Choosing Bedding for Exotic Pets - Alternatives to Cedar and Pine Shavings

Cedar and pine wood shavings are readily available as small pet bedding, but they are not recommended due to concerns over potential adverse health effects of the volatile compounds released from the wood (especially cedar). Choosing the right bedding is important to the health of small pets, and it can also help make cleaning cages and litter boxes much easier. Good bedding absorbs lots of waste, which helps keep cages cleaner, and keeps odors down. Back when I had mice I used aspen shavings, but found them messy (they seem to track all over the house) and really not all that absorbent. Now for my rats I use Yesterday's News cat litter (Softer Texture) as a base, covered with a layer of CareFresh. The cat litter, a recycled newspaper product, is very absorbent, but I like the CareFresh on top because it just seems more soft and cozy for the boys. This combination also seems to keep odor down very well. By the way, I use the cat litter version of Yesterday's News instead of the small animal bedding version, because the cat litter looks and feels almost identical to me but is much less expensive (at least at the store I use, but that may not be the case everywhere). Many different choices for lining cages and litter boxes can be found in Top Alternatives to Cedar and Pine Shavings, and some of these might just make cage cleaning seem like less of a chore.