Chinchilla Bedding
Small animal bedding comes in a wide variety or shapes, materials, and colors. Despite this, very few beddings marketed for chinchillas are suitable or even safe for them. Many are too dusty. Some are made with paper or other products that could cause a blockage. The beddings listed here have a great track record of safety to give you options and peace of mind!
Kiln-Dried Pine Shavings
Kiln-dried pine shavings are a popular choice among chinchilla enthusiasts. It has a very long and safe history of being used with chinchillas and other sensitive animals, and it's inexpensive!
Why Kiln-dried?
Untreated pine contains many chemical compounds that can affect the respiratory system and liver of small animals. When pine is dried at high temperatures in a big oven (kiln) these chemicals are broken down into harmless components.
Aspen Shavings
A similar and just as safe option is aspen shavings. Aspen is a hard wood and does not contain the unsafe chemicals that pine does, so it does not have to be dried in a kiln. Aspen tends to be less prone to dust but is usually a couple dollars more than pine shavings. Click Here to order our Aspen Shavings
Both pine and aspen shavings should be changed 1-2 x per week.
Pelleted Straw
Oxbow's Eco-Straw and Mountain Meadow's Critter Country are great options for those who want a pelleted bedding. Pellets are heavier than shavings, is more absorbant, and clumps. These straw pellets have the added benefit of not expanding significantly when wet- a concern of wood pellets if they are injested.
Straw pellets can be scooped for pee daily and changed every 2 weeks or just changed weekly.
Anti-Pill Fleece
Fleece fabric is a great bedding material. It is reusable, comes in an unlimited amount of fun colors and patterns, and safe! You want a piece of fabric large enough to cover the area you want and tuck under the edges. Chinchillas should not have access to the edges to chew on!
Poops and hay can be shook off fleece daily. It should be washed by hand or machine weekly and hung to dry. It is helpful to have more than one set of fleece blankets to switch out when cleaning the other set.
We at Quality Cage Crafters want your chinchillas to thrive! If you have any questions on chinchilla substrate or any others regarding small pets, we are here to help! Email us at cages@qualitycage.com
I have been useing hay as bedding but iv got my chinchilla a new cage and bought straw for bedding will I b ok to use that
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