Sweet PDZ Inhalation Risks?

Chinchilla & Hedgehog Pet Forum

Help Support Chinchilla & Hedgehog Pet Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Stackie

Stackie

I bite.
Joined
Jan 29, 2009
Messages
6,399
Location
Indianapolis, IN
Was doing a bit of research this morning and came up on this about Sweet PDZ:

http://www.pestell.com/pestell/minerals/feed/msds/sweet_pdz.html

Hazardous Ingredients: May contain 0.07 - 0.10% Free Silica
Routes of Entry: Inhalation
Health Hazards (Acute and Chronic): Prolonged exposure to respirable silica may cause health risks
Signs of Exposure: None
Click to expand...

a. Silicosis: Respirable crystalline silica (quartz) can cause chronic silicosis, a fibrosis
(scarring) of the lungs.
Silicosis may be progressive; it may lead to disability and death. Acute Silicosis can occur with
exposures to very high concentrations of respirable crystalline silica over a very short time
period, sometimes as short as a few months. The symptoms of acute silicosis include
progressive shortness of breath, fever, cough and weight loss. Acute silicosis is fatal.
b. Cancer: Crystalline silica (quartz) inhaled from occupational sources in sufficient
concentrations is classified as carcinogenic to humans. In its Ninth Annual Report on
Carcinogens, the National Toxicology Program (NTP) listed crystalline silica as a known human
carcinogen, based on sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity from studies in humans indicating
a causal relationship between exposure to respirable crystalline silica and increased lung
cancer rates in workers exposed to crystalline silica dust. The International Agency for
Research on Cancer (IARC) has evaluated crystalline silica and determined that “crystalline
silica inhaled in the form of quartz or cristobalite from occupational sources is carcinogenic to
humans (Group 1).”
c. Autoimmune Diseases: There is evidence that exposure to respirable crystalline silica
(without silicosis) or that the disease silicosis is associated with the increased incidence of
several autoimmune disorders, -- scleroderma, systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid
arthritis and diseases affecting the kidneys.
d. Tuberculosis: Silicosis increases the risk of tuberculosis.
e. Nephrotoxicity: There is evidence that exposure to respirable crystalline silica (without
silicosis) or that the disease silicosis is associated with the increased incidence of kidney
diseases, including end stage renal disease.
Eye Contact: Crystalline silica (quartz) may cause abrasion of the cornea.
Click to expand...
http://alamitozeolite.com/MSDS_page.html

http://www.mskcc.org/mskcc/html/69424.cfm

So, is it really that safe to give to the chins/be around it yourself with those inhalation risks? It doesn't sound too appealing to me, but I may just be reading too much into it.
 
Blue sparkle has been used for years and years, and also has silica in it I believe. It's what makes the "sparkles." Someone correct me if I'm wrong on that.

Also notice everything is "may" or "might" or "can" not will. It may be a warning just like any other. For instance, if you believed half the warnings that accompanied drugs that everybody takes, the side effects are worse than the disease itself. I wonder if this is just an in general CYA kind of thing. Hopefully someone who knows more about it can answer more depth.
 
Any material that makes a suitable chinchilla dust is a material that you want to avoid breathing when possible. I've heard many stories of Ranchers children who played in the barns all the time as kids having lung issues by the time they were young adults.
 
I think I will stick to blue cloud, if it was not meant to be chinchilla dust and has not been used for year and years as such like blue cloud why take the risk especially if your chins are in your house, just my 2 cents that are not worth much.
 
Silica is NOT what makes Blue Sparkle glitter - it's pulverized quartz!
Silica sand is what is used in sandblasting, and it's consistincy is about halfway between chin dust and regular playground sand!
There are all kinds of warnings imprinted on bags of silica, and I believe you've got to be licensed to sell it in Illinois now!
 
I think I will stick to blue cloud, if it was not meant to be chinchilla dust and has not been used for year and years as such like blue cloud why take the risk especially if your chins are in your house, just my 2 cents that are not worth much.
Click to expand...

