Substrate, or litter, is what you fill the base of a hamster cage with. Not the same as nesting material. There are quite a few different substrates you can use, but the important thing is that they are safe for hamsters. Traditionally owners bought bags of pine wood shavings. There are now much better options that are equally economical.
Nesting material
The safest nesting material (for building the hamster's nest rather than for the base of the cage) is plain white toilet paper, torn into strips. A pile of it in the cage for the hamster to take to build the nest. Sometimes they will pouch this to take it to the nest. They prefer to forage for it so it's better if it's just in the cage, or near the house, rather than inside the house. In fact if you do put it in the house, some hamsters will take it all out again and start all over again. They like to build their own nests!
Unsafe bedding/substrate/litter
Pine shavings are not the safest material to use. Softwood shavings contain phenols which can be harmful to hamsters, unless the shavings have been kiln dried to remove most of the phenols - even then it is uncertain how well they have been kiln dried or whether the remaining smaller amount of phenols will be harmful. They should also be dust extracted - but even then there can be a lot of dust. In the Uk all pine shavings have to be kiln dried by law. That is not the case in all countries.
Softwood shavings can also be any type of softwood, unless it states on the packet it is "pine". And this includes Cedar. Cedar shavings are harmful and extremely high in phenols - these should never be used. Hardwood is ok, so Aspen is a suitable substrate, as are beech shavings. Spruce is a softwood that is equivalent to hardwood in terms of phenols and is a safer option also but rarely found available.
Scented substrates - scents can affect hamsters greatly - they have a much stronger sense of smell than humans and also quite sensitive respiratory systems.
"Odour control" additives. These can also be harmful substances for hamsters to breathe or eat.
Odour control in a substrate is not needed because - guess what - hamsters can be toilet trained! A sand potty in the right place is all that's needed. You just empty the sand out once or twice a week and have a clean dry cage Almost all Syrians will use a litter tray. Dwarf hamsters usually will if you put it inside a multi room house. However, dwarf hamsters pee so little that you can just "spot clean" the cage when needed mostly.
Safe bedding/substrate/litter
Some of the most popular substrates among owners today are largely paper based. There are manufacturer paper based ones like Kaytee clean n cozy. There are also other sellers and manufacturers like Fitch in the Uk, who sell safe, recycled food grade paper bedding. In the US there is Boxo which is paper based. Paper based bedding is generally enjoyed very much by hamsters as well, who may use it partly in their nest as well as their nesting material - because it's nice and soft and it tends to hold burrows well. It's also good for owners with asthma or hayfever as it's hypoallergenic. Check on the forum to see which substrates others use and recommend.
In addition to paper based substrate there is also hemp bedding, aspen, beech shavings and other manufacturer beddings like Megazorb and Carefresh, which tend to be based on cellulose, plus Finacard which is pieces of soft cardboard (on it's own it may not be soft enough but works well mixed with something).
Mixing substrates
You can mix two or three different safe substrates, for variety of texture, or have different substrates in different areas. Mixing something like Finacard or aspen with a paper bedding can help tunnels hold better and add some variety of texture. Whichever you use, try to avoid dusty beddings.
How much substrate to use
The answer to that is - quite a lot. Substrate is one of the main forms of enrichment. Hamsters love lots of deep substrate, to burrow down, build mountains with, bury their hoards and some will dig tunnels. It also helps keep them warm in cold weather and they may pile it up round the outside of a house for insulation. This doesn't have to be expensive however (more later on that).
Roborovski hamsters are big tunnelers and need at least 15 to 20cm (6" to 8") depth of substrate to be able to achieve tunneling easily.
Recommended amounts of substrate
We recommend
The cage bases of barred cages are not usually deeper than 15cm and piling the substrate deeper can mean some of it falls out through the bars - but you can add bedding protectors inside the bars - cardboard is one option, or perspex, or something like chill 'n chew mats attached to the bars at one end. Keep in mind that a hamster may chew off the cardboard!
This does use quite a lot of bedding - however, if you check out the CAGE CLEANING TIPS article, you'll see that you can actually work out cheaper, and you end up using less bedding overall, as much of it is re-used and stays clean and dry. So you need a lot to start with and after that, not so much. Buying bedding in bulk makes it inexpensive (Fitch sell large bales as do some other manufacturers). Some large bales are compressed so they don't take up to much room at home.
The only legal substrate minimum we're aware of is from Switzerland where there is a legal minimum of 15cm depth of substrate for hamsters.
Nesting material
The safest nesting material (for building the hamster's nest rather than for the base of the cage) is plain white toilet paper, torn into strips. A pile of it in the cage for the hamster to take to build the nest. Sometimes they will pouch this to take it to the nest. They prefer to forage for it so it's better if it's just in the cage, or near the house, rather than inside the house. In fact if you do put it in the house, some hamsters will take it all out again and start all over again. They like to build their own nests!
