We have been doing that since we got our gerbils 2 1/2 years ago, and it has
worked out really well for us...we protect our privacy and the gerbies get
bedding! After we clean the tank (10 gallon), we put in a couple of handfuls
of the shredded stuff till the tank is about 2/3 full. The gerbils (well,
gerbil - we lost one in December) chew the strips into pieces about 1 1/2
inches long. Within about an hour they will have it all chewed down to a
carpet on the bottom, at which time we give them some more. We give them a
handful or two every night for about a week. Besides lining the bottom of the
tank, the gerbils use it to fill in all their other toys and boxes. When
they're actually making their nest, they chew it up much finer. This is the
only kind of bedding we have ever used (with the exception of some kleenex
for their actual nest), and we have never had any problems with it. When we
clean the tank, we just throw it all away and the gerbies start over. We only
shred regular letter quality paper, not anything with plastic or metallic
coatings nor magazine-type paper nor the carbonless copies you get as
receipts. Our shredder cost around $50. Hope this helps.
Mo
P.S. We have never done any breeding, so I don't know if this would work if
you had pups.
Susan wrote:
I was thinking about investing in a paper shredder to recycle my paper items
like mail, duplicate bills (I wouldn't mind the originals either! )
junk mail, etc into nesting/bedding material for gerbils. Has anyone done
this? If we don't put newspaper products (w/dyes etc) into it wouldn't it
work?
