>Moderator's note: While I respect your opinion, I do suggest caution.
>Real dirt is fine, but neither wooden shavings nor clumping litter are
>typically components of dirt.  I'm sure others will answer but I wanted
>to put this note in just to be on the safe side!  BIG"
 
I agree somewhat with that arguement, although there are actually many
different types of shavings and litter which do have natural things in
them that animals in the wilds use in their burrows, etc... Many people
may not realize this, but some types of cat litter are completely
natural.  In fact I discovered something interesting while travelling
thru Bakersfield, CA.  a few years back.  Much of the cat litter you buy
in the store actually comes from the mountains.  While driving thru the
mountains in Bakersfield we discovered a huge area of this mountain where
they actually collect hardened dirt to make cat litter out of.  It comes
in it's natural form.  The only thing which is slightly different is that
they grind it in to smaller pieces to make it easier to use.  But it is
in fact just dirt that's hardened somewhat over time and totally natural.
 
As for wood shavings, there are many different varieties.  They even have
shavings made from cardboard, which I used for my rats before.  You also
have to consider that each animal may have a different reaction to the
same product.  One animal may be allergic and sensitive to litter while
another is not.  The same is true of shavings.  Sometimes you just have
to try different things to find out what best suits your animal's needs.
 
Also consider that housing for animals varies like night and day
depending on the person caring for the animals.  Obviously for people who
leave their ferrets in cages many hours out of the day they may be more
concerned about the ferrets' exposure to too much dust.  So for them
maybe they do need to consider different options if they are worried
about it.
 
But a lot of people don't believe in leaving animals in cages for
excessive amounts of time (myself included), so this would not be an
issue in those cases.  I would never leave my ferrets in a cage for as
long as some people do.  Most of the time they would have free roam and a
room of their own (or shared with me) to run around in.  The litter pan
was placed in an out of the way spot and they only went in it when they
needed to go potty, so it's not as if they were laying in it inside a
cramped cage being forced to inhale it.  The majority of the time they
were not even in cages period.  So obviously all these things should be
taken in to consideration: housing, amount of time in cage, whether
you've noticed an allergic reaction to the litter of choice, are the
ferrets laying in the litter or simply using it when needed?... Those are
all things to consider.  Every animal and each situation is different.
Every animal is not treated the same or housed the same, so what works
for one person surely may not work for another. :)
[Posted in FML issue 4345]