bedding

  • Thread starter Thread starter rushy
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
R

rushy

Does anybody use shredded paper in the cage? Only had the GPs since Thursday and I have put newspaper then shavings and hay in the sleeping area (they are inside).
 
Sorry about that hadn't finished what I was saying and my baby pressed the keyboard! I've noticed a few of you say that you spot clean each day, my two are pooing all over the place (is that because they are only 6 weeks) will they start to do it in just one place when they get a bit bigger? I have put my glove on today and picked it all up (they are in the kitchen and I don't want the cage to start smelling) But it's very hard to tell with the shavings what areas are wet from the wee! I was wondering if shredded paper might be better. I also suffer a little from asthma and am feeling tight chested I'm wondering if the shavings might not be helping , any ideas anybody.
 
I use vet bed pro fleece which I bought from Ebay. You put paper underneath it and the wee soaks through but the fleece doesnt get wet. Its excellent stuff. I use a handheld mini vac twice a day to vac the poops up. I brush the hay off and wash it in the washing machine. I too am slightly asthmatic. You could also use Megazorb or carefresh which is widely available. Hope this helps.

:)
 
Thanks that sounds like a good idea, which do you prefer out of the three of them, how often do you have to wash it? Really like the idea of the mini vac, Just not sure about putting something in the machine that has been full of wee!
 
Ive got two parts to my piggies home, in the one part i put newspaper and shredded paper with carefresh, which i have to say is brilliant! In the other part i use newspaper, with a towel on top and a piece of fleece on top of that.....

I felt a bit funny putting in the guineas messy stuff at first, but i soon got over that, because you have to wash their cuddle cups, their sleepsacks etc...

At the end of the day if your baby widdled on a blanket you'd pop it in the machine....

I'm also asthmatic and when i first had my piggies i put them on shavings and my asthma was terrible, but after reading on here how bad shavings were for the piggies, i changed and my asthma was fine again
 
Just makesure you brush out all the hay before you put it in the machine. I use an extra super rinse cycle on it. I prefer the fleece as its nice and warm for the piggers. I do use carefresh if my two sets of fleece arent dry. Megazorb is good but can be dusty.
 
I have recently brought my guineas inside and like you Rushy, have them in the kitchen and don't want any smell. I stopped using woodshavings because of concerns on this forum and I think you'd probably be better off without them as they create quite a lot of dust. What's people's reactions when you say you've got them in the kitchen? If I tell anyone, they usually say UGH how disgusting!

I've been using newspaper, shredded paper and hay but really need something else that's absorbent. I don't fancy using the fleece, the run is big & I'd need loads of it, plus for the hutch which is tiered. I was thinking of trying Aubiose? (not sure if I've spelt that right). There's another post about this on the forum and it sounds really good.
 
I'm also looking for something to try out. To start with I was using newspaper on the bottom and shredded paper/hay as bedding. But I was having to clean out every day. For a few weeks I've tried shavings. It is soaking up a lot and I only have to change every 3rd or 4th day but it does make rather a mess around the living room.

I'd like to try the fleecy stuff but how often do you wash it? I live on my own so only tend to put the washer on once or twice a week. And how do you buy it? Is it on a roll and you cut it to size?

Sarah x
 
I use megazorb because i think it works out cheaper than where I get my shavings from & I have noticed a couple of things in it favour over shavings. I definately keeps the smell down over shavings. If your piggies do favour a spot for weeing in its easy to find because the bed kind of goes solid in the wet area so is easy to scoop out that bit and replace for a quick spot clean. The wet areas dont spread. Its really soft like little balls of cotton so easy on their feet & no chance of a stray splinter. My piggies coats seem less dull since they've been on this stuff. One of the arguements against shavings is that it dries out the natural oils from the coat. Its cheap £5.80 ish for a huge sack.
Against Megazorb - has a funny smell, this soon goes once the sack has been opened and the stuff ruffeled up a bit. i don't mind it but others here can;t stand it. There was someone who said they thought it was really dusty. I have not noticed this either but batches do differ. Hard to get hold of in some areas.
There;s loads of info here on bedding etc - you've just got to try them out for your self & see what you think. Good luck!
 
Sarah I bought the Vet Bed Pro fleece which is much thicker than the normal vet bed and I bought it off Ebay in two peices and cut it to size. I wash it twice a week. ::)
 
I use a layer of newspaper (easy to roll up and put in the bin once a week)
I then put a good layer of shredded newspaper on top (Asda have personal document shredders in at the moment £8.95) so I just shred a large bag full every week then add loads of hay on top - they love it especially on Sunday which is 'NEW BED DAY!' they go mad when I put them back in and it is all light and fluffy and clean - popcorning around its great to watch.
I 'muck out' poos and wet bits twice every day and add fresh where needed. I also use a paper based cat litter in the 'wee' corner and under the water bottle to stop anything getting soaked through. :)
 
Hiya, Wee corner, does that really happen they're just doing it all over the place at the moment, is that because they are only 6 weeks old, do they usually do it in the sleeping area?
 
Most people have said they cant get there piggies to use just one corner to wee in.
I didnt either! Its just by chance they seem to have chosen a corner of the cage to do most of their wee n. They do ocasionally wee where ever the are sitting but the majoirty is in one corner!
 
Mine have a favourite area to lie so that's where it gets wet quickest. It'd be GREAT if they got up and went to one corner for a wee. Can't see it happening!
 
