I really want to bathe my pigs at the moment. They only poop in one corner and then they lay there. I have to clean it out multiple times a day or else they will get their bums dirty. I know not to bathe them very often (at least wait 10 months before doing it again). How should I handle bathing them? I have two Americans and one Abyssinian.
Bathing pigs
- Thread starter erinspigs
- Start date
Siikibam
Forum Donator 2022/23
Bathing (including cleaning grease glands)
If they’re not particularly grubby then I wouldn’t bath them at all.
If they’re not particularly grubby then I wouldn’t bath them at all.
LMPigs
Junior Guinea Pig
Hello,
Are your pigs newish? When ours were new and shy, they would only stay in one cardboard box in their cage that was also full of hay. They would just eat, poop, wee and sleep in there all day. This was to the extent that we started seeing staining on Marshmallow because he is white.
We changed two things to fix this:
1. a wider variety of hideouts
2. making sure that the hideouts had a good layer of newspaper underneath the base bedding to soak up wee (the poops actually dry out quite quickly if they aren't in a puddle of wee)
Nowadays they are rather more adventurous and they spread their poo and wee freely all over their hutch / run, but I think its quite normal for them to be hiding out in the first weeks.
Not sure if this new pig shyness is the problem you are having, but wanted to make the suggestion in case it helps!
Are your pigs newish? When ours were new and shy, they would only stay in one cardboard box in their cage that was also full of hay. They would just eat, poop, wee and sleep in there all day. This was to the extent that we started seeing staining on Marshmallow because he is white.
We changed two things to fix this:
1. a wider variety of hideouts
2. making sure that the hideouts had a good layer of newspaper underneath the base bedding to soak up wee (the poops actually dry out quite quickly if they aren't in a puddle of wee)
Nowadays they are rather more adventurous and they spread their poo and wee freely all over their hutch / run, but I think its quite normal for them to be hiding out in the first weeks.
Not sure if this new pig shyness is the problem you are having, but wanted to make the suggestion in case it helps!
LMPigs
Junior Guinea Pig
Sorry the other thing - if they are new pigs - is that if your hutch/cage/run has an open top and sides or is in the middle of a room so they might be feeling a bit exposed, you can also try putting a blanket or something over part of it which might make them feel safer and roam around more.
Oh thank you for the tips! My pigs are *fairly* new. I have had them for about three and a half months. They are comfortable with me and have a variety of hideouts and toys, yet still choose their "special" corner (haha). They have a mostly-roofed enclosure. I do have a white piggie, but he does not have the same habit
. Again, thank you for the tips.