Top 10 Rat Beddings: Choose Only Safe And Comfortable Types

Do you want to buy rat bedding but are not sure which one is safe for your rat and won’t be harmful for daily use?

When you buy one of our top 10 picks for rats you will solve these problems. We picked the best beddings from the market that are safe for your ferret. If you have some materials at home, you can even do it on your own. To find out all the info about this topic, keep on reading.

The Summary

What Is Rat Bedding Used For?

Bedding is a special type of accessory for rat cage. It is mainly used as the cover for the bottom surfaces such as plastic or wire mesh bottom, but also for rats’ privacy while making a nest, sleeping, or hiding.

How Often Bedding Need To Be Changed?

How often you’ll change it depends on the type of the material, and the number of your rats. We recommend cleaning the cage completely twice a week. To keep the cage odor-free, remove all the wet spots that you notice as well as uneaten food.

Types Of Beddings

There are different types you can find on the market. We listed which ones are safe and which to avoid for different reasons .

Safe Types Of Bedding

Types that can be used on a daily bases, won’t be harmful and cause any health problems are:

• Paper
• Aspen wood shaving
• Straw pellet
• Litter pellets
• Fabric and fleece
• Newspaper
• Shredder paper
• Fleece scraps
• Cloth

Which Bedding Should Rats Avoid?

Not all the bed options are the best choice for rats. Some bedding can harm rats and make them sick because of the ingredients they contain. The bedding which you need to avoid are:

Bedding With Chemicals – Paper which contains chemicals such as dyes or soda, as well scents such as fragrance, aromatic oils is needed to be avoided for rat’s health.

Dust Bedding – Bedding that doesn’t have a label dust-free or low dust is not the best choice for rats as it can affect their respiratory system and cause breathing problems.

Large Wooden Parts – Bedding with large wood parts is not the best choice for rats. They tend to chew everything and if they swallow a large part it can cause different health problems.

Corn Bedding – Avoid models made of corn, rats will probably start eating it which can cause digestive problems.

Fleece – Even if the fleece is a soft material and safe for rats, it is not recommended to use it as bedding. Fleece is polyethylene material that doesn’t absorb liquid and you will end with puddles of urine around the rat’s cage.

Towel – Even if most towels are made of naturally absorbing materials and are soft for rats’ paws, they are not a good choice as bedding. Rats can easily get caught in the looks of cotton fabric, and get tangled in it which can cause major issues.

Other beddigs that you should also avoid are: pine, cedar, with baking soda, scented, corncob, cat litter, alfalfa pellets.

Why Is Bedding Necessary For Rats?

You’re not sure which are benefits of having bedding for a rat’s cage? And why you should buy it as soon as possible? Read the list down below so you can find out how useful it can be.

Cover Bottom Base

You’re having a metal rat cage and you want to cover it so the rats are warm during the wintertime? Or do you have a wire net base that is uncomfortable for the rats? Having bedding will solve this problem. It will keep your rat warm during cold weather and protect their sensitive feet.

Odor Control

Your rats are peeing and pooping everywhere and you want to control bad smells? By having bedding with a high absorbing feature you won’t have to worry about odor.

Good Toilet Habits

If you want to teach rats to use the bedding as litter and encourage food toilet habits, having bedding will help you with that. There will be no more droppings on the shelves which will take you more time for maintenance.

Area For Activities

As we know rats are very active animals and love to move around and explore, so having bedding will give them opportunities for many activities such as digging, hiding, and playing.

Buyer’s Guide: How To Pick Bedding For Rat?

Our guide will help you choose the best bedding on the market. Specifications that needed to be checked before shopping are listed down below.

Type Of Material

Beddings can be made from a variety of materials such as paper, wood, hemp, coconut, corn, and more. Wooden beddings are mostly made of aspen or pine wood. Each material has its pros and cons which include price, dust level, absorbency, and more.

Absorbency

Some beddings are able to absorb more than other ones, depending on the type of material. They can absorb up to 4 or 5 times more of their weight in liquid which is one of their benefits. Other materials can absorb twice their weight and those types of materials are not the best choice if you have multiple rats. Every manufacturer needs to label out absorbency. If you pick bedding with great absorbency, it will keep your rat’s cage cleaner and save you time with maintenance. Paper and wooden beddings are the best choices.

