Used Shavings???

[jamanalo]

What do you guys do with used shaving? Before I used to leave them out in garbage bags but since getting back into chinchillas, Ontario has become a bit more eco friendly, so I figured putting them into those brown lawn bags would help. But this is the 2nd week now, and they wont take it. Its all pure shavings, droppings, food etc etc, all bio-degradable.
Does anyone know why they dont take it? Or what I can do with it.

 

[mishalaa]

Don't know what you mean by brown lawn bags? We have yard waste pickup here, which is different than trash pickup, but we have to bag/can/pile it ourselves...

At any rate, I haven't tried getting the borough to take my shavings. I use them as mulch. They are, literally, all around my house, my trees, my driveway, anywhere I don't want to mow pretty much. It composts very well and does wonders for the flower beds. Chin poo is higher in nitrates than nearly all other manures. However, I have had a couple lone oat stalks sprout...

 

[alli713]

I'm assuming you mean those paper sacks for holding leaves and such? Do you have a local garden co-op? Or someplace that makes compost? You could see if they'd take it. Or post it on something similar to freecycle. I don't have many chins but I have put it in my plant pots on occasion.

 

[eroomlorac]

I think because there is urine and poop involved, it isn't brown bag material. I mulch shavings into the garden.

 

[AZChins]

I have used it as mulch before. It makes a very pretty mulch! Like Mish said, it can produce strange weeds depending on what you are using with the chins. Any seeds that are in the hay or supplement will probably end up sprouting...but still it does a great job as a mulch.

Now I have a giant compost pile. The cattle out here eat most of it as does the wildlife like javelina, birds and deer.

They probably won't take it as yard waste. I never tried that back when we had garbage pick up that took the yard waste but I do know that they can be very picky about what they will and will not take.

 

[jamanalo]

Yea theyre the bags for leaves and lawn clippings. Hmm those are good ideas. Im going to look for a place around here that can possible take them for me.

 

[Tagna]

Yea theyre the bags for leaves and lawn clippings. Hmm those are good ideas. Im going to look for a place around here that can possible take them for me.

Yard waste rules say no pet waste and no wood shavings, at least in my region. Your region is even more picky with their garbage, recycling rules.

 

[Dewdrop]

Well you learn something new every day!

I've moved onto fleece, but when I used shavings I just bagged it and put it in my regular trash can.....never had issues with them not taking it.

 

[cuddlycuddles]

You are supposed to compost them- there is a composting program in big cities in Ontario, where they pick up the organic waste from the small green bins. Do you have such service in your town?

 

[threewingedfury]

I use all of my shavings in my garden and I've noticed an increase in size in a lot of my veggies. We have red clay as our soil which is a utisol and has a pH of less than 5 (we've had our soil range 3-4 at times). Pine shavings are somewhat acidic, but not as acidic as our soil. Urine should also higher the pH as it's normally close to 7. Adding the shavings in we just add a little lime to it and it seems to replenish the land somehow. With other neutral or base soils, I'm not sure that the shavings would really help though. We had sweet potatoes this year that averaged 3-5 lbs each.

 

[Dewdrop]

We had sweet potatoes this year that averaged 3-5 lbs each.

Dang!!

 

[VolunteerChin22]

I usually throw mine away in the trashcan...I should compost them but I need to get a bin...

 

[HeatherLouWho]

Compost. We use Carefresh, and compost it as "brown" material in our compost bin. Works GREAT!

 

[Tagna]

You are supposed to compost them- there is a composting program in big cities in Ontario, where they pick up the organic waste from the small green bins. Do you have such service in your town?

In my region, Peel, no pet waste is allowed in the green bin program. Manalo is in Halton region and I'm pretty sure they are same. I know Toronto allows some things that no one else does in the green bin program.

 

[ChinchillasByDesign]

We have Amish neighbors who use them for horse bedding. We also use them for mulch and compost for our garden.

 

[Megan]

We use them for our garden, and a neighbor will take some for his gardens as well. What is extra we do throw out in the trash.

If you have anyone with horses around you can see if they'll use it. Some horse owners will use the left over chin bedding instead of using new bedding on the horses. Once the chins are moved up to the farm we'll most likely reuse the chin bedding for the horses, and then spread it with the manure into the fields.

 

[Twilight Chinchillas]

I post my used shavings/chin waste on Craigslist for compost and get people who come and pick up the bags, some on a regular basis! Helps to have a irresistible chin picture with the famous quote of what chins do best! LOL

 

[Olallie]

What do you guys compost? The really wet pee stuff or the other dry stuff with the poop and left over hay? We have recently received green waste bins that I'd like to use.

 

[saphire]

I live close to a small forest, and that is where it goes.