Water Bottles: Water bottle toxins?

[couchon]

The other day, I was considering buying a Water Buddy for my piggies when I found out that it is made out of PVC. There has been a lot of concern in recent year that chemicals can leak out over PVC over time. That got me thinking about plastic water bottles in general and how reusable plastic bottles are generally not recommended for people even though many use them. I ended up getting a glass water bottle for my piggies.

Is anybody else concerned about the plastic water bottles? I would love to hear your thoughts.

[juliaaa]

I never really thought about it, but you make a good point about us not reusing plastic bottles. Where did you get your glass water bottle from?

[couchon]

Here's the one that I got:

Ferret Feeders and Waterers: Super Pet Chew Proof Glass Water Bottles at Drs. Foster and Smith

And this is an excerpt from Wikipedia. I know it's not always the most reliable source, but I found a lot of others with similar concerns about PVC:

"Many vinyl products contain additional chemicals to change the chemical consistency of the product. Some of these additional chemicals called additives can leach out of vinyl products. Plasticizers that must be added to make PVC flexible have been an additive of particular concern."

You can just google 'PCV' and see what I mean. Also, I noticed that my other plastic water bottle turned yellow on the inside even though I never put anything in the water. I clean it regularly, and it makes me wonder. Plastic is generally a lot harder to get clean than glass because of the type of surface it is. Even Nalgene water bottles, which many people use, can become 'nasty' after a while, and I doubt the standards for pet bottles are anywhere near the same. The possible chemicals just add to the concern.

[couchon]

Here's another link:

Bisphenol A May Linger in Body

Again, nothing is completely conclusive just yet, and there are clearly a lot of sources the chemicals may come from, but I think glass is a better alternative.

[SFailed186]

I think plastic is fine as long as you clean them on a regular basis. I mean, think of baby bottles, they are plastic and they are just fine as long as you clean and sterilize them. There's no doubt that germs and what-not will breed on plastic, but cleaning will help. As for glass bottles, I can never use them because I drop my plastic ones too often. Haha. I am a klutz.

[couchon]

SFailed186, baby water bottles are actually mentioned in the second article. It says that these plastics were banned from use in baby water bottles in Canada but not in the U.S. (that's the WebMD article).

The things is, there have been a lot of harmful things that were not outlawed until decades later (medications that caused birth defects is what comes to mind right away). Even cigarettes were not thought to lead to cancer at one point. Research and actually observing side-effects can take decades. The problem with these water bottles (either human or animal) is not so much that you can't disinfect them as well, which IS a problem, but that they disintegrate differently than glass does, and the chemicals that are in them to make the plastic stronger end up in the water supply.

Just what the chemicals will do and how soom they leave the body is up for debate right now. In my opininon, it's better to stick with things that don't carry the potential risk. If you disagree, you are certainly entitled to your opinion. I just wanted to post this for people who may not be aware of the potential problems (I certainly wasn't 100% aware), and after that, well, the choice is yours. I would also encourage you to do more research on your own, so this is not just coming from some person on the internet.

Sorry, SFailed186, this was not all directed at you. I just watned to address to some things that you brought up.

[couchon]

Here's the quote from the WebMD article if anyone is interested:

"Although Canada last October banned BPA from plastic baby bottles, the U.S. FDA still considers it safe. The U.S. National Toxicology Program, however, notes "concerns" over BPA safety. Not taking any chances, several baby-bottle makers have stopped using BPA in their products."

[couchon]

I would also just ask everyone to consider that the plastic for animal water bottles is probably a lot worse and less-regulated than for humans. They have found dangerous chemicals' in CHILDRENS' toys manufactured in China (just an example from recent memory). Not all plastics are safe, and it makes you wonder what exactly they may use for animal products.

[vicky2]

HHmmm, this makes me think! I was going to get a Water Buddy... Time for more research! Good points couchon; thanks!

[akstrohm]

Yes, plastics can leech harmful chemicals. They do so in such small amounts that in my opinion they are unlikely to have a large effect over the lifetime of a guinea pig. I think the risk they pose, while it exists, is smaller than the risks posed by improperly washed or handled veggies, for example. Please note that the risk increases substantially if the bottle (or any other plastic container) is microwaved.

[Onetwo]

Akstrohm is correct in that BPA's and other toxic chemicles are leached into the drink if the bottle was heated by either a dishwasher, microwave, hot water or hot liquid! So I always ensure I only use warm water and a bit of organic soap to clean my bottles. I never clean them with hot water or heated the plastic in any way. The same goes for my kids. Fortionately I breastfeed my kids and used sippy cups and bottles very little. Baby bottles and sippy cups were changed but not our tupperware, plastic soda bottles, plastic dishes, plastic forks and utinsles etc... I dont microwave ANY plastic. I dont use a dishwaser period because of all the toxic chemicles in dish washer fluids (new links to dishwasher fluid and Osteoporosis!) and I usually only wash plastics in warm not HOT water. Its also makes my tupperware and plastic stuff look great and last for years!!!

[Oliversnana]

Maybe I'm a bit in the dark not knowing or realizing how harmful these plastic items are. I'm feeling rather stupid. But it makes sense. Like a no brainer! Duh!

[NewGuinea2009]

Does anyone know WHERE to get a glass waterbottle at? Is there somewhere online? Our PetCo doesn't have one.

[mayamoo]

This is exactly why we use glass bottles for our piggies. They have the SuperPet chew proof glass bottles.

I figure, if I don't let my human family drink from plastic bottles, I surely don't want my pigs too.

Edited: We bought our glass bottle @ Drs. Foster & Smith also.