Odor Control

Even if rats are very clean animals, like other pets, they can easily get smelly if you’re not paying attention to the mess in the cage. Absorbency is directly connected to odor control, which is the reason why is better to pick material that has a great absorbency feature. Odor control is definitely one of the most important features you need to look for in bedding if you want a clean and fresh environment.

Edibility

Most of the bedding, like paper ones, won’t be attractive to rats, but some of them such as corn ones might start eating which can cause a lot of health issues because it is unhealthy for rats to eat. Stay away from any edible beddings especially if you notice that your rats start chewing them.

Weight

Even if you didn’t think about this feature, it actually very important, mostly because of maintenance and cleaning. Light bedding can easily be thrown around a lot, make dust, and spread all over the cage so you can expect to spend more time cleaning it. Heavier beddings won’t spread that easily and stay only on the bottom surface, which will reduce cleanup time.

Volume

The bedding package is usually measured in liters. On the market, you can find from 5 to more than 300 l. When buying, consider how much it expands. Some expand double of their size and some beddings can expand up to 4 times their size. Why is important to know about expansion? If the bedding expanse a lot, you will get a lot more use from the same volume, which increases the value of that bedding

Value For Money

Most expensive models doesn’t mean it is the best one, so don’t take price as the main feature of what’s good or not. The best value in beddings shows how much of it you’ll get for the price. Most of the bedding can be found for $15 and go up to $50.

Additional Components

We recommend picking natural bedding which is biodegradable and can be composted. Neutral colors will easily blend in every rat’s cage, but you can choose colorful ones as well, for a more fun look. Picking bedding with a dust-free label will save you time with maintenance.

Top 10 Picks Of Rat Beddings

Oxbow Animal Comfort Bedding

This soft bedding is made of never-printed paper which has no added chemicals for the health safety of your rat. It is 99.9% dust-free paper so you don’t have to worry about additional maintenance and cleaning. Not that only it is rat-safe, bedding provides comfort.

You can choose the size of the bedding from 28 to 178 Liter, depending on how big your cage is. Because of the great moisture absorption, it will make cleaning up much easier and you won’t have to worry about odor.

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Living World Small Animal Bedding

If you’re looking for 100% natural bedding made of aspen wood, scent and dust-free, this Living World bedding is one of the best you can find on the market. It comes in 3 different sizes, from 600 to 2500-cubic inches.

Because it is highly absorbent bedding you won’t have to worry about odor. Bedding can absorb up to 4 times its weight. Don’t worry about rats’ heath, this bedding is hypoallergenic which means that it doesn’t contain any harmful oils and chemicals.

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Kaytee Clean & Cozy Bedding

This soft and fluffy bedding is made of 100 natural paper and it is 99.9% dust-free so if your rat has respiratory problems you won’t have to worry about his health. You can choose the package from 12 to 100 Liter depending on how many rats you have.

With this bedding, odor control is guaranteed. It absorbs 5 times its weight in liquid so you can easily clean it when needed. Also, it absorbs 2 times more liquid than wood shavings. Because of the darker color, you will easily see when it’s time to change the bedding.

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Vitakraft Fresh Crumble Bedding

This fresh crumble bedding is made of 100% natural recycled paper and it is baking soda-free for the safety of your rat. Also, it is 99.5% dust-free bedding so you don’t have to worry about an additional mess in the cage which requires occasional cleaning.

Bedding expands 3 times its weight when absorbing moisture, and it has up to 14 days of superior odor control so you can be sure you’ll spend less time cleaning. Bedding is biodegradable which means it can be composted after use.

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Small Pet Select Bedding

If you’re looking for white bedding for your rat’s cage, this Small Pet Select bedding is one of the best on the market. Soft bedding is made of unbleached paper. By using this white bedding you will easier spot wet areas so you can clean them quickly.

Because the bedding is 99% dust-free, there won’t be an additional mess in the cage, and your rats won’t have any health issues, especially those with respiratory problems. Comfortable bedding comes in in size from 56 to 356 liter.

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Niteangel Natural Coco Bedding

Bedding is made of natural coo material, which is soft for use and won’t hurt your at’s paws. Sprinkle the bedding inside the rat’s cage and enjoy watching them digging and exploring. Coconut fiber material rats can use as chewing toys without worries.

Bedding is low dust which keeps your rats well breathing and you won’t be concerned about mess and cleaning. Natural coconut material will absorb any bed small in the habitat and keep the area clean and fresh.

