richard r stephens wrote:
 
>the litter pellets are treated so that they will absorb moister and oder
>and break up for easy disposal.  the stove pellets are compressed wood
>impregnated with kerosene to make it burn these pellets will not absorb
>anything.  hope this ends some of the confusion.
 
I am sorry.  That information is absolutely INCORRECT.
 
Stove pellets are nothing more than sawdust, extruded under high heat and
pressure, into the form we see used today..  No additives, of any kind,
are used to help it burn or hold its form.  The use of any additive in
the pellet would be illegal in 99% of the country as it would violate air
pollution rules, big time.
 
Come on gentle readers...lets use a little common sense in what you state
here.  Read the label..you KNOW all ingredients have to be posted on the
packaging, and kerosene is a flammable, hazardous material.  Read the
bag..if it isn't mentioned, it isn't there.
 
I have not done any comparative studies, but to my eye, I have seen
nothing different between the 'litter' wood pellets (Feline Pine comes
to mind) and the stove pellets I buy at Home Depot, except price and
quantity in the bag.
 
As an aside, the use of the high heat 'boils off' the harmful esters
found in pine based bedding products, such a wood chips.  It is the
extrusion process that makes wood pellets safe for animal use.
 
Wood pellets break back down into sawdust, as soon as urine or any other
moisture hits it.  Although I don't recommend the practice, one can
dispose of used pellets by dumping them into the toilet, waiting a few
minutes for the pellets to become 'unbound', and simply flush them away.
 
Another use is to use the used pellet litter in your garden as bedding
mulch.  An added benefit to using used litter as garden mulch: I had a
very bad problem with squirrels eating my bulbs.  The little buggers
would go to town with my tulip bulbs every year.  4-5 years ago, I
covered all my flower beds with, used, wood pellet litter and have not
lost a single bulb since.  In fact, several years ao, my neighbors all
came over to ask my secret about keeping bulbs...I had a royal carpet
of tulips while they had few to none.  Every couple of years now, my
neighbors clamor for more litter!  Heh!
 
For our ferrets!
 
MC, The Rude One
(With Snorkle, Tuzigoot, Bancho, and Artemus.  In spirit, Bubba,
Billy-Bob, and Garret.)
[Posted in FML issue 3946]