Pets and filament caution  

RE: Pets and filament caution

PETG? I can see why pets would munch on PLA as it is said to be a bit sweet-ish (haven't tested, cannot confirm), but polyethylene? Cats are weird. We had one, she liked to chew cables. Few chargers, adapters, computer peripherals and phone/ethernet cables fell victim. Then one day she suddenly stopped, maybe she received some small electric shock.

RE: Pets and filament caution

Posted by: @chocki

Just caught my cat munching away on discarded filament, he had dragged the discarded skirts and purges and gossamer filaments out from the bin and was chewing them, and seemed to be very attracted to them.

This was PETG which has glycol in it which is poisonous to cats.

So anyone with pets, maybe keep an eye on them to make sure they are not chewing on filament, I just had a good look around the floor and was surprised by how many pieces of printed filament I found.

Now to get a bin with a lid!.

That's like saying table salt is poisonous because it contains chlorine. I'm not a vet, but speaking as a chemist the glycol in PETG is bound as part of the structure and that makes a world of difference in chemical and any toxicological properties. 

Antifreeze (which I suspect is what you were thinking of) is ethylene glycol and the toxic one. Propylene glycol "only" has an extra carbon group and is so different in its properties it can be safely and commonly used as a food additive. 

RE: Pets and filament caution

Thanks for the clarification vintagepc, I'll worry a little less now, but it still cant be healthy for him.

He was actually going a little crazy for the filament extrusions, like when they go for catnip.

Crazy little cat...

RE: Pets and filament caution

Yeah, there are other reasons it's not good for them, but I don't think toxicity is one. Most plastics are pretty inert, but this is also the problem; they can't be digested and sometimes get stuck rather than exiting the normal route... ending in a costly vet bill. You could just ask your vet what the concerns are next time your cat has a checkup, that way your mind can be at ease. Cats actually have a pretty quick turnaround on their digestive systems and it's not uncommon they'll eat bones from things they catch, so while tons is probably not good, the odd scrap likely won't do any harm.

Any chance your cat likes to graze on grass? I've had a few that did, could be it sees the filament scraps as a possible substitute... 

RE: Pets and filament caution

Posted by: @vintagepc

Any chance your cat likes to graze on grass? I've had a few that did, could be it sees the filament scraps as a possible substitute... 

Actually, he does sometimes.

For now I've cleaned the area where I print meticulously and was surprised by how many bits I found that spring away when touched!.

He is also a very playful cat, so may also have been chasing bits that sprung off when swiped by his paw.

Currently he is picking up his rattling ball and dropping it down the stairs and chasing it, then repeat until owners are driven nuts 😊 

RE: Pets and filament caution

Posted by: @chocki

Currently he is picking up his rattling ball and dropping it down the stairs and chasing it, then repeat until owners are driven nuts 😊 

Is he doing it in the middle of the night too?

RE: Pets and filament caution

No, he gets shut in the kitchen else he tries to sleep on top of me and tries to shove his nose up mine (Bunting) whilst kneading and purring.

Luckily he does not interfere with the printer (Yet), but he does have two favourite TV programmes, one is the washing machine, and the other is the printer!, he will watch it for ages just moving back and forth, then goes rummaging for filament strings.