Customer Reviews

Super Pet Chinchilla Bath Sand

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

UPDATE! Super Pet has changed their chinchilla bath sand formula. It is now much "dirtier" and grittier, with large chunks in it. Meanwhile, they have launched a product just for dwarf hamsters called "Bathing Powder." Don't get too excited... it is *very* powdery, sticks to the hamster, and doesn't provide the "friction" that hamsters seem to love. My hamsters don't like the powder *or* the new version of the bath sand, so it appears we're going to have to use regular sterilized play sand.

Please join me in asking Super Pet to offer their light, super-fine bathing sand again. I have a dwarf hamster who is nearly three years old (!), and I hate that one of the biggest pleasures in his long life has been inexplicably taken off the market.

(My original review for the 5-star rating is below.)

That's right, I titled this review "if you love your hamster" and it's hamsters, not chinchillas, that I have in mind. (For you chinchilla owners who are - quite sensibly - wondering whether this is a good product, you will get zero help from me, and I apologize.)

I have owned many hamsters, both Syrian (aka Golden, teddy bear, etc.) and dwarf (Russian Campbell), and chinchilla sand is the secret ingredient to happy hamster companionship.

I'll spill the best part first: chinchilla sand = instant potty training. Well, usually instant. Hamsters just seem to naturally gravitate towards using the sand for their liquid exports. It even clumps, making for easy removal. Put some in a little dish and there you have it.

(Usually. Some need for you to, er, take a sample and show them where it goes. And I have one who has never quite taken the hint, but then she was badly abused at the pet store and is blind in both eyes and seems to be mildly psychotic in a lovable "crazy old auntie" way, but I digress.)

That should be reason enough to provide your hammie with a sand bath. You could use play sand, but who wants to always be baking it in the oven and sterilizing and storing and such? And the hamsters never seem to be as excited about those coarser grains as they are about this silky stuff.

Did I say excited? How about "bliss of the likes you and I shall never know" - now we're getting closer. Almost all hamsters enjoy digging around in their little sand bath, but dwarf hamsters... picture a sock in a tornado with a big grin on its face. The hams roll and roll and roll and scritch and scratch and wiggle-wiggle-wiggle and they never seem to tire of it. It will restore your faith in hammity, it will.

And, of course, the sand works for hamsters the way it works for chinchillas: it keeps their coats clean and shiny. (And it's the only bath they should ever take.)

A single package of sand will last a toilet-trained dwarf hamster about a week. (With all kinds of variances if you have a colony, diabetics, etc. Syrian hamsters seem to like a little more sand than the dwarves because they're more into the digging.) I'd say start with one package and see what your hamster thinks. If s/he likes it, do what I do and buy several boxes then pour each package into a big jar with a lid - that way you can just pour out what you need.

Chinchilla sand really is one of the best kept secrets of ham-ownership. Make your hamster happy - give it a wee sandbox and await the magic!

[NOTE: Chinchilla sand and chinchilla dust are NOT the same thing. The latter is toxic to hamsters.]

I bought 4 boxes of chinchilla sand, saving about 1.00 per box as compared to the pet stores. Box arrived in good shape but a box within had come loose. Product did not spill out but the broken box (holding 5
packets) was an inconvenience. Still recommend buying this way though.

Chinchillas should be provided with bathing 'dust', not 'sand'.

The best is Blue cloud or Blue sparkle. Kaytee chinchilla dust is better to use than this.

I rescued a chin who that came with this sand that was used for his dust baths.. The person who owned him didn't know any better, but this made his fur so coarse and horrible to touch! The chin looked a mess and I threw this out immediately!! Almost a month later, his fur is still recovering from the sand. Do not buy SAND for your chins to bathe in. Also, make sure the dust you buy is unscented as well- chins have been known to get respiratory problems from that. The best dust to buy is Blue Cloud or Blue Sparkle, almost all knowlegeable breeders will tell you this.