Can you use cat litter in a ferret cage
When you are having a pet at home you need to take care of the animal wholeheartedly and you need to clean the house as well. Petting an animal whatever it is a ferret, cat or dog, increases your duties along with household chores. Let’s know can you use cat litter in a ferret cage?
If you are having a dog, a cat, and a ferret at home you have to deal with them separately, such as food, cages, and litter box. Dogs and cats can be trained to poop outside the house or in some sandbox. Since ferrets are indoor, furry, and delicate smaller animals and don’t go outside. They need to learn to use the litter box for litter.
You should keep in mind that you cannot use cat litter in ferret’s cage because mostly that is clay litter and it is not good for your ferret. Clay can be harmful whether dry or wet and can be bad for ferret’s respiratory system. If the clay is wet then it will be thick enough to stick to the ferret’s body and can be hard to take off. It can also end up messing things around where the ferret will move or also can cause blockage to the ferret’s anus.
Can you use cat litter in a ferret cage?
Ferrets have a habit of digging and snorkeling in the litter. So cat’s clay litter is no good idea for your pet. Ferrets need an unscented litter, does not clumps, and toxic whereas the cat litter normally found very toxic. So ferrets only can use cat litter which is made of the shredded newspaper while they use litter more than a cat often use.
Sometimes accidents happen. You need to be very patient about this though you have trained your ferret well they cannot wait for elimination. Ferrets only need a layer of litter in the box they don’t stool like cats and cover it. So if you put more litter in it they will start digging in it.
Quantity of litter
You should not put or full the litter box with ferret litter. You can use a folded newspaper over the thin layer of pellets that’s enough. So the pellets will soak up the urine and newspaper will catch up poops. Keep in mind more layers of litter won’t work for good. It will only waste the paper as you needed to change it often. Moreover, you just need to change the newspaper in the ferret’s cage and the pellets should be replaced after 5-7 days and wash the litter box.
Obviously, the more you clean the cage and surrounding the less your house will stink and the odor will be unnoticeable. Depending on the number of ferrets you need to put litter boxes according to because ferrets don’t use other’s litter boxes. If you forget or failed to maintain the litterbox regularly the ferrets will stop using them as a protest.
If you have male ferrets then you must have put multiple boxes in the cage. As they urinate in the center of the box as compared to the female ferrets. So the litter box is needed along with the bedding in the ferret cage to provide the facility to them and they feel it home.
Side effects of using cat litter for ferret
Ferrets are a playful and lovely creatures. They love to dig into things, sniff and chew are their habits to explore things deep inside. If you use the cat litter that is made of clay then it could be changed into clumps. These clumps can turn into a clot of cement and enter the mouth or nose of the ferret.
Purchasing clay or clumping cat litters for a ferret isn’t the best option because these kinds are dusty and a threat to the respiratory system of your pet. As you know they have to put their nose everything around them that can block the breathing and of course you won’t want your ferret to be sick.
Usually, ferrets have a habit of poop in the litter and rub their bottom on the floor. So if you are using clay or clumping litter then it can be formed into cement thing and stuck in the rear sides of the ferrets. These clump particles also can get into the anus and cause severe problems to the pet. Details about, can you use cat litter in a ferret cage are here.
Types of cat litters—Clumps or clay
These types of cat litters are harmful to the ferrets and you shouldn’t use them in any case.
- Corncob litter
This kind of cat litter cannot have an absorbing ability. So that it is not good for ferrets. It also spread stink in your home. As it doesn’t have odor removal ability as well.
- Pinewood shaving litter
Oh no, never use this kind of litter for your furry animal. Because this litter has a very high content of dust and can dangerously affect ferret. It directly affects the asthmatic system of small animals including ferrets. Use common sense if you are using wood shavings that contain toxic oils which is bad for ferret’s health. Such as pine or cedar wood shavings.
The oils in these wood shavings cause changes in the liver enzymes. Which damages the respiratory system of ferrets and other small animals as well.
- Silica-based litter
When ferrets are facilitated with the silica-based litter. Then it can cause trauma in their respiratory system because of sniffing deep inside. Though some pricey silica litters are safe for the ferrets and user-friendly products. But instead of taking risk of something like this would not be best for your pet ferrets. The other thing is that you cannot clean the litter. So it’s not recommended as it has no odor control ability.
Good and friendly cat litters for ferrets
As far as you must have known now that some cat litter is not good for ferrets. So it’s better to use other kinds of litter which are good for their health. The following are the few examples of good litter you can use instead of cat litter.
- Paper pellet litter
If you love your pet and want to have it a long and healthy life. Then you should be careful while handling it or nourishing them. You better need to understand that they need your extra care and realize what suits their delicate health. Always use the litter box filled with ferret-friendly litter and good for his health. This is the best type of cat litter for your furry buddy with paper pellet litter and its safe for him.
This litter is of large size papers and cannot throw around by the ferret. This litter has recycled ability so no worries if your ferret chews that even. These are harmless for ferrets and their health.
- Pine or Oak pellets
You can use this type of cat’s litter which is the highly absorbing capacity of the musky odor of ferret. These pellets come in several forms like (stall pellets, feline pine litter, and wood stove pellets). You can use tree-based pellets. As the material as they are natural resource so can be even flushed into the toilet. These are less pricey and quite affordable and amazing thing is that when ferret snorkel in it. They curl up and scooped up easily. You can try different brands of good quality pellets.
This type of litter though may not recognize for a ferret. But cat owners and can be easily purchased from the hardware store. But don’t forget to keep in mind that the larger wood pellets would be more effective than smaller. Ones and are safe for ferrets with no chemical additives and dust-free. The stove pellets, equine pine pellets can be easily clean up and available at the grocery store.
- What/Walnut/Corn litters
Today when the ferrets have been now popular around the world. So the vegetable-based litters are coming into the market such as (ground corn, wheat shells, and wheat). These litters are dust-free and substitute for the dangerous clay cat litter with small-sized particles to the cat traditional litter.
You can check the online market there are many companies making ferret litters such as (Blue Buffalo, Scwheat Scoop, and World’s best corn litter). These are vegetable cat litters you can use for ferrets with great odor control and absorbent factor. This litter is dust-free and safe for the ferret’s respiratory system but they are a little expensive than average type.
Conclusion
The above article explained that some of the cat litters are highly dangerous and some are safe for the ferrets. Though the safest litters are a bit expensive so it’s better to keep a ferret-friendly litter than the commercial one. Ferrets have exploring habit and dig inside everything around them so keep in mind their safety first. The best option is that it comes with recycle ability and can be flushed into the toilet and some are tension free even if the ferret chews them.
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