Re: [OT][VERY OT] Woodshavings...

["Mik Griffin" <panheadscrew@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Just checked with the next door neighbours who have gerbils and they
use Carefresh.  Have a look at:

http://www.cavyrescue.co.uk/care_fresh.htm

Cheers

Mik


--- In ukha_d@xxxxxxx, "Ian Lowe" <ian@w...> wrote:
> Bit of a strange request, hopefully someone on the list can help.
>
> We keep Gerbils, and this time around we ended up with a breeding
pair
> rather than the two males we thought we had... the first litter
was born
> about a month ago, and unfortunately, every single one of the pups
died
> from a respiratory illness - a pretty horrible way to go, and they
died
> at only 21 days old - all seven of them.
>
> It seems the problem is the bedding material - wood shavings that
are
> sold by Pet World (and almost everyone else) for small rodents are
> incredibly toxic to gerbils, especially at the 3 week stage, when
the
> mother's milk no longer provides a boost to the pup's immune
system, and
> they are having to fend for themselves. Volatile oils released by
the
> wood cause a respiratory condition in which the pups make a
horrible
> clicking, rasping sound as they breath - and don't last longer
than 2-3
> days.
>
> I am told by a couple of US breeders that either Aspen wood
shavings, or
> hardwood shavings are ideal - Straw, hay etc are fine for adult
gerbils,
> but not for pups..
>
> The problem is, I'm finding it *extremely* difficult to find a
source
> for these shavings - the local wood yards just chuck all the
turnings
> into the same waste, so I would end up with pine in amongst the
other
> woods.. and possibly end up with cedarwood as well - which is
almost
> guaranteed to be fatal to pups, even worse than pine. :
>
> If anyone knows where I can get a reliable supply of hardwood
shavings,
> or better aspen wood shavings, please let me know. It's now a
matter of
> life and death - our gerbils just birthed another litter - these
pups
> will be okay until about day 10, the 27th April - if I don't move
them
> to other bedding by this point, we may well lose the whole litter
again
> - and I really don't want to see these pups die.
>
> Any help will be incredibly welcome!
>
> Ian.