I think in some ways my two do know where they are wee-ing as there rarely wee in the sleeping area... :)
 
I personally don't like shredded paper, have used wood shavings regularly/all the time since 1989 as a rescue and beyond that as a pet owner without any problems. However have Megazorb on order. If better, will use , if not will go back to good quality wood shavings...so I really have nothing to lose.

I have known people use shredded paper but never liked the idea, to me it is just too harsh and unwelcoming. Each to their own though and maybe some guineas do okay on it :)

Guineas in my experience do poo here, there and everywhere, it's, in again my experience, part and parcel if you parden the pun ::)
Good luck,
Barbara
 
I must admit I'm not mad keen on shredded paper but do use it to pad out the bedding. The harshness of it does depend on different types of shredder & the paper shredded. Sometimes it is kind of crinkly and softer than when it's in long strips. What an anorak I am!

I won't go back to shavings, especially now guineas are inside. I used to sneeze so much when cleaning them out and a layer of dust over everything quite quickly, and they were dust extracted shavings.

It's good to try out different things though isn't it, is all so dependent on each person's set-up as to what suits.
 
I do use the shredded paper its fine i like it and the piuggies seem happy enough

they also have vetbed, carefresh & hay so plenty to keep them warm
 
hils78 said:
I use megazorb because i think it works out cheaper than where I get my shavings from & I have noticed a couple of things in it favour over shavings. I definately keeps the smell down over shavings. If your piggies do favour a spot for weeing in its easy to find because the bed kind of goes solid in the wet area so is easy to scoop out that bit and replace for a quick spot clean. The wet areas dont spread. Its really soft like little balls of cotton so easy on their feet & no chance of a stray splinter. My piggies coats seem less dull since they've been on this stuff. One of the arguements against shavings is that it dries out the natural oils from the coat. Its cheap £5.80 ish for a huge sack.
Against Megazorb - has a funny smell, this soon goes once the sack has been opened and the stuff ruffeled up a bit. i don't mind it but others here can;t stand it. There was someone who said they thought it was really dusty. I have not noticed this either but batches do differ. Hard to get hold of in some areas.
There;s loads of info here on bedding etc - you've just got to try them out for your self & see what you think. Good luck!
Click to expand...

Do you know how big the bag is that you get. At the mo mine are on shavings and I get a huge ' bale' that is about as tall as my waist an its packed solid it just about fits in my wheely bin and its about £6. How long dose the bag last or better stil how many cages do you get done with it!

Mary
 
Sounds about the same size to me - I do think that Megazorb goes a little further though. I may be in the Leicester area soon - I could bring a sack to you to try if you like? they're only £5.80.
 
Is it packed solid? Let me know when you are in the Leicester area. I will try and see if I can get it with all my other stuff I have deilived, if I cant I will give you a shout!

Mary
 
No its not packed solid but the actual stuff is more solid than shavings - think little bobbles of cotton such as on a cotton wool bud. I think that if it was compressed you would never be able to fluff it up! Keep me posted.
 
I think I was thinking of 10kg and its 10 litters which I havent got a clue how big that is
 
10 liters is not very big, I used carefresh for a while and a 10l bag woud last me about a week, just over that if I was a bit stingy in areas. That was in a large store cage with a full bedding change once a week, another half change midweek of their "wee corner" and little spot cleans whenever an area looked too damp. I found it too expensive for my student living.
 
cavykind said:
I personally don't like shredded paper, have used wood shavings regularly/all the time since 1989 as a rescue and beyond that as a pet owner without any problems. However have Megazorb on order. If better, will use , if not will go back to good quality wood shavings...so I really have nothing to lose.

I have known people use shredded paper but never liked the idea, to me it is just too harsh and unwelcoming. Each to their own though and maybe some guineas do okay on it :)

Guineas in my experience do poo here, there and everywhere, it's, in again my experience, part and parcel if you parden the pun ::)
Good luck,
Barbara
Click to expand...

I rescued my guineas and they had been on shredded news paper with hay since they were tiny, they absolutley love it.(They are indooors)
Each to there own of course but I totally disagree that it is harsh and unwelcoming - I only use newspaper which I would say is soft and when it has been cross shredded it is even softer. The shredded paper is not the main part of the bed in any case, it is the hay but I have found my piggies have hours of fun burrowing rond in the paper and hay and snuggling up in it.
As I say just my opinion but I would rule anything out till you have tried.....
 
I use vet bed I bought off ebay. I didn't get on with shavings as they spread all over the house and my OH has hayfever so I can't use too much hay, I top up a few times during the day as they eat it rather than having loads around. So vetbed it is for me. I find washing it ok, but I hate brushing off the poops and hay and if you shake it you get wee in your face! On the plus side, the pigs love it and it looks nice and for my longhaired girls it stops tangling in hay.
 
kayjay said:
I use vet bed I bought off ebay. I didn't get on with shavings as they spread all over the house and my OH has hayfever so I can't use too much hay, I top up a few times during the day as they eat it rather than having loads around. So vetbed it is for me. I find washing it ok, but I hate brushing off the poops and hay and if you shake it you get wee in your face! On the plus side, the pigs love it and it looks nice and for my longhaired girls it stops tangling in hay.
Click to expand...

I'm a vet bed fan too - it is great, as Kayjay says, for long haired guineas and I also use it for my rabbit who has arthritis. I have also, many a time had pee in my face after giving it a good shake. Things we do for piggies! :D
 
I put layers of newspaer down first, then a thin(ish) layer of megazorb, Half of his cage has hay on top of the megazorb. Then in the corner is a pigloo sat on a piece of vet bed.

I have used shredded paper before, I think it is good to use under hay. Some paper can be quite sharp though, but receipts and stuff are really soft.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top