# Wood pellets



## Amy27 (Nov 29, 2009)

I have been wanting to try wood pellets as I spend a ton of money on yesterday news. Amy-Undergunfire got me really interested, so I went to Home Depot to see what they had. The only brand they had was Freedom Fuel-Premium Grade Pellet Fuel. The only other thing it says on the bag is: 

Graderemium

Material: Pine

Ash: <1% 

Fines: <0.5% 

Sodium: <300 ppm

Is this brand safe? How do I know what ones are safe to use?Because it has the word fuel in it, it makes me a little nervous. My Home Depot only ordered a little bitof wood pellets because they don't sell much of it. So I am going to need to find somewhere else to purchase them and probably a new brand. Where do you buy your wood pellets? What brand do you buy? I looked in the library but couldn't find this brand listed on any of the links. 

Any information would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Amy


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## Pekoe (Nov 29, 2009)

I buy mine from the pet store - they are sold as horse stall bedding. It's still really cheap, $8 for a huge bag.


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## fuzz16 (Nov 29, 2009)

Try finding a feed store that suplies to horses, they should have something like equine fresh or equilitter...its a pine based pellet, or they may carry aspen based pellet.


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## BethM (Nov 30, 2009)

If there is not a feed store near you, try looking at Target. 
I use the Feline Pine brand cat litter - it's pelleted pine, and has been kiln dried, so it's safe to use. Although it is a bit more expensive than the feed-store varieties, it may be more reliable year-round than the wood stove pellets. (Target is more convenient for me than the feed stores.)

I pay $8.34 for a 20lb bag. I believe the same bag at Petsmart (right across the parking lot!) goes for closer to $15, and the same size of their store-branded generic (ExquisiCat) is around $12. A couple times a year, there will be mfgr coupon stuck to each bag for $1 off, and when I see those, I will buy every bag on the shelf, and sometimes ask for more. (I've got a large tub to store them in, I think it will hold 5 bags.) I think Feline Pine is also sold at Walmart, but I don't know how their price compares to Target. 

If you are near a feed store, look for "kiln dried" on the package. These ones are safe. If you go for Feline Pine, go for the original variety, it's in a bag.


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## Niomi (Nov 30, 2009)

*Those pelletsshould be fine. The pine when it is processed into pellets or kiln dried is safe for rabbits. I can buy fuel wood pellets at Mill's Fleet Farm, and they also sell wood pellets in the section where they sell aspen bedding for horses for about the same price as fuel pellets, and it looks like the same stuff as fuel pellets. It is called, "Marth" pellet bedding for animal & reptile. Menards also sells wood pellets and they have "Premium Wood Pellets" on sale this week, $4.27 for 40 pounds.*

*Amy27 wrote: *


> I have been wanting to try wood pellets as I spend a ton of money on yesterday news. Amy-Undergunfire got me really interested, so I went to Home Depot to see what they had. The only brand they had was Freedom Fuel-Premium Grade Pellet Fuel. The only other thing it says on the bag is:
> 
> Graderemium
> 
> ...


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## Runestonez (Nov 30, 2009)

We use the compressed pine horse bedding for our kids.
I askeda manufacturer about the difference between the soft pine pellets used for horse bedding and the hardwood pellets used for wood burning stoves...this is what they told me...

The obvious difference...hard and soft wood...stove pellets have less absorbancy then the soft wood horse bedding...they have less odor control as well. They recommended sticking to the soft wood pellets...especially for pet bedding.

We tried both ourselves...yeah...I don't listen so well! lol 
I stopped using the stove pellets after 2 days...they were nasty! The urine in the literboxes had turned to pellets to oatmeal...it was disgusting! And to make matters even worse...it stunk! The horse bedding is hands down our overall favorite! I will not go back to the stove pellets again! BLECH!

The feline pine and Mountain cat pellets work decently as well...but with 10 bunns...never again stove pellets! eeeewww!

Danielle


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## degrassi (Nov 30, 2009)

Those pellets are fine.

I buy my wood pellets from Home depot too.I can't remember the brand but they are a wood stove fuel pellet too and have a picture of a little flame guy on the front. 40lbs for 6$


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## Niomi (Nov 30, 2009)

I haven't had any problems with wood fuel pellets, but maybe it is because I put newspaper on the bottom of my littler boxes and put the pellets on top of the paper. One of my rabbits likes getting down to the paper and ripping it up and making a mess. I don't let that bother me, I figure it gives him something to do and relieves bordom.


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## Niomi (Nov 30, 2009)

*A few years ago when I looked into fuel pellets for litter, all I could find was hardwood pellets. Last year or the year before (darn my memory!) for the first time I found "Superior Hardwood Fuel Pellets", and "Superior Fuel Pellets", the second being softwood pellets, which were also a little cheaper. I think unless it says "hardwood" on the bag, it probably isn't, or may be a combination of hard and soft. Even hardwood pellets worked well for my rabbits, so it may depend on the rabbits. I have taken care of rabbits in the past that were heavy drinkers, and for those, I don't know how well the hardwood pellets would have worked. *

*Runestonez wrote: *


> We use the compressed pine horse bedding for our kids.
> I askeda manufacturer about the difference between the soft pine pellets used for horse bedding and the hardwood pellets used for wood burning stoves...this is what they told me...
> 
> The obvious difference...hard and soft wood...stove pellets have less absorbancy then the soft wood horse bedding...they have less odor control as well. They recommended sticking to the soft wood pellets...especially for pet bedding.
> ...


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## GorbyJobRabbits (Nov 30, 2009)

if you're wanting bedding, I personally only use Aspen. Its a softer wood, no smells like the cedar, and ughs, i can't remember what was in the pine that made it unhealthy as well. 

in the end aspens the best. and Tractor supply has it cheap as well as walmart and things. I buy the large 40 pound bags. Its the same price as the one time use bags.


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## aurora369 (Nov 30, 2009)

I believe it is the phenols in the wood that cause damage to a rabbits respitory tract and liver. 

If the wood is heat treated (which the pellets are as part of the manufacturing process), then the phenols are evaporated out. So after the heat treatment, the wood is safe for bunnies to be around.

Untreated pine I would not recommend for litter, but kiln dried is fine.

Cedar is never. Cedar is very detrimental to rabbits and not amount of treating it can make it safe.

--Dawn


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## Niomi (Nov 30, 2009)

For my outdoor rabbits, I buy aspen bedding for horses at Fleet Farm. It is a fraction of the price as the stuff in pet stores, and I believe it is just as good. When my rabbits are done with it, I put it around my plants for mulch. Aspen however, is not as absorbent as wood pellets, so it does not work as well for litter. Also, I have to drive 30 miles to find a farm supply store to buy the aspen, and it is only 2 miles to Menards or Home Depot for wood pellets.


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## Amy27 (Nov 30, 2009)

Thank you all very much for your suggestions. I printed out this page and will take it shopping this weekend and see what else I can find.


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