07/10/2023
As always there’s such amazing info here for rat (and mouse) bedding and substrate! 💕💕
🐀10 Most common mistakes that new rat owners make 🐀
MISTAKE 7: Using Unsuitable Litter, Bedding and Substrate (and not knowing the difference between them)
It’s common to see people using litter where they would be better using substrate, using a substrate that is unsuitable, or occasionally not using a substrate at all! The terminology can certainly be confusing so let’s go through the difference between substrate, litter, and bedding, and talk about what makes a good example of each, examples of unsuitable options, and some popular brand names you can find in the UK.
Substrate
Substrate is the stuff you put at the bottom of the cage that fills the base- it’s the thing you will use the most of in the cage. Substrate serves a few different purposes; it is there to soak up urine (this is why no substrate isn’t an option!), and substrate is also key to provide enrichment for the rats because they can dig in it, nest with it and forage for food in it (see the post on nuggets and scatter feeding for more info).
When you are looking for a good substrate you need to consider a few things. How deep is your cage base? If it’s not deep enough to keep in at least two inches of substrate then you need to consider upgrading your cage or creating a perspex base to allow for a deep enough layer. The substrate also needs to be suitable for the rats to dig and forage in, and should soak up p*e without becoming soggy thus preventing bad odours. Finally, it needs to be rat safe. In the UK, many of the (confusingly called) wood beddings for horses are also safe as substrate for rats because they are heat treated/kiln dried (to remove phenols from the wood) and dust extracted (so great for sensitive ratty respiratory systems). You can also get shredded cardboard or h**p beddings that are suitable too. You can try out small batches of lots of different substrates from Rat Rations, but larger amounts are usually most economical when you buy direct from a local horse shop (a bale is usually around £9 and will last the average owner many months).
Examples of safe/suitable substrates for rats (not an exhaustive list):
Bedmax (shavings)
Littlemax (shavings)
Megaspread (shavings)
Pureflake Extra (shavings)
Blue Frog (shavings)
Snowflake Supreme (shavings)
Aubiose (h**p)
Green Mile (shredded cardboard)
Finacard (shredded cardboard)
Eco-bed (cardboard squares)
Walmsley (cardboard squares)
Fitch (fluffy paper)
Bioactive coco fibre soil (see the group Naturalistic and Bioactive Rat Setups for more details)
Try mixing multiple of these for really great substrate!
Unsuitable substrates (not an exhaustive list):
Fleece (doesn’t allow for digging or foraging, doesn’t soak up p*e well and holds it, smells bad, rats chew it so needs replacing often and isn’t economical)
Hemcore (has citronella)
Carefresh (dusty; some types are scented)
Sawdust (dusty)
Puppy pads (no enrichment, rats can chew so unsafe)
Paper pellets (see below)
Anything scented
Anything from the litter/bedding sections below (these are great for bedding/litter but not suitable for main substrate)
Litter
Litter is what you are going to put into litter trays, specifically for the rats to p*e and poo on. Litter should therefore be highly absorbent and reduce odour. The best litter on the market is 100% paper based pellets; these are safe if the rats decide to eat them (they have to eat their own faeces to stay healthy so they may eat a bit of the litter too) and are great for controlling odour and harmful ammonia levels.
Examples of suitable litter:
Back 2 Nature
Breeder Celect (same as above just different branding)
Papelit paper pellets
Examples of unsuitable litter:
Biocatolet (has insect repellent in it)
Clay cat litter (gets dusty when wet)
Wood litter (gets dusty when wet)
Anything scented
You can use a substrate in the litter tray, although you will likely have to replace it more often as they are not as absorbent as paper pellets. If you want to litter train your rats it is also easier if you use a litter that is different from your main substrate.
Bedding
Bedding is the little bits of extras that you can give to your rats for them to poke around with and use to nest in their sleeping areas. The purpose of bedding is enrichment and added interest for the rats, not for controlling odour. There’s lots of different options you can try out, you just have to ensure what you are giving them is safe. Generally it’s things that are soft and cuddly, but sometimes the rats may surprise you with what they decide to take back to their hammock!
Examples of suitable bedding:
Strips of kitchen paper
Toilet paper
Good quality dust free hay
Straw
Shredded paper (such as bills etc- ink used in the UK is safe for rats)
Strips of newspaper (again the ink is safe, although the rats’ coats may get stained)
Safebed paper bedding
Teabag bedding
Strips of fabric
Pieces of substrate (they often do this themselves with bigger pieces of substrate like Bedmax or shredded card)
Frequent Questions:
“I heard/read that wood shavings are dangerous for rats!”
This is partially true- sawdust (often marketed for small animals) is very fine particles so much too dusty, and wood shavings that have not been heat treated have high levels of phenols. But generally in the UK horse beddings are heat treated and dust extracted, so as long as you check for those two things, they’re safe.
“I can’t store a huge bale!”
You can either order smaller amounts from Rat Rations, or consider splitting a bale with someone close by. There are also smaller options such as Eco-nest from other retailers, but these aren’t as cost effective.
“My rats kick out substrate so I took it out, it’s just too messy”
This says that your cage base isn’t deep enough- look at upgrading your cage or creating a deeper perspex base for them to burrow into! It’s also worth noting that rats are living creatures with a range of natural behaviours that are important to them, and it’s unreasonable to expect them not to make any mess whatsoever- after all, you wouldn’t expect that of a human in their own house would you? It is our responsibility as owners to provide our rats with an environment that meet their needs as rats.
“I think fleece looks nice and tidy and I just change it when it smells”
Digging and foraging is essential for rats and we should provide them with plenty of opportunities for these behaviours. Ultimately the cage should be set up and furnished with the rats’ needs in mind- not to be pleasing to the human eye (although what could be more pleasing than seeing your rats happy and thriving in an environment that is appropriate and enriching for them!).
“But the person at (well known pet shop chain) said that Back 2 Nature was a suitable substrate!”
Although paper pellets could be used as a substrate, it is really not the best choice for several reasons; it is expensive, plus as it is very absorbent using such a large amount (several inches deep across the whole base) can make the air much too dry for the rats. It is also not as good for digging and foraging as the substrates listed above. Sadly, pet shops are generally one of the worst sources of advice; we’ll discuss this more in the next mistake.
Photo L to R: Littlemax wood shavings substrate, Back2Nature litter, hay bedding.