Then you better be prepared not to dust your chins. There is one mine in the entire US that mines that dust, and he said years ago he is running out. That the mine is going to be tapped within the next few years. Whether that's true or not, I don't know, but with the growing pet market, and the growing need for dust, that's not going to get better, it's going to get worse. So people are searching out an alternative to dust.

PDZ is used for horse stalls. Ever watch a horse in a clean stall? First thing they do is roll. They are breathing it in and have been for quite some time. Maybe not for 40 years, but I'd be willing to bet that they had to start somewhere to find something for the chins to roll in too.

Rick, thank you for clarifying on the Silica. As I said, I was unsure if that was correct or not. I don't use blue sparkle. I don't like it.
 
I think I will stick to blue cloud, if it was not meant to be chinchilla dust and has not been used for year and years as such like blue cloud why take the risk especially if your chins are in your house, just my 2 cents that are not worth much.
Click to expand...

PDZ came about in 1984, so while it hasn't been used for 40, it has been used for 25. I agree with Peggy about the horses, and with what others have said about ANY kind of dust being breathed into your lungs. Horses have been breathing this in for years and years just like Blue Cloud has been breathed in by chins for years and years. Any crushed up stone being breathed in has its issues. Every time I use Blue Cloud I go into a coughing fit, especially if I am in a small room like a bathroom. Prolonged exposure to anything that isn't air has its risks. At least, in my opinion, with PDZ it doesn't get kicked into the air as much. It's much more powdery than dusty.

Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against Blue Cloud, or any other dust for that matter. People use what works for them.
 
Thanks for your input everyone. I wasn't planning on switching to it and I'm sticking to Blue Cloud, but just thought I would put this out there just in case since it wasn't really meant for chin dusting. :)
 
I am not sure why I am being pounced on, its just a opinion, seems people are a bit defensive when one questions a decision to use a product that has some health warnings that are documented by a MSDS.
 
ticklechin said:
I am not sure why I am being pounced on, its just a opinion, seems people are a bit defensive when one questions a decision to use a product that has some health warnings that are documented by a MSDS.
Click to expand...

Honestly, I don't see where you are being pounced on at all. We were just stating our opinions on it, just like you were.
 
Nobody is being defensive tickelchin, just trying to point out the obvious. Those who have a larger number of chins have been hearing for the past several years that the mine is not going to last forever - that's just how it is. It makes sense too. If you only have one place that can't regenerate itself, you're going to end up running out.

I doubt Chapman brought back dust from the Andes, so it would stand to reason that he had to find something here that would work. Now people are just trying to find an alternative for that in case that source dries up. I know Randy Jagielo tried something, but I can never remember how to spell it. I don't know if he uses it any more though.
 
I've never tried the PDZ, but I've got to think that really any chin dust isn't really safe to inhale. You know how it cakes when peed on? Well, I imagine it's got the same effect on your lungs if you were to inhale a bunch while dusting chins. I know it's not an issue for those with only a couple chins so much, but if you've got lots of chins throwing dust all around, I don't imagine that's too healthy either. :))
 
I think I will stick to blue cloud, if it was not meant to be chinchilla dust and has not been used for year and years as such like blue cloud why take the risk especially if your chins are in your house, just my 2 cents that are not worth much.
Click to expand...

Blue cloud was never meant to be chinchilla dust, it was what was close to chapman at the time and was a by-product of the mines there.

You can use any volcanic type dust for chins. The difference is that show rules/specs were developed around using blue cloud.

Like people have said above, any type of dust is bad on the lungs. The more airborne it goes the worse it is. A lot of chin ranchers (way more than I'd like to think about) have developed lung issues by the time they've retired.

I looked up the blue cloud mine stat sheet to see how many cases of cancer/deaths/whatever a mine has had, and it is currently listed as non-producing for 2009.
 
I was wondering - what about corn starch. I read somewhere that you could use it in the dust - Would corn starch harm a chin and would it do any good??
 
IMHO cornstarch is too fine to make a good dust. A chinchilla dust needs to be soft enough that is doesn't cut the fur, but hard enough that it will clean it, cornstarch IMHO is too soft and fine. On top of that you cannot use it on show animals, as it is against the rules due to it's abuse as a whitening agent that will stay in the fur for multiple weeks.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top