Bedding Question

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pippanash

pippanash

Junior Guinea Pig
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Hi everyone, looking for a bit of advice regarding bedding for my three piggies.

I currently use Snowflake woodshavings and my piggies get along fine with this. I regularly do a spot clean and pick out the heavily soiled/wet bits and replace with nice clean stuff and then do a complete clean out once a week.

The complete clean out with woodshavings takes me ages to do and I'm considering changing to fleece but I have some questions.

If the piggies wee doesn't it get really wet? I know some people use puppy training pads etc underneath, but does the fleece stay wet? Mine tend to wee in quite a few different places, not just in one area. I attempted to potty train my piggies but they refused to go in the 'toilet'!

What about smell? I'm not having any problems with them smelling at the moment.

My piggies love to make a huge mess and drag their hay all over the cage, would this be a problem with fleece?

Also, if I do decide to go for fleece, can I have some recommendations for what to get and where to get it from, please? :D

Apologies if any of these are silly questions, want to know what fleece is like before I make a big change!
 
:D Hello and :wel: to the forum!

A lot of our members, including myself, swear by fleece bedding! You will find it much easier to look after your piggies on fleece. The fleece itself should not stay wet. It is a wicking layer, which means that the wee should pass straight through it to the layer underneath. Whatever you chose to put under your fleece should be very absorbent. A lot of people use cotton towels, or puppy training pads. Some people use bed protectors.
Your fleece should not smell much if the under layer is changed regularly.
Hay should not be too much of a problem. It can be hoovered or swept off.
"ZiggysPiggies" makes made-to-measure fleece liners with a cotton towel inner core. They are very popular, but due to the weight can be difficult to get dry. "C and E Cosies" make cage liners with a Zorb core. I have not used their liners, but I do use a lot of Zorb and it is very easy to wash and dry.
Or you may want to simply buy large fleece blankets and towels to use separately.

I hope this helps!
 
7squeakers. said:
:D Hello and :wel: to the forum!

A lot of our members, including myself, swear by fleece bedding! You will find it much easier to look after your piggies on fleece. The fleece itself should not stay wet. It is a wicking layer, which means that the wee should pass straight through it to the layer underneath. Whatever you chose to put under your fleece should be very absorbent. A lot of people use cotton towels, or puppy training pads. Some people use bed protectors.
Your fleece should not smell much if the under layer is changed regularly.
Hay should not be too much of a problem. It can be hoovered or swept off.
"ZiggysPiggies" makes made-to-measure fleece liners with a cotton towel inner core. They are very popular, but due to the weight can be difficult to get dry. "C and E Cosies" make cage liners with a Zorb core. I have not used their liners, but I do use a lot of Zorb and it is very easy to wash and dry.
Or you may want to simply buy large fleece blankets and towels to use separately.

I hope this helps!
Click to expand...

Ah brilliant! Thanks for your help x
 
I made my own liners using the tutorial on here - it was super easy :) I used Ikea fleeces and cotton topped (important that it's cotton topped!) mattress protectors from Tesco.

I washed the fleece 3 times before sewing the liners together and all wetness wicks straight through - no wet patches at all. Piggies seem to love it, they popcorn about every time I change the fleece.

My C&C cage setup is fleece downstairs with two hay trays, then the upstairs loft is newspaper with hay (no fleece).
I have a poo pick and brush up the hay each morning and evening, takes 5 mins tops. Before washing the fleece I brush off the hay, shake it out the window, then wash it in a petcare washing bag so the remaining hair doesn't get into the machine. Once it's dry I usually give it a quick hoover to get any remaining hair off. It does sound like a lot of steps, but personally I find it quick and easy to manage. And just to note, I use non bio washing tabs along with the dettol anti-bacterial laundry cleanser, and I wash on a short wash at 40 degrees, so I don't think the washing makes any noticeable difference cost-wise (some people say it's a hidden cost)

I have not noticed any smells, and I tend to change the fleece either on every 3rd day, or every 4th day, depending on how it looks on the 3rd day.

The initial outlay of buying the fleece ready-made, or the materials to make it yourself, is fairly high but I reckon it's worthwhile overall.

DSC_0200.webp
 
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image.webp My cage is 2x5 grids but I have it separates with a coroplast "wall" it's still short enough for them to hop over but I keep the kitchen a 2x2 area with hay in a litter box so that the hay doesn't spread everywhere as readily
 
eileen said:
has anyone used a hybrid of fleece and dosposable beddingas find hay is pulled all over the fleece?
Click to expand...

I use a hybrid - my 2x1 loft is just hay on a newspaper underlayer, and there's a fleece cover on the ramp down to the fleece level. So yes hay does get dragged downstairs as well as out of the two hay trays I keep on the main fleece level.
I usually pick the big bits of hay off when I do my twice daily poo pick, then brush the rest off before washing with a stiff bristled brush. Not too much bother generally.
 
Yea I use a mini dustbrush and pan and it gets most hay and even some hair up with the right technique and then I shake it outside real good before I wash it so it's not been too much of a problem for me
 
7squeakers. said:
:D Hello and :wel: to the forum!

A lot of our members, including myself, swear by fleece bedding! You will find it much easier to look after your piggies on fleece. The fleece itself should not stay wet. It is a wicking layer, which means that the wee should pass straight through it to the layer underneath. Whatever you chose to put under your fleece should be very absorbent. A lot of people use cotton towels, or puppy training pads. Some people use bed protectors.
Your fleece should not smell much if the under layer is changed regularly.
Hay should not be too much of a problem. It can be hoovered or swept off.
"ZiggysPiggies" makes made-to-measure fleece liners with a cotton towel inner core. They are very popular, but due to the weight can be difficult to get dry. "C and E Cosies" make cage liners with a Zorb core. I have not used their liners, but I do use a lot of Zorb and it is very easy to wash and dry.
Or you may want to simply buy large fleece blankets and towels to use separately.

I hope this helps!
Click to expand...



I've just placed an order with Ziggy's Piggies for two cage liners and a double snuggle sack.
Can't wait for my things to arrive, and I'm thrilled with how lovely Ziggy's Piggies were, I got a reply almost instantly despite it being a Saturday afternoon, we sent several emails to each other and then my order was place and I've been prioritised. Absolutely delighted! Now just waiting for my things to arrive so I can treat my pigs to their new fleece-y home (and no more shovelling wood shavings for this piggie mummy, yay!)
 
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