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Old 07-27-2020, 12:32 AM   #1
Ang2020
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Default Wood shavings as a base?

Hi

I have an Alaska cage and picking up my Syrian tomorow. I am prepping the cage today.

Is a thick layer of wood shavings ok? Or is it care fresh bedding that's best to use mainly? Or a combination of both?

Thanks
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Old 07-27-2020, 02:27 AM   #2
LunaTheHamster1
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Default Re: Wood shavings as a base?

You can use a combination of both, just make sure the wood shavings are aspen. Personally I found carefresh very dusty and made one of my hamsters eyes close up, I also find it expensive.
If you have space you may find buying other bedding in bulk works out cheaper, e.g. megazorb, aubiose (can get from amazon/millbry hill or a local equestrian shop if you have one). Kaytee clean& Cozy and fitch are other paper based bedding that a lot of people use and recommend on here.
I would keep away from tea bag bedding as a lot of tea bags have plastic in them and therefore you can't guarantee what will be included in the bedding.

Hope this helps. So exciting getting a new hamster.
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Old 07-27-2020, 02:30 AM   #3
cypher
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Default Re: Wood shavings as a base?

I agree about carefresh, I’ve found kaytee clean & cosy (the white only) to be the best substrate & I’ve tried a lot. You may have to order that online though, I’m not sure if it’s available in pet shops or not.
I’ used fitch for a long time too, it is a good substrate & very economical but I do think keytee is just that bit better.
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Old 07-27-2020, 05:49 AM   #4
Teals
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Default Re: Wood shavings as a base?

I agree. I tried carefresh when I ran out of kaytee and I found it really dusty and my hamster didn't want to burrow in it whereas he burrows all the time in kaytee.
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Old 07-27-2020, 10:02 AM   #5
AmityvilleHams
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Default Re: Wood shavings as a base?

Another far superior alternative to Carefresh would be Small Pet Select's paper bedding. Others have found it lower in dust than Clean and Cozy(which does in some cases have dust issues too - just not as commonly as Carefresh).

Personally I would go for substrates less likely to cause allergic reactions. Wood shavings of any kind, even aspen, tend to be the most likely to cause an allergic reaction. Aspen reactions may not be as common as pine reactions but they still do happen. If you did end up in that situation, you'd end up in the potentially quite frustrating situation of having to remove all the substrate which ends up wasting time and money and ultimately causes more stress to the hamster even if it really is necessary in such a case!

Aubiose is also something you could mix with a high quality paper substrate that is extremely unlikely to cause a reaction. There have been some very rare cases of reactions, but it does seem like humans are typically the ones to react and not hamsters when it comes to hemp. If you're going to choose hemp, be extremely careful as not all brands are created equal and some do have unsafe additives - for example citronella.
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Old 07-27-2020, 04:40 PM   #6
EmmaAndChester
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Default Re: Wood shavings as a base?

Wood shavings are perfectly safe, and fine to use, and a preferred substrate by many. Spruce shavings are 100% safe, and a much better alternative to aspen (which is often very dusty!). Allspan sell 100% spruce shavings; they are marketed for horses with allergies, and are low dust & superb at burrow stability.

Aubiose/hemp offers poor burrow stability. While some hamsters are allergic to shavings, this is most commonly associated with very dusty wood bedding - so, choose a quality brand, and there is not high risk for allergies. Allspan is really great!
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Old 07-27-2020, 06:40 PM   #7
Presley524
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Default Re: Wood shavings as a base?

I’m not familiar with how big the Alaska cage is, but for mine I use aspen on half of the cage where the wheels go because I found it is easier to pack down so they aren’t unbalanced than on paper bedding and on the other half I have a very deep portion of paper bedding. I also had some dust issues with Care Fresh and I wanted a brown paper bedding so I use So Phresh(I’m in the US and am not sure if it is available outside the US). It isn’t as soft as Kaytee, but not dusty and came in a few colors. My hamsters don’t seem to mind it and burrow in it with no problems.
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Old 07-27-2020, 09:38 PM   #8
AmityvilleHams
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Default Re: Wood shavings as a base?

I would be incredibly hesitant to use So Phresh products, if not avoiding them at all costs. They often include baking soda(dangerous for many reasons when used directly in the cage - fine outside the cage completely out of hamster reach in a box for odor control though), and while some products don't explicitly state this it is a very risky brand in general.
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Old 07-27-2020, 10:06 PM   #9
Presley524
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Default Re: Wood shavings as a base?

Quote:
Originally Posted by AmityvilleHams View Post
I would be incredibly hesitant to use So Phresh products, if not avoiding them at all costs. They often include baking soda(dangerous for many reasons when used directly in the cage - fine outside the cage completely out of hamster reach in a box for odor control though), and while some products don't explicitly state this it is a very risky brand in general.
I had no idea about this! Thank you for letting me know. I will definitely be switching it out
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Old 07-28-2020, 06:22 AM   #10
Ria P
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Default Re: Wood shavings as a base?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Presley524 View Post
I had no idea about this! Thank you for letting me know. I will definitely be switching it out
If you want a brown substrate use the Kaytee clean & cozy Natural. I use that one and the Kaytee c&c Camo in my natural set up cages. My Robo lives in a number of tunnels he made so it seems to hold them well.
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