Customer Reviews

Carefresh Pet Bedding

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I got a sample of Carefresh Colors from the petstore when I bought the Hamster cage kit and loved it. I've owned guinea pigs, rats and hamsters before but had never used Carefresh Colors. I was impressed with its softness and its ability to absorb fluids and odors.

It was time for me to buy some more bedding and I thought Carefresh was pretty much the same as Carefresh Colors, except that Carefresh was less colorful. Out of the bag, I was a little disappointed, because the bedding was not as soft and fluffy as Carefresh Colors. It has more the texture of something I might expect if maybe I wet a bunch of newspaper, wadded it up, let it dry and then shredded what was left. It's rough and dry.

My hamsters don't seem to mind the change. They shred the Carefresh to make it fluffier for the little corner they like to burrow in. It's just as absorbent as the Carefresh Colors and controls odors just as well. The cage smells nice and fresh. Although it's not as pretty as Carefresh Colors, there is an advantage to it being a drab grey, the feces don't show.

If softness and bright color is important to you and your small pet, get Carefresh Colors. If hiding the feces is more important, regular Carefresh is best. If you are looking for absorbance and odor control, they both work equally well.

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UPDATE: I did not like the first batch of Carefresh, which I based this review on. However, my second batch of Carefresh from a different is a lot nicer. It's softer and ligher in color.

Although I still prefer the softness of the Colors, regular Carefresh does have advantages. The hamsters like to clean their cage of poop. When they see it, they throw it outside the cage. With the Colors, there's poop everywhere. They don't seem to see poop as well with the regular Carefresh, so I don't get so much poop all over outside the cage.

It's not marketed this way, but CareFresh is absolutely the best cat litter you can buy. It's completely non-toxic (clumping litters are toxic if ingested; cats lick their feet, and we all know what happens if dogs get to the cat box). It tracks much less than clay or clumping litters. It's light weight. It absorbs urine completely and there's virtually no odor. It's compostable. There's no scooping; for one cat, I empty the box once or twice a week. It's simply the best, safest, and easiest product to use for cat litter.

I have used this for my bunnies for 7 years now. It is absorbant and captures the odors. I always buy the 50 liter size since it seems the best value. Ordering online is slightly cheaper than the retail stores and I have the convenience of delivery to my door. This is a great product for rabbits.

I bought a pretty large bag of Carefresh the other day to try it for my four guinea pigs (I had been using fleece and towels before). It says it's compressed and that it expands 2.5 times its actual size. Yeah, right. I only have two cages, they are no bigger then 7.5 sq. ft. (really, it's not that large), and I only used about 1.5 inches of this stuff per cage. So 3 inches total, and less then half the bag is left. Plus, I have to change it every four days. I don't mind that part, but this stuff is so expensive considering I only get two changes out of it. Even if you only have one or two guinea pigs, one standard bag like this is only going to last you about three bedding changes. Imagine spending 20 bucks (shipping, and in stores it adds to the same thing)every 2 weeks on bedding? It adds up.

Otherwise, it's good quality, it absorbs well, and it does control the smell really well.

CareFresh can make life as a pet owner so much easier. It is paper-based and biodegradable. Many small animals cannot live on wood shavings because the oils can cause health problems or death, but CareFresh is free of those oils and therefore safe to use. It's suitable for small mammals such as ferrets, guinea pigs, rats, rabbits as well as birds, and some reptiles.

CareFresh comes in a variety of colors including natural, white, pink, purple and multicolored. The coloring is completely safe for your pet and kids love to pick out a color that matches the cage and accessories.

CareFresh Ultra is white and is labelled as the best for limiting odor. I've never noticed a big difference when using the Ultra and the regular in my ferret cages. All versions of the bedding are absorbent and easily scooped. For smellier pets such as ferrets and rats, it's best to at least spot clean the bedding every few days. Other pets can go for about a week before it will need changing, but then you'll probably want to replace all the bedding at once.

Like many products, CareFresh is usually a better deal when bought in large packages. And if you don't absolutely have to have a certain color, go with the regular and save some serious money.

I have two guinea pigs and I have used this for over a year. This is the best bedding by far. I mix the white with the regular bedding and it'll last for a over a week. Best odor control! My guinea pigs are very healthy, no problem from this bedding.

i use this product for my rabbits.... and indirectly for my bird (he is always getting in the rabbit cage). I have used it for years, and never had a problem with it... ive seen the bunnies chew on it, but it has never made them sick. never-ever use wood chips for your pets; they are treated with chemicals that cause cancer and other problems.

This is my first time using this product, and while it provides excellent absorbency and urine odor control, it has a strange smell. I am also not impressed with the rough texture of the product, although my hamster does not seem to mind burrowing into it.

At the moment, this is the only bedding that I will use for my guinea pigs (particularly, the snow-white "bleached" variant that allows me to spot clean soiled areas, but the natural version as shown in the product image is great too). I've tried aspen shavings, and I also used wood shavings in the past when I had hamsters. Unfortunately, wood shavings stick to clothes and carpet, and are a huge pain to deal with in laundry and house cleaning. Not so with Carefresh wood pulp bedding - this bedding is clumpy, but not sticky, and very highly absorbent. Due to its ability to absorb and dry quickly and thoroughly, I never have an odor problem, yet there are no perfumes or hazardous chemicals in the bedding. Highly recommended.

I knocked off a star (was tempted to rate this product a 5) for only two reasons:
1) Carefresh also sells the same material bedding in different colors, and I don't think even relatively "safe" dyes belong in pet bedding. It's probably best to stick with the natural or bleached varieties.
2) It can be very dusty, but this is an easily managed problem compared to issues with other kinds of bedding, and the dust is not harmful to the animals.

Best bedding for rabbits, bar none. We've tried about 6 diff kinds. Amazon doesn't always have the cheapest, so shop around. It's pretty expensive, there's some pine pellet stuff that works well that's a chunk cheaper, but Carefresh is the best.