# Cat litter pellets as substrate?



## Jeffers3 (May 18, 2010)

Has anyone used cat litter pellets as a substrate for beardies, or even geckos? I can imagine there's an impaction danger for smaller animals, but for larger animals, would the pellets break down quite easily if accidentally swallowed?

The topic popped up on the snake section, which got me wondering. My daughter, by the way, uses them as a substrate for her rats - and has done for many years.


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## GlasgowGecko (Feb 23, 2008)

Many cat litter products contain either chemicals to suppress smells, or to change colour when hydrated. These types of things must be avoided, as they can be very dangerous (we use some similar products in the lab). 

Generally these types of products are Zeolite (I believe) which is principally aluminum based, thus medium scale consumption could easily lead to toxicity.

Andy


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## UrolithicTitan (Sep 12, 2010)

Are they the same a the sort of substrate people use for Tortoises?
Because I do know of a couple of Bearie breeders who use it as a substrate because it can naturally be broken own by the Beardie if the accidently swallow some. I however would not use it as a substrate as the risk of impaction is still there and I would personaly go for repti-turf or slate tiles.


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## Mal (Jul 22, 2007)

As Andy rightly points out, the pellets containing additives pose a significant risk.

We have however used cat litter pellets without any problem for our Garter snakes who can be rather messy critters at times. The young male we keep eats a diet that comprises of at least 50% fresh fish so Im sure you can imagine how foul his output can be. We switched them on to cat litter on the advice of one of Europes leading breeder and expert on Garter snakes. The brand he recommended was 'beauticat' which is wood based with no artificial additives. When it gets wet it dissolves into soft powder. Once this powder dries, even if it is in a clump, the lightest touch turns it into powder again. I wouldnt hesitate to suggest its use for this particular species of snake. I would be a bit more hesitant in recommending it for other species including lizards simply because I havent used it on these myself. In theory I cant see the natural soluble 'additive free' products being of any greater risk than some of the commercially available reptile specific products such as calci sand, corn husk etc etc. Obviously the smaller species could get a pellet stuck in their gullet but as soon as it became wet it should quickly break up. Personally I dont think I would try it on anything other than the garters as their are so many readily available safe substrates to choose from.


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## Jeffers3 (May 18, 2010)

GlasgowGecko said:


> Many cat litter products contain either chemicals to suppress smells, or to change colour when hydrated. These types of things must be avoided, as they can be very dangerous (we use some similar products in the lab).
> 
> Generally these types of products are Zeolite (I believe) which is principally aluminum based, thus medium scale consumption could easily lead to toxicity.
> 
> Andy


Thanks Andy

The pellets my daughter uses for her rats are wood based. I'm not sure about any other additives. I'll have a look at the packaging tonight, as they should be listed.

We've worked with lots of these sorts of materials in the lab as well. Ethisorb (I think it was called) contained potassium permanganate and many others also contained potentially harmful compounds. Obviously, these should be avoided.


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## Nix (Jan 23, 2008)

Wood based pellets are usually pine. Don't use these!


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## Mal (Jul 22, 2007)

Nix said:


> Wood based pellets are usually pine. Don't use these!


Correct, which is the reason I wouldnt recommend their general acceptance as a safe subject. We use a specific product that has been used for many years for a specific species by a reputable, knowledgable and highly experienced breeder who has used it for hundreds of this specific species. That by no means guarantees that its safe for other species. It would probably pose no greater risk to health than products such as calci sand but with the number of readily availabe safe products there really is no need to take any risk.


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## Nix (Jan 23, 2008)

Agreed Mal - I wouldn't use any old brand. If you have tested a particular one and found it to be okay then : victory:


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