tnh
Rodent Retreat Newbie
Posts: 19
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Post by tnh on Mar 5, 2007 0:15:03 GMT -4
I've been using commercial cotton-fluff hamster bedding. My previous hamster really liked it, and would meticulously line his entire igloo with it if I gave him enough.
Now someone's told me that it isn't safe for hamsters, that it can catch in their cheek pouches or choke them. Is this true?
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Post by Hamsters82 on Mar 5, 2007 0:37:23 GMT -4
I've heard it is true. But I can't say that I've never seen it happen, I've only heard of it. I would stray away from it; it's like that old saying "better safe than sorry".
And welcome to RR!
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Post by Die Fledermaus on Mar 5, 2007 0:44:33 GMT -4
tnh joined a year ago. Nice to be here now, though. Artificial fluff must be avoided. Natural cottony fluff is likely not a problem, but neither is hay - but hay I believe can in rare cases (when pouched) pierce a cheek and cause an infection and abcess. I personally would be hesitant to use the natural fluff, but it really is unlikely something bad would happen. Actually, previously, when I did have it in the habitat the hamsters just ignored it.
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tnh
Rodent Retreat Newbie
Posts: 19
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Post by tnh on Mar 5, 2007 21:19:40 GMT -4
Thanks, Hamsters82. It took me an embarrassingly long time to figure out where else I'd run into Die Fledermaus.
DF, I'm thinking that if I use natural unbleached cotton, then tease it out and snip the fibers short before I give it to my hamster, he ought not get into trouble with it.
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Post by Die Fledermaus on Mar 5, 2007 21:22:40 GMT -4
I really don't think that would be a problem - the snipping part would surely help. Hope to see you around here now and then!
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Post by hamwolf89 on Mar 5, 2007 23:30:46 GMT -4
i bought that and my hammie loved it, he tried it and died. It got caught in his stomic.
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Post by Die Fledermaus on Mar 5, 2007 23:47:39 GMT -4
If the ham actually starts EATING it I would be inclined to remove it. Same concept as paper towels - they are NOT designed to dissolve in water; Charmin toilet tissue is, and is thus safer.
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tnh
Rodent Retreat Newbie
Posts: 19
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Post by tnh on Mar 9, 2007 12:13:17 GMT -4
I don't think there's any danger of him eating it. The new guy has rolled the cotton fluff in his igloo into a sort of marshmallowy ottoman, and sleeps on top of it. His predecessor would have taken the fluff apart and carefully lined the inside of his igloo with it, so that when you lifted the shell you had a freestanding cotton-fluff mold of the interior walls.
The individuality of hamsters never ceases to surprise me.
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Post by Die Fledermaus on Mar 9, 2007 20:12:05 GMT -4
>> The individuality of hamsters never ceases to surprise me. <<
So true!! One of the first things I realized after I started getting hamsters and gerbils was how different each one was; even siblings from the same litter showed great differences in personality! It made each one special to me. Since then the fancy rats, GPs, fancy mice, rabbits, and various birds, have all shown the same thing - personality differences that were often quite striking. >> marshmallowy ottoman <<
Sound sooo cozy.
Glad your ham is fine.
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Post by noelani on Mar 10, 2007 17:16:40 GMT -4
How can you be sure you've got it all? I really wouldn't risk it. If the fibers are just long enough, it can pose choking and gastrointestinal problems if ingested. By the way, hamster ingest a little bit of everything they stuff into their mouth even if they are not trying to eat it. Fluffy bedding also clogs cheek pouches and can't be removed very well. Little pieces can get wrapped around the teeth and cause gum disease or tooth loss. If it gets tangled around the limbs it can cut off circulation. Need I go on?
Your hamster would have fun burrowing in lots of his normal bedding and shredded up toilet paper. You don't need the fluffy bedding, there are just too many risks involved.
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Post by Die Fledermaus on Mar 10, 2007 19:52:18 GMT -4
>> You don't need the fluffy bedding, there are just too many risks involved. <<
And there are other options, such as soft toilet paper?
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Post by Hamsters82 on Mar 10, 2007 20:44:10 GMT -4
Speaking of bedding or toys, can you give them toys that maybe I once played with? Or I heard somewhere that you can't because if they start chewing they could get some paint in them? And glad you're back tnh. And it's okay that it took you awhile, it's taking a lot of people a while.
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Post by Die Fledermaus on Mar 10, 2007 20:55:28 GMT -4
>> can you give them toys that maybe I once played with? Or I heard somewhere that you can't because if they start chewing they could get some paint in them? <<
Why don't you tell us which toys YOU used to chew on, and which ones you plan to give to a ham?
But if they have flakey paint I would not give it.
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Post by Hamsters82 on Mar 10, 2007 21:05:30 GMT -4
Ah, I didn't chew on any of those toys. I guess that's a no then. Thanks.
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Post by Die Fledermaus on Mar 10, 2007 21:53:30 GMT -4
No, I wouldn't risk it. I don't think my hams ever got toys with painted things on it, except maybe the green stem of a red plastic strawberry.
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