Is baking soda safe?

[spoh]

I have been reading up on posts about odercontrol, it's not a huge problem now but with summer on it's way I cansee it getting worse. I change her litter pan every other dayand use aspen shavings. I bought a piece of the plasticcanvas last night that people have said that they use but now that I amthinking about it that just seems like on extra step to cleaning thelitter pan. I bought that because my husband hates to seeLucy in her litter box sleeping in the wet litter so I thought thatmight help but the other thing is with the plastic canvas do you putany bedding on top of it, I can't see Lucy peeing on a piece ofplastic, she likes the shavings. Putting Shavings on top ofthe canvas would defeat the purpose of the canvas because they wouldstill get wet.

If I do decide to use the canvas is it okay to sprinkle some bakingsoda in with the litter under it? Can I use baking sodawithout the plastic canvas, just sprinkle a little under theshavings?

I am going to buy some imitation vanilla today, I can just see her sitting in front of the water bottle making yummy sounds : )

Thanks in advance for your litter advice! She is just alittle turd, she has her own phone book sitting right hereonthe floor, right now she is in my basket of magazines going totown. : )

Joy

 

[JimD]

Hello Joy!

I used baking soda with shavings when I had drop pans ....prior to litter training.

It's okay to use, but can some times make a mess that's harder to clean.

I use white vinegar to clean the litter pans. I mix it 50/50 with waterin a spray bottle. It's the best for urine stains and odorelimination....sanitizes too!

The vanilla in the drinking water is supposed to reduce the odor intheir urine....and it will sometimes prompt them to drink more if theylike the taste.

My best advice would be to try a wood pellet litter.
I use Woody Pet.
I've used most of the other litter products out there, and the woodpellets beat them all for absorbsion, odor control, and cost.
With wood shavings I was changing pans every day to keep the odor limited at best.

~Jim

 

[spoh]

There is one feed store here in town that isopen on Sunday, I will call and see if they sell it. To buyit online would be a pain, with shipping. I readthat one of the other members uses wood pellets from Walmart but Ichecked last night and ours doesn't sell it.

Thanks for the advice,

Joy

 

[JimD]

There's a lot of different brands out there.

You'll want to ask for the litter/bedding stuff.
Some members have used wood stove pellets as well, but I prefer a product intended for use with animals.

Here's a linkthat lists some ofthe brands:

http://rabbitsonline.net/view_topic.php?id=15881&forum_id=1

~Jim

 

[spoh]

Thanks, I will call when the store opens.

Joy

 

[Bunman]

spoh wrote:

There is one feed store here in town that is open on Sunday,I will call and see if they sell it. To buy it online wouldbe a pain, with shipping. I read that one of theother members uses wood pellets from Walmart but I checked last nightand ours doesn't sell it.

Thanks for the advice,

Joy

Hello,

Wood pellets are available from horse supply stores &farm & garden shops, sometimes in bulk very cheap. Woody Pet isone brand. (Anyway Walmart has a very bad reputation for labor& community relations:http://wakeupwalmart.com/facts/).

With the litter box, one option is to cover it with plastic mesh so theurine falls into the pan & bun stays dry. You can sprinkle 1/4"or so layer baking soda over the pan botton to help absorb odor. Housebrands are cheapest.