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Easy Ears

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Not sure if this is the right place to put this...

What is everyone's opinion on cardboard for rabbits? I know so many people who provide cardboard toys etc for their rabbits but I was also informed by a retired vet that cardboard is soaked in chemicals that can be harmful. I know the ink is not good for them, and they also say not to give any that has glue on it so I've heard some say to just get blank sheets...has anyone had cardboard related problems concerning rabbits? I use cardboard with my rabbits occasionally as flooring for wire cages when my does are due to kindle that week and a few other places but if they start to eat it, it makes me nervous. Some of my rabbits will just chew it up /shred it and not swallow, but I've had quite a few does that will just pig out on it, like its the best treat they've ever had. What are your experiences?
 
Regular/standard brown cardboard is not an issue. I use it sometimes with my rabbits in my nest boxes and even toss it into my compost after it has been shredded.

Cardboard with a glossy smooth finish is probably not advisable.
 
I had a large elop x that would tear through cardboard boxes like none other. I just made sure they were clean and no stickers, labels, tape and such. It made him happy and busy with not chewing on the baseboards. He never had any ill effects. <br /><br /> -- Sun May 22, 2016 10:58 pm -- <br /><br /> *He did not eat it though, just shredded and scattered.
 
Avoid glossy cardboard and tape and it's usually fine. If you have one that excessively ingests lots of cardboard instead of just ripping it you might want to restrict it to some hay filled toilet paper tubes instead of full boxes. Cardboard and paper can lead to impaction in large amounts but most don't eat a lot of it. I have gerbils and I throw them anything and everything that isn't slick and have had no issues with glue toxicity. I don't have to worry about them eating any though. Cardboard has been banned from the chinchillas due to them eating entire boxes in a night.
 
Last year I lost 9 out of 12 kits because of diarhhea. Don`t now what caused it but one of the options was cardbord that they were nibbling on. Maybe that wasn`t the reason, but I don`t use it anymore (in fact, I don`t use it at all, but at that time I needed sor of an obsticle and carboard was on hand and looked harmless).
 
A lot of people have nestboxes with wire bottoms or designed for removable bottoms and use cardboard at times without any sign of health problems. Plus there are a million other reasons for kits to get diarrhea and lose large numbers. It is a very common problem across setups and diets. Sometimes it just happens and no one can find a reason that time.
 
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