[RatEmporiumToronto]

So I've been cruising through the internet and cannot find a conclusive answer on whether hanging pine chew toys are fine for rats. Usually if anything even has the slightest warning I wouldn't even consider it but someone just brought me 1000 pine blocks to make chew toys out of and they are so pretty and tempting so I thought I would ask anyways about precautions. As far as I know the pine must be:1. White pine2. Kiln dried3. No smell 4. Out of pee range If it is all of the above, it still is unclear whether or not it is safe. Anyone with experience let me know!

 

[Hedgian]

I don't think anyone knows 100% for sure but I'd rather be safe than sorry

 

[RatEmporiumToronto]

Always better safe than sorry aha I just feel so bad, I'm sure a lot of time was spent in chopping up these lil cubes for me possibly I'll turn them into an art project or a decoration for the house instead.

 

[MousE190]

I know from the forum, and my vet that pine and cedar are a big no! Can cause respitory problems , I would stay away from it.. get some hard wood.

 

[Isamurat]

The thing that causes the issue in pine is the phenols, however the amount of phenols that come out vary a lot with the way the pine is prepared. The real issue is with sawdust and shavings as they have a much larger surface area (lots more bits as such) and have added dust issues). Pine objects have a much smaller surface area so aren't nearly as bad. To be safe I would let freshly cut pine sit and age for a while, giving it a good rinse to get rid of any dust and allowing the phenols from the freshly cut wood to evaporate away. Once it stops smelling of "pine fresh" and just smells woody its fine. In theory you could heat the pine up to speed this process up.