When I first rescued my two female rats, they came with pine shavings. One of the rats had a red, wet and droopy eye. I suspected the pine shavings were bothering her, so I removed them and cleaned the cage.
When the cage was ready I filled the bottom with Carefresh. This is what I normally use in all my cages since cedar will irritate the eyes and mucus membranes of animals.
Arania (as named by my daughter) seemed better, but over time would occasionally develop a red and droopy eye. Just as I was ready to take her to the vet, she would get better.
Several months ago I followed a hunch and removed all of the Carefresh from the cage. I cleaned the bottom out and left it empty. Now I clean the cage every two nights, which is actually easier than pulling out loads of litter for a single cage cleaning.
To my delight, my rat’s eyes are no longer red, droopy or wet. She was sensitive to Carefresh, as well as to pine shavings. If you find your rat’s eyes become irritated, empty the cage of litter and keep the bottom empty.
Many small animals including mice, rats, hamsters and even rabbits are sensitive to litter. If your small pet has irritated eyes, see if keeping the cage bottom empty fixes the problem. And of course, be sure to call the veterinarian if any of your animals have health problems.
