Dirty hay

mls18

mls18

Teenage Guinea Pig
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Hi! So whenever i clean my guinea pigs cage theirs always a ton of hay thats mixed in with fur and poop and is a bit damp from them sitting on it(and sometimes peeing on it.) I uasully throw it all out but it seems like such a waste. They still eat it mostly but i feel like its gross to give to them. Are they fine with eating it?is it safe?
 
I don't think it's healthy to try and re-use old, soiled, hay. But, to minimize the amount of hay being waisted you can use a "hay rack". You can hang a small metal cage on the side of their pen and fill it with hay, this way they can pull out hay whenever they want to eat, and they won't be able to soil it.
 
Natalie Clancy said:
I don't think it's healthy to try and re-use old, soiled, hay. But, to minimize the amount of hay being waisted you can use a "hay rack". You can hang a small metal cage on the side of their pen and fill it with hay, this way they can pull out hay whenever they want to eat, and they won't be able to soil it.
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Ok thank you! I have a hay rack somewhere, ill try and find it. Thanks!
 
My girls have a big hay pile in their litter box and a toilet paper roll stuffed with hay. I do throw a few handfuls of old hay out everyday, but I could never imagine using a hay rack at this point. They love jumping, sleeping, laying, and playing in piles of hay so much. I really do think guinea pigs thrive with piles of hay.

You shouldn't reuse soiled hay. Guinea pigs also pick out the bits of hay they want, so anything leftover is usually hay they have no interest in eating. One tip I can give you is to give smaller piles of hay more frequently. It stays fresher that way. This is what I do most of the time, but I am home most of the day so I know not everyone can do that. Would definitely recommend the toilet paper roll full of hay as well, it keeps the hay in and the piggies like pulling the hay out.
 
h.h.lovecraft said:
My girls have a big hay pile in their litter box and a toilet paper roll stuffed with hay. I do throw a few handfuls of old hay out everyday, but I could never imagine using a hay rack at this point. They love jumping, sleeping, laying, and playing in piles of hay so much. I really do think guinea pigs thrive with piles of hay.

You shouldn't reuse soiled hay. Guinea pigs also pick out the bits of hay they want, so anything leftover is usually hay they have no interest in eating. One tip I can give you is to give smaller piles of hay more frequently. It stays fresher that way. This is what I do most of the time, but I am home most of the day so I know not everyone can do that. Would definitely recommend the toilet paper roll full of hay as well, it keeps the hay in and the piggies like pulling the hay out.
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Thanks so much! Ive never thought of filling toilet rolls, ill try that! My guinea pigs also love sleeping in their hay so ill try what you said :). Thanks for all the helpfull tips!
 
I agree, guinea pigs do generally love playing in piles of hay (as well as sleeping it it).
A toilet paper roll stuffed with hay is a fun activity for guinea pigs, but it can't serve as their only source of hay, as it is too small.
 
Natalie Clancy said:
I agree, guinea pigs do generally love playing in piles of hay (as well as sleeping it it).
A toilet paper roll stuffed with hay is a fun activity for guinea pigs, but it can't serve as their only source of hay, as it is too small.
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That makes sense, ill make sure to add more hay besides the roll, thanks!
 
mls18 said:
Thanks so much! Ive never thought of filling toilet rolls, ill try that! My guinea pigs also love sleeping in their hay so ill try what you said :). Thanks for all the helpfull tips!
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No problem, I hope the piggies enjoy it! 😊 I usually cut both ends of the toilet paper roll a bit (some people cut down the entire thing) to ensure their little noses can't get stuck. It also makes getting the hay in easier. Like @Natalie Clancy said, it shouldn't serve as the only source of hay, but it is a fun enrichment toy.

Just wanted to add on a bit in regards to if damp, soiled hay is safe. One big issue with damp hay specifically is that it can cause urine scald or bumble foot. Hay doesn't absorb urine so it just kind of stays wet and piggy feet really don't do well in wet environments. Hay gets peed on inevitably everyday of course, but that's why it gets thrown out at the end of the day.
 
As another idea for something to stuff hay into, you can cut a toilet paper roll into thin circles and overlap them to make a spherical toy that you can stuff hay into, like pictured below...
1640059628350.webp
I've tried this and my piggy loves it.
 
h.h.lovecraft said:
My girls have a big hay pile in their litter box and a toilet paper roll stuffed with hay. I do throw a few handfuls of old hay out everyday, but I could never imagine using a hay rack at this point. They love jumping, sleeping, laying, and playing in piles of hay so much. I really do think guinea pigs thrive with piles of hay.

You shouldn't reuse soiled hay. Guinea pigs also pick out the bits of hay they want, so anything leftover is usually hay they have no interest in eating. One tip I can give you is to give smaller piles of hay more frequently. It stays fresher that way. This is what I do most of the time, but I am home most of the day so I know not everyone can do that. Would definitely recommend the toilet paper roll full of hay as well, it keeps the hay in and the piggies like pulling the hay out.
Click to expand...
Yes.. piggies pick out what Hay they like… I’ve been giving my piggies a variety of Hay… Timothy Hay… and supplemental oat grass, botanical grass… then I realized they were only/mostly eating the “treat hay…”— now I’m switching my Timothy Hay and no “treat hay… just some Oat grass…picky piggies🤣🥰
 
Hay wastage is part and parcel of piggy keeping. I throw handfuls out daily when it is wet or soiled.
i don’t use hayracks or stuff hay in anything as i find it restricts them too much and they actually tend to ignore it - my piggies eat so much more hay when it’s loose on the floor, they love being in amongst it constantly. I just accept the wastage
 
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Hello. I used to have hay racks but I read a story about a piggy getting caught in one and it died so I don’t use them anymore. A big pile is so much better. Yes you will have to throw away some hay as they don’t eat all of it. Just the tasty bits. 🤦🏻‍♀️
 
I don’t bother with hay racks anymore. I did make the boys a hay bag and found that one would repeatedly climb inside it. The other used to do it but not as often. When they were still inside, they had a hay tray. I would often find one of the boys conked out in/on the hay.

