# nest material all my mices love that is free



## kiowa_ruby (Aug 27, 2012)

Grass. Had a lot of fall rain so had to now the forest in the front yard. Picked up a bunch of the cuttings and put it in a cage with new mamas.. they loved it made awesome nests with it so put some in with all the others and they all loved it too. I live out in the country and know there's no pesticides on it so may work better for me than others. Plus it made the cages smell really good. The rats liked it too . Good free nest stuffs thought id share


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## bubbles&amp;squeak (Jun 17, 2012)

Can you actually use this though, I mean, doesn't it affect them in any way? - allergies or something?


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## Cordane (May 22, 2012)

I wouldnt think it would have any ill effects on mice. I only say that because wild mice live in/around/near grass..
Plus grass is just undried hay and that's fine for them.

Though in saying that, you'd have to make sure the grass is nice and dry before you put it in the cage.


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## Cordane (May 22, 2012)

You would also have to change it every few days


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## bubbles&amp;squeak (Jun 17, 2012)

Oh okay! So i could use it?


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## Seafolly (Mar 13, 2012)

Call me paranoid but I'd be tempted to freeze/thaw it in case there are little bugs in there.


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## bubbles&amp;squeak (Jun 17, 2012)

Hmmm..^ Yes, I would probably do that tooo!


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## kiowa_ruby (Aug 27, 2012)

lol been a while but hasnt had any bad effects .. no allergies .. they prefer it to toliet paper or newspaper .. ( I gave several some of each they all picked the grass) and actually made some quiet intricate nests !! ( hate moving them during cage cleaning time ) I only changed it when I clean the cages once every other week unless they need it sooner .. it makes the cages smell soo good lol ( like hay but better since its fresher !!) =)


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## Fantasia Mousery (Jul 16, 2011)

Yes, my only concern would be bugs, but that's easily gotten rid of by freezing it for a day. Sounds real neat.


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## DeepBlueC (Feb 9, 2012)

I buy small bags of grass from the local pet shop when they have stock, treated stuff, my rascally rodents just love it ! They jump in and throw it around, eat it and drag it all round the cage. :lol:


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## SarahC (Oct 3, 2008)

frozen grass would defrost to mush.You'd have to dry it to make it into hay.


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## kiowa_ruby (Aug 27, 2012)

Thought is add that some of mine ate the grass as well ...


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## Stina (Sep 24, 2010)

grass in it of itself is perfectly fine for mice....parasites are always a risk...the other risk is chemicals...even if you don't use chemicals on your own lawn, if you have any neighbors that do, they could very easily make their way into your lawn.


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## pro-petz (Nov 14, 2012)

I do not think I would use grass cuttings no matter where they came from that had not been commercially packaged to become safe.

Besides the risk of parasites which is the least of concerns, I would tend to avoid due to risk of other diseases brought about by wild animals that may have come into contact with the grass, eg wild mice/rats birds etc.

I suppose freezing would destroy most of those but as mentioned in an earlier post the freezing and thawing would then just cause a mush. Washing thorouhly in Vanodine V18 and then rinsing well afterwards might reduce the risk but the greater risk is still there.

Just because been lucky for several months or even years does not mean that one time you may do it and lose all your stock through contaminated grass, it is purely down to the individual at the end of the day and what risks they are prepared to take.


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