ease of use, and if the product you are using is not causing any discomfort or illnesses to your hamster, I would suggest you use the product that you are most comfortable with and that you can obtain a good quality supply. Should you decide to continue with wood shavings, try and avoid any fine wood shavings as they tend to be dustier.
If only your hamster could tell you what he preferred!
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