Now they’re outside I just throw in piles of hay and they absolutely love it. Wastage is part and parcel of piggy ownership. Even if you use a hay rack, they would pull it out and leave some on the floor uneaten 😁
 
I just put 2 big piles of hay on the cage floor each day to be eaten, played in, slept in plus all the weeding and pooing.
There’s always a lot goes to waste.
Can you compost the waste?
I often do that with mine.
 
I think it's beneficial to compost the piggy poo. Because, with the extra fertilizer, you would be able to grow veggies for the piggies.
I've never tried this, but theoretically I think it would work out.
 
h.h.lovecraft said:
No problem, I hope the piggies enjoy it! 😊 I usually cut both ends of the toilet paper roll a bit (some people cut down the entire thing) to ensure their little noses can't get stuck. It also makes getting the hay in easier. Like @Natalie Clancy said, it shouldn't serve as the only source of hay, but it is a fun enrichment toy.

Just wanted to add on a bit in regards to if damp, soiled hay is safe. One big issue with damp hay specifically is that it can cause urine scald or bumble foot. Hay doesn't absorb urine so it just kind of stays wet and piggy feet really don't do well in wet environments. Hay gets peed on inevitably everyday of course, but that's why it gets thrown out at the end of the day.
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Ok thanks ill do that! And oh wow i never knew that. Ill make sure to discard their old hay more often. Thank you so much!
 
Natalie Clancy said:
As another idea for something to stuff hay into, you can cut a toilet paper roll into thin circles and overlap them to make a spherical toy that you can stuff hay into, like pictured below...
View attachment 192332
I've tried this and my piggy loves it.
Click to expand...
wow thats a great idea, ill try it thanks! i had a guinea pig toy that looked like this a very long time ago and my guinea pig loved it(it was store bought.) so i think he would love this. Thanks so much!
 
BeekindBeegood said:
Yes.. piggies pick out what Hay they like… I’ve been giving my piggies a variety of Hay… Timothy Hay… and supplemental oat grass, botanical grass… then I realized they were only/mostly eating the “treat hay…”— now I’m switching my Timothy Hay and no “treat hay… just some Oat grass…picky piggies🤣🥰
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Haha, i used to throw out so much more hay but my new piggy likes to eat most of the pieces my other guinea pig doesn't like so its perfect!
 
Piggies&buns said:
Hay wastage is part and parcel of piggy keeping. I throw handfuls out daily when it is wet or soiled.
i don’t use hayracks or stuff hay in anything as i find it restricts them too much and they actually tend to ignore it - my piggies eat so much more hay when it’s loose on the floor, they love being in amongst it constantly. I just accept the wastage
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Glad to know its not just me. I recently started feeding them hay on the ground so i was just so surprised by how much hay i had to throw out!
 
weepweeps said:
Hello. I used to have hay racks but I read a story about a piggy getting caught in one and it died so I don’t use them anymore. A big pile is so much better. Yes you will have to throw away some hay as they don’t eat all of it. Just the tasty bits. 🤦🏻‍♀️
Click to expand...
Wow, i just looked it up... guess i won't be using hay racks anymore😟
 
Siikibam said:
I don’t bother with hay racks anymore. I did make the boys a hay bag and found that one would repeatedly climb inside it. The other used to do it but not as often. When they were still inside, they had a hay tray. I would often find one of the boys conked out in/on the hay.

Now they’re outside I just throw in piles of hay and they absolutely love it. Wastage is part and parcel of piggy ownership. Even if you use a hay rack, they would pull it out and leave some on the floor uneaten 😁
Click to expand...
How did you make the hay bag? i wanted to buy one but i didn't know if it was worth 10 dollars.
 
Natalie Clancy said:
I think it's beneficial to compost the piggy poo. Because, with the extra fertilizer, you would be able to grow veggies for the piggies.
I've never tried this, but theoretically I think it would work out.
Click to expand...
Wow this is a great idea. Ive been wanting to grow veggies for them so maybe ill try this when i do!
 
If your piggies have hidden in it, run through it, made hay nests with it, eaten some of it, weed in it and pooped on it, played zoomies, piggy trains, popcorned on it and generally had fun with it how is it wasted? Yes you do throw out quite a bit but it certainly hasn't been wasted.
 
Betsy said:
If your piggies have hidden in it, run through it, made hay nests with it, eaten some of it, weed in it and pooped on it, played zoomies, piggy trains, popcorned on it and generally had fun with it how is it wasted? Yes you do throw out quite a bit but it certainly hasn't been wasted.
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Thats true! Didnt think of it that way🙂
 
mls18 said:
How did you make the hay bag? i wanted to buy one but i didn't know if it was worth 10 dollars.
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I cut out two squares. One (the front) had two small squares cut out. I sewed them together and also sewed in long strips to tie to the cage. I wouldn’t recommend it now though, they love hay they can hide in etc.
 
Siikibam said:
I cut out two squares. One (the front) had two small squares cut out. I sewed them together and also sewed in long strips to tie to the cage. I wouldn’t recommend it now though, they love hay they can hide in etc.
Click to expand...
Ok thank you so much! If i do end up doing that ill just do it as a option for them if they want to use it, and also put a pile of hay :)
 
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