Bedding?

spins · 07-24-2016, 12:13 PM

Hi,
i'm having trouble finding a suitable bedding for Jasmine since I think she may have sensitive skin. She is 6 months old and since getting her at 7 weeks, we have tried multiple different beddings but they all seem to make her itch and carefresh gave her a sticky eye. The ones we have tried are:
Pets at home woodshavings
Carefresh
and we are currently trying Reptile aspen since this has been recommended and she does seem slightly better on it.

None of these seemed to work and they just have the same effect so we are wondering what would be a good bedding for a dwarf hamster with sensitive skin as we have heard of alot (fitch, aubiose, and flax) but were wanting more opinions.
Thank you!

Jeir · 07-24-2016, 01:13 PM

Fitch. It's paper-based and lacks the dust that similar things (primarily Carefresh; the dust particles in it are probably what caused the eye issue) has. If your hammy can nestle down in plain toilet tissue without issues, then Fitch may be the best thing for her.

spins · 07-24-2016, 01:55 PM

Thank you for the replies. We are ordering a small bag of Fitch to test her on although this is more expensive we don't want a huge bale and then to find out it also makes her itch. If the Fitch doesn't work we will take her to the vetsto test for mites.

AmityvilleHams · 07-24-2016, 01:59 PM

Carefresh is known to be somewhat dusty,which could cause irritation for some hamsters.Fitch,however,is dust free which is extremely rare in substrate.Not even aspen is completely dust free,plus aspen for example as well as any other wood(including "safe" wood)will be capable of causing an allergic reaction.

I wouldn't do any form of medication without seeing a vet first,as you could make the situation far worse by giving her unnecessary things that only hurt her immune system and make her more ill.

cypher · 07-24-2016, 10:37 PM

Don't treat for mites without confirmation from a vet that she has a problem with them.
The best substrate for sensitive skin or an allergy has to be fitch.

Fluffagrams · 07-25-2016, 12:46 AM

I'd have to agree with everyone else that has suggested Fitch. I had a hamster that developed an allergy to woodshavings and we switched him to Carefresh and thankfully that worked however there is still some dust in the substrate that can still cause problems and unfortunately it also works out to be expensive.

Other substrate options include Back-To-Nature which is similar to cat litter however I noticed that my Chinese found it harder to walk over and it wasn't great for building tunnels. Back-to-Nature would work well in a toilet corner or potty tray but I wouldn't recommend it as a full substrate.

There's also Finacard which is basically small pieces of cardboard. It sounds like it would be quite rough for a hamster but Victoria came home with some in her carrier and she nested down in it quite comfortably for the journey home.

Fitch does unfortunately come in rather big bales in comparison to the wood shavings and Carefresh but it does work out to be quite good value for money and my 20kg bag will last my three Chinese for about 4-5 months.

AmityvilleHams · 07-25-2016, 12:52 AM

Fitch,like any other bedding,should be able to be split up into many smaller containers for easier storage.10kg bags are also available as well!A lot of people get intimidated by the size of the bags alone,but really it is negligible since some will be going into the cage and anything left over would easily be put into other containers.

Pebbles82 · 07-25-2016, 01:29 AM

Fitch Fitch Fitch! (I'm biased clearly). I find is dust free, hamsters seem to like it and it's just recycled food grade paper. It looks like Carefresh but I think the texture is better and without the dust. My suggestion would be - try her with Fitch and if her itching doesn't improve then ask the vet to do a skin scraping and test for mites. Definitely don't try and treat her for mites without a vet diagnosis. The spot on treatment is quite toxic I think and not necessarily going to work and it could cause harm if she doesn't have mites. Vets have other products they can prescribe. And I don't think there is anything you can buy that is a) safe and b) going to work. The fact that she seems slightly better on Aspen suggests it isn't mites anyway and more likely to be a skin allergy to pine shavings. Or she may just have sensitive skin. Aspen can be quite dusty I found, and a bit "hard" sometimes too, but you can shake it out or sieve it. If she seems a sensitive type (skin and eyes) then I would try her with Fitch. I get the 10kg bale which is obviously not as massive as the 20kg one. It lasts me 4 to 6 months with a 100cm cage so it's good value for that length of time at £16.99. I don't find the bag too big really. It comes in two plastic bags - an outer bag and an inner clear plastic bag which is oversized so you can squish it either long and thin or short and flat to fit under things or in a wardrobe. Ours is in the corner of the bedroom with a blanket over it so it looks like a small beanbag chair.

Fitch Recycling - 10kg Single Bale Fitch Paper Bedding For Smaller Critters - Fitch Pet Bedding

SKB_Hamsters · 07-25-2016, 04:16 AM

I would also recommend Fitch. I switched to Fitch from Carefresh (as Sherbet started sneezing ally when using carefresh from the dust) and it's far by the best substrate I have used. It is virtually dust free, my current bag has a little dust but such a minute amount but my last bag had no dust at all. I also like that it such good value for money, I get the 10kg bag for £16.99 which lasts me 4 to 6 months. Sherbet also approves of Fitch she likes using it in her nest and enjoys pilling the Fitch into a massive pile.

I would definitely recommend trying Fitch to see whether it helps Jasmine or if it doesn't help I would recommend seeing a vets in case it's skin mites or anything else causing her skin to be sensitive.

spins · 07-25-2016, 07:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SKB_Hamsters

I would also recommend Fitch. I switched to Fitch from Carefresh (as Sherbet started sneezing ally when using carefresh from the dust) and it's far by the best substrate I have used. It is virtually dust free, my current bag has a little dust but such a minute amount but my last bag had no dust at all. I also like that it such good value for money, I get the 10kg bag for £16.99 which lasts me 4 to 6 months. Sherbet also approves of Fitch she likes using it in her nest and enjoys pilling the Fitch into a massive pile.

I would definitely recommend trying Fitch to see whether it helps Jasmine or if it doesn't help I would recommend seeing a vets in case it's skin mites or anything else causing her skin to be sensitive.

Thank you, i have ordered a small 1kg bag of Fitch so she can try it and if it doesn't help she will go to the vets since it could also be mites!