Hamster litter

[hamster lover 123]

Hi, as you know I have a syrian hamster called Fifi and she likes to wee in her sand bath. We recently switched the sand to hamster litter instead but the bags are very small and a little costly. Does anybody have any advice and recommendations for a hamster litter please? Thanks!

 

[Socks' Mum]

I've ordered some reptile sand and will report on how it's received. Socks prefers the Sepiolite litter, but I have heard that there are concerns that it might cause blockages.

 

[Maz]

Hi, as you know I have a syrian hamster called Fifi and she likes to wee in her sand bath. We recently switched the sand to hamster litter instead but the bags are very small and a little costly. Does anybody have any advice and recommendations for a hamster litter please? Thanks!

Is it the bags of sand that are small and costly or the bags of litter? Do you mean potty litter? I think sand is the best option. There are a few that people use that are fine, and they're quite big bags.

Komodo Natural Sand - Amazon

I've tried that one. It's quite fine and soft. It's ok. You can actually just get a huge bag of childrens play sand from Argos which is less than £5 and lasts forever! People have used that in the past. As long as it says sterilised on the bag. It will be a bit "heavier" sand.

If it's for her sand bath, and she pees in it, you don't have to keep throwing it all away though You just use a little sieve and scoop out the wet patches.

I actually preferred the JR farm sand which I used to get from Zooplus and it was a very large bag. But apparently that is sepiolite sand. There are so many views on sepiolite sand but some people have concerns it could turn hard if digested. So I switched to the natural sand but have never had any issues with the JR Farm sand for years!

A couple of people have recently had issues with certain desert sands - ie hamsters eating it. So the natural sand might be the safer bet

 

[hamster lover 123]

I mean the bags of litter We are using the “Savic Hamster Toilet” litter which is about £6 for a rather small bag. Thanks for your suggestions and I’ll stay tuned to hear about the reptile sand.

 

[Maz]

Ah yes. No I wouldn't bother with that potty litter. Sand is safer anyway because the potty litter is clay based so can be a bit dangerous if they ate it. I did used to use it and hamsters tend not to eat it! But it's still a bit risky, and as you say it's expensive.

Does she have a litter tray as well as a sand bath? Sometimes they wee in both

 

[hamster lover 123]

Oh okay. Thank you for letting me know! She wees in her grey litter but she doesn’t use it as a sand bath I don’t think. We usually put the bathing sand out for her in the playpen when she comes out.

 

[Maz]

I would just switch the grey litter for sand It does the same job. The sand soaks up the wee. You can just empty it out once or twice a week

 

[Socks' Mum]

I mean the bags of litter We are using the “Savic Hamster Toilet” litter which is about £6 for a rather small bag. Thanks for your suggestions and I’ll stay tuned to hear about the reptile sand.

The sand is proving to be popular and had been well accepted. I mixed in a small amount with the contents of Socks' corner litter tray so that his smell (which I can't smell) is still present. He is using his tray as usual, about twice a day. The sand is much pleasanter to handle than Sepiolite (Tiny Friends sand) and easier to remove from the litter tray. And healthier as it is free of clay, so I will buy it again.

 

[Socks' Mum]

Reptile Sand - Premium Quality Substrate for Your Reptiles (1.75 KG BUCKET) | eBay UK

Simply pour it into the tank, distribute evenly and watch as your reptile thrives in their new surroundings. Our sand is also easy to clean, reducing the hassle of vivarium maintenance. Introducing UKGROW's small bags of high-quality Reptile Sand.

www.ebay.co.uk

 

[Maz]

That's a handy looking bucket I haven't seen that one before. Does it say it's calcium-free? I'm guessing it is. Most reptile sands are ok as long as they don't have calcium.

This is another one people use sometimes.

Reptisand

I haven't tried it - I quite like the natural sand

 

[Socks' Mum]

It doesn't say it has calcium, so should be calcium free. It's nice and soft and very slightly moist. Nice to sink your fingers into and the sand doesn't stick to your fingers.

 

[Socks' Mum]

The bucket is nice It's a handy size for all sorts of things and quite robust

 

[hamster lover 123]

Thank you for these suggestions. We have decided to go for the komodo natural sand. Hopefully the girls will like that Agreed, the bucket looks like it could he handy for a lot of things. Perhaps storage for hamster toys?

 

[Maz]

Let us know how you get on with it . The bag should last quite a long time if it’s mainly for a litter tray. First time you put sand in the litter tray, maybe put a bit of the old smelly potty litter on top (just a tiny bit) so she knows it’s still her toilet. Then after it’s emptied next time you can just use sand again

 

[hamster lover 123]

Okay! Will do Thank you

 

[Maz]

I'd also suggest not washing/cleaning the litter tray when you switch from the potty litter to the sand the first time - so it still smells of her pee! After that it's ok to clean it again once she's using it still.

If using the sand for a sand bath as well, you don't need to change it all if she pees in the sand bath. Just scoop out the wet patch! With a small sieve or even an old spoon.

 

[Maz]

It doesn't say it has calcium, so should be calcium free. It's nice and soft and very slightly moist. Nice to sink your fingers into and the sand doesn't stick to your fingers.

I just checked and the seller says it doesn't contain calcium

 

[Socks' Mum]

I just checked and the seller says it doesn't contain calcium

Excellent, thanks Maz