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Happy Trees Premium Bedding

Happy Trees hemp bedding is one of the most comfortable bedding your rats will ever have. It is made of natural material and has a high thermal rating which means it will keep your rat warm during winter and cool in the summertime.

Don’t worry about dust, this hemp bedding has a low dust feature which means your rats will have fresh air to breathe and you won’t need to clean the cage that often. Hemp bedding is free of chemicals and dyes for rats’ safety. Also, it has a great absorbency so there is no odor.

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Carefresh Animal Bedding

Add some colors to your rat’s cage by using this Carefresh bedding which comes in purple, confetti, and blue color. This beautiful bedding is made of natural scratch which will be gentle for your rat’s sensitive feet. This bedding is the perfect texture for tunneling, nesting, and burrowing as well as for rat litter.

Bedding doesn’t have any harmful chemical or synthetic dyes that cause health issues. Also, it is dust-free so your rat can live in a healthy and clean habitat. Because of the ultra-absorbent feature, about 2 times more than shavings, this natural paper bedding will keep rats’ homes dry.

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Living World Pine Shavings

This Living World bedding is one of the most affordable bedding on the market because it is made of natural pine shavings. Bedding is also kiln-dried so there are no contaminants that could be harmful to your rats. Shavings are made without any chemicals, dyes, or oils.

The neutral color will easily blend in your rat’s cage and pets will enjoy using it for burrowing, nesting, and litter as well. Pine shavings are highly absorbent which means your rat’s cage won’t have any odor. Soft and fluffy shavings can be easily cleaned once a week.

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Fresh News Recycled Paper Bedding

Made with 100% post-consumer paper this bedding is the best choice if you’re looking for biodegradable bedding that can be composted. It is over 99% dust free and non-allergic without adding any chemicals that can be harmful to your rats.

Recycled bedding will keep your rat habitat fresh and without any bed small because of great odor control. You can easily clean it when you notice wet spots and change the bedding so your rats can stay dry.

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Make Home-made Bedding For Your Rat

You didn’t know you can DIY bedding for your rats? Well, now you do. Not that it will save you money, you can make it from the materials you have at home. Also, you can basically reuse the material twice which gives the recycling opportunity. We made a list of materials you can use to make it quickly and for free.

Cardboard
If you want the most simples bedding for rats you can use just plain cardboard. Old egg boxes, cartons, shoe boxes, and toilet paper tubes will be the perfect choices. How can you make it as bedding? Just tear the cardboard into approximately one or two-inch diameter pieces and place it in a plastic bag so you can easily take it when needed. One shopping bag will be enough for one rat cage.

Paper
Do you have old paper leftovers which you want to throw away in a bin? Use it to make bedding. The softer the paper the better. Torn it into thin strips which you can do by hands. It is recommended to use paper without ink. Also, you can use envelopes without plastic windows. Paper can be mixed with cardboard if you don’t have much of it.

Tissues
Use kitchen or toilet tissues to make bedding so your rats can have a comfortable surface to lay on. Torn into thin strips and make a full bag of it so you can easily change it when needed. Tissues are one of the softest types of material you can use for bedding, as well as safe nesting material.

If you’re not sure how to DIY bedding for your rat, check out this video for more information.

Safety Tips When Making Bedding

Don’t use materials that have ink on such as paper, or colored cardboard. Inks can be very toxic and cause a lot of health problems for rats. We don’t recommend using shiny, coated paper becuase it won’t absorb liquid. Before ripping the cardboard, make sure to remove any glue parts. Also, make sure there are no plastic parts that can be found on some boxes.

Bedding For Rats FAQ

We’re giving you all the answers to frequently asked questions that might help you pick the best bedding for your pet.

Do Rats Need a Litter Box?

Yes, it is recommended that the cage has a litter box. Don’t worry rats are very smart animals and can be easily trained to use the litter box.

Can You Use Cat Litter In a Rat Cage?

It is not recommended to use cat litter in a cage for rats. It can form clumps in your pet’s stomach and make him sick They are usually very dusty which is not good for the rat’s respiratory system.

Will Bedding Control Odor?

Some of the bedding has great odor control due to great abortions of waste materials. Before buying bedding we recommend checking odor control information on the product.

Can My Rat Eat Its Bedding?

Beddings are not made for eating but rats are known to chew everything so you can expect them to try eating bedding. As long as the bedding don’t have harmful ingredients that can make him sick, they can chew it and probably won’t eat it because they don’t taste good.