A Comparison of Litter Types

By Chandra Beal

I recently conducted a survey of types and brands of litter, personal preferences, and experiences in a quest for the ultimate rabbit litter. The result? Litter is a very subjective matter, and there is no clear winner.

The best choice for you depends on your individual rabbit’s preferences, your own likes and dislikes, your budget, your litter box arrangements, and how you intend to dispose of soiled litter. Needs also vary with the number of rabbits in your house. A lone dwarf rabbit may go through a small bag of litter once per month, while a household of foster rabbits may use 20 pounds of corncob every day.

Common concerns about litter include absorption, odor control, affordability, availability, ease of use, and ultimately, what your bunny will tolerate. Safety factors in with litters that are edible, dusty, or contain fragrant oils: some people are allergic to certain types of wood. Many people use soiled litter in their compost and as mulch (wood chips with bunny droppings provide nitrogen to the soil, but wood chips alone will leach nitrogen out), so safety for the environment is also a concern. Others like a litter they can flush down the toilet, and some simply dispose of it in the trash.

Many people use a combination of different litter materials, such as a thick layer of newspaper, topped with a thin layer of litter and a handful of straw. Others scoop droppings out of the box daily, layer dry litter on the top, and only clean the box once a week. Still others use baking soda underneath the litter or in the cage tray to help absorb odors. Some use wire grates, and there is a wide variety of litter box covers, corner guards, and shapes and sizes to meet your needs (look in the cat section of the pet supply store).

With all of these choices, it is easy to get overwhelmed. But we’ve come a long way from the days when the only litter available for rabbits was dangerous pine shavings. We encourage you to experiment and find the litter that is right for you and your rabbit.

Following is a list of most types of litter with some pros and cons I gathered from my survey responses:

• PELLETED GRASS (Bird Country, Critter Country, Clean’n’Comfy, Cat Country) PROS: absorbent, dust free, compostible, controls odor, easy to scoop. CONS: heavy, expensive.
• RECYCLED PAPER (Carefresh, Yesterday’s News, Eco Brand) PROS: Easy to scoop, dust free, soft, absorbent, controls odor. CONS: Yesterday's News has a bad inky smell, CareFresh sticks to fur and feet, expensive.
• WOOD SHAVINGS (Feline Pine, Northeastern Aspen) PROS: Controls odor, fairly absorbent. CONS: Even “safe” shavings may contain residual phenols and oils.
• CORN COB (Kaybob, Pestell) PROS: Fair absorption, inexpensive. CONS: Bad for rabbit to ingest, dusty, no odor control, can mold.
• NON-CLUMPING CLAY (A wide variety of cat litters) PROS: Absorbent, readily available, flushable, inexpensive. CONS: Some brands too dusty, harmful if ingested.
• FOOD PELLETS (any brand) PROS: Absorbs odor and liquids, readily available, inexpensive. CONS:Rabbit may overeat, may be of poor nutritional quality.
• HAY & STRAW PROS: Makes a good top layer, provides fiber, inexpensive. CONS: Not very absorbent, bulky (but lightweight), fairly messy.
• NEWSPAPER PROS: Makes a good bottom layer, absorbent, inexpensive, available. CONS: No odor control, bulky (but lightweight), ink can stain feet.
• OFFICE PAPER PROS: Dust free, clean, rabbits like to play in and around it. CONS: Not absorbent, some inks and toners can be hazardous.
• DRIED CITRUS PEELS (CitraFresh) PROS: Low dust, fair absorption, safe if eaten. CONS: Sticks to fur, some rabbits don’t like citrus smell.
• PEAT MOSS PROS: Fair absorption. CONS: Medium dust, fairly high in nitrogen (if using in garden).
• CHEMICAL SAND PROS: Absorbent, flushable, low dust. CONS: Gastrointestinal problems if ingested, messy, heavy, abrasive to bunny.

About the Author:

Chandra Moira Beal is a 30 year-old writer who lives in Austin, Texas. Chandra grew up in Santa Cruz, California and moved to Austin in 1991 after visiting a friend there and falling in love with the area. She has a bachelor's degree in music theory from Concordia University. Although she has no formal education in writing per se, she has been writing since she can remember. She bases most of her work on her life experiences.

She has contributed articles to a variety of animal welfare publications, including Hoppenings (House Rabbit Resource Network newsletter), In a Nutshell (newsletter of the Squirrel Lover's Club), ASPCA's Animal Watch (reprinted 6 times), and the Bunny Thymes (Canadian newsletter). Chandra also wrote and self-published a guidebook to swimming in Central Texasbook, Splash Across Texas!

Chandra may be contacted by email at laluna@io.com.

Article courtesy of Suite101.com.