[Elliriyanna]

I decided on fleece for my cage and I was wondering what detergent I should use t watch it my male has a strong odor so I need to use something but I also know they are sensitive to smell

 

[Vladina]

I always made sure to only use detergent that was fragrance-free with no perfumes or dyes, like All Free and Clear or something similar. Rats are so sensitive to fragrance and it can really irritate their little noses.

 

[Elliriyanna]

we have eco's at work which is completely natural and yeah I wasnt sure what would be ok for them its a free and clear formula

 

[lilspaz68]

When washing fleece or fabrics for your rat you can also add in vinegar to cut the smells as well.

 

[Elliriyanna]

do you wash it by hand? I was gonna wash it in the washer

 

[Purple-Hops]

It depends on you. My mom hated it but I washed bunny blankets in the washer. It ensures all the soap is out!

 

[Elliriyanna]

I would rather toss it in I mean with 3 rats it makes the most sense to me

 

[breyer08]

I always wash and dry my rats' laundry in the machine. It doesn't muck up the machine at all, since it's just urine that you're washing out anyway.

 

[Elliriyanna]

what do i do with the poop? like how do I even get it out of the cage?

 

[breyer08]

Well, the poop should be hard...if it's soft and squished into blankets and such, you should check their diet to make sure they don't have diarrhea (avoid watery foods, etc.). I always do a full wipe-down of the cage and play area every morning with fragrance-free baby wipes. I remove their little poops at this time, and shake out their blankets. (I replace blankets every two to three days, depending on how dirty they've been with their food and urine.) My boys are litterbox trained, so it's always been pretty easy to get the poop out of their cage every day. If you haven't litterbox trained your rats yet, you definitely should! It makes daily wipedowns much faster.

ETA: Aside from the daily morning wipedowns, I also do a full cleaning of their cage once a week, in which I remove all the shelves and wash them fully in the bathtub, and wipe down their cage wires, and completely wash their playpen floor--all with with antibacterial soap and warm water.

 

[Elliriyanna]

Yeah I have dawn to use to wash as for the poop its a little soft now because their current diet ( mazuri ) I am switching them and I am gonna try to litter box train them

 

[lilspaz68]

I am handwashing hammocks now, since i live in an apartment building and the smell can stay trapped in the room downstairs.

I used to use soap, vinegar and cold water, then bring them upstairs to hang around and dry. Fleece dries really really quickly, hammocks a day or 2.

With my fleece I use a small dustpan brush, and brush off the loose crumbs and poops into a big garbage can/bag.

 

[Dustette]

I used to pick off the poops and put them in the garbage and then I washed absolutely every soft fabric thing from the cage in the washer. I have "country save" laundry detergent, and I used to let the cage + levels+ladders soak in the tub with some vinegar diluted in the water and do a nice rub down each week. I only had one female rat and it never smelled

 

[Elliriyanna]

I'll have 3 rats 2 girls and a boy ... I was thinking a spray down with dawn and water then scrub it spray with warm water then wipe with a towel ...

 

[breyer08]

That should work just fine.

 

[lilspaz68]

I'll have 3 rats 2 girls and a boy ... I was thinking a spray down with dawn and water then scrub it spray with warm water then wipe with a towel ...

If you mean in your tub, then that's great...otherwise it would just be messy

 

[Elliriyanna]

This cage ... I won't be able to remove shelves or anything and no I will remove the poop and just scrub off urine and grease.

Off topic can I just use aspen in his litter box? Is there a material that is easiest to train them with? He poops everywhere right now and its a lot

 

[lilspaz68]

This cage ... I won't be able to remove shelves or anything and no I will remove the poop and just scrub off urine and grease.

Off topic can I just use aspen in his litter box? Is there a material that is easiest to train them with? He poops everywhere right now and its a lot

I prefer pelleted litters in litter pans. They are heavier, and I find that rats prefer them to other litters.

 

[Elliriyanna]

it was just an idea I actually just found some affordable paper pellets