Unsafe bedding/substrate/litter
Pine shavings are not the safest material to use. Softwood shavings contain phenols which can be harmful to hamsters, unless the shavings have been kiln dried to remove most of the phenols - even then it is uncertain how well they have been kiln dried or whether the remaining smaller amount of phenols will be harmful. They should also be dust extracted - but even then there can be a lot of dust. In the Uk all pine shavings have to be kiln dried by law. That is not the case in all countries.
Softwood shavings can also be any type of softwood, unless it states on the packet it is "pine". And this includes Cedar. Cedar shavings are harmful and extremely high in phenols - these should never be used. Hardwood is ok, so Aspen is a suitable substrate, as are beech shavings. Spruce is a softwood that is equivalent to hardwood in terms of phenols and is a safer option also but rarely found available.
Scented substrates - scents can affect hamsters greatly - they have a much stronger sense of smell than humans and also quite sensitive respiratory systems.
"Odour control" additives. These can also be harmful substances for hamsters to breathe or eat.
Odour control in a substrate is not needed because - guess what - hamsters can be toilet trained! A sand potty in the right place is all that's needed. You just empty the sand out once or twice a week and have a clean dry cage Almost all Syrians will use a litter tray. Dwarf hamsters usually will if you put it inside a multi room house. However, dwarf hamsters pee so little that you can just "spot clean" the cage when needed mostly.
Safe bedding/substrate/litter
Some of the most popular substrates among owners today are largely paper based. There are manufacturer paper based ones like Kaytee clean n cozy. There are also other sellers and manufacturers like Fitch in the Uk, who sell safe, recycled food grade paper bedding. In the US there is Boxo which is paper based. Paper based bedding is generally enjoyed very much by hamsters as well, who may use it partly in their nest as well as their nesting material - because it's nice and soft and it tends to hold burrows well. It's also good for owners with asthma or hayfever as it's hypoallergenic. Check on the forum to see which substrates others use and recommend.
In addition to paper based substrate there is also hemp bedding, aspen, beech shavings and other manufacturer beddings like Megazorb and Carefresh, which tend to be based on cellulose, plus Finacard which is pieces of soft cardboard (on it's own it may not be soft enough but works well mixed with something).
Mixing substrates
You can mix two or three different safe substrates, for variety of texture, or have different substrates in different areas. Mixing something like Finacard or aspen with a paper bedding can help tunnels hold better and add some variety of texture. Whichever you use, try to avoid dusty beddings.
How much substrate to use
The answer to that is - quite a lot. Substrate is one of the main forms of enrichment. Hamsters love lots of deep substrate, to burrow down, build mountains with, bury their hoards and some will dig tunnels. It also helps keep them warm in cold weather and they may pile it up round the outside of a house for insulation. This doesn't have to be expensive however (more later on that).
Roborovski hamsters are big tunnelers and need at least 15 to 20cm (6" to 8") depth of substrate to be able to achieve tunneling easily.
Recommended amounts of substrate
We recommend
- minimum of 15cm (6") - ideally with a large house or multiroom house and plenty of overhead cover in the cage - shelves/platforms and hanging items to provide overhead cover where possible - eg rat sputniks, egg box hammocks, grass hammocks (not fabric) and/or large floor items for overhead cover - like cork logs.
- ideally 20cm (8") to 25cm (10") or more of substrate for all species of hamster. This is inline with the Blue Cross and PDSA recommendations. What kind of cage set up, and how deep you have the substrate is, however, a personal choice but it should not be less than 15cm (6").
- supporting heavier items underneath - With that amount of substrate you then need to ensure any heavier cage items are securely supported underneath - eg with legs or stilts on large houses, or they could subside on a hamster can cause injury, if tunnelled under. Heavy ceramic items may need to be on a shelf or platform, for the same reason.
The cage bases of barred cages are not usually deeper than 15cm and piling the substrate deeper can mean some of it falls out through the bars - but you can add bedding protectors inside the bars - cardboard is one option, or perspex, or something like chill 'n chew mats attached to the bars at one end. Keep in mind that a hamster may chew off the cardboard!
This does use quite a lot of bedding - however, if you check out the CAGE CLEANING TIPS article, you'll see that you can actually work out cheaper, and you end up using less bedding overall, as much of it is re-used and stays clean and dry. So you need a lot to start with and after that, not so much. Buying bedding in bulk makes it inexpensive (Fitch sell large bales as do some other manufacturers). Some large bales are compressed so they don't take up to much room at home.
The only legal substrate minimum we're aware of is from Switzerland where there is a legal minimum of 15cm depth of substrate for hamsters.
