Easiest floor time base and set up? Tips for quick set up and clean up?

Fluffbabies

Fluffbabies

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Hi all,

I'd like to start giving our herd more floor time in a bigger space but need to find a quicker, more efficient way to set this up and take it down. I think I'm just going to use spare c&c grids zip locked together to create the boundary around the space. I think this should be quick to fold up?

We have carpet throughout the house so I need something to lay on the floor to protect the carpets from wee and a way that does not involve as much bulky laundry as using multiple bed protectors and fleece liners. I'm already doing multiple laundry washes every day for my fleece liners. We have 6 piggies and I was considering adopting two more rescues but we need things to be more efficient.

I've got some disposable puppy pads that could be good because I can dispose of the only the ones that are wet and reuse the others instead of washing big things when one area is wet but it does mean repeat purchases and takes longer to lay them down when doing a big space. I think this might be less smelly too?

I just bought a 300cm x 200cm XL waterproof picnic blanket and I thought I had finally cracked it and it would be ideal because wee wouldn't go through to the carpet but it's fleecy on top so I thought wee would soak into it. BUT water doesn't seep into the thin top fleece layer. It just pools on top and stays wet! Does anyone else use something similar? I'm not sure if it would improve if I washed it several times because it's thin. Or maybe I just need an additional thin fleece layer on top?

I'm thinking I'll make a correx hay tray to try and limit the hay clean up.

What have you found works best for you please? Thanks.
 
As someone who has used picnic blankets for my boys run for years, they need to be wicked just like any other fleece. I do find they aren't the best flooring, as when peed on just leave a damp puddle, so if your piggies are only getting in the run for a little while, re-using puppy pads sounds like a good idea.
And you are right, puppy pads do tend to stink less.

If you have already bought it, you could use the picnic blanket as a extra protection layer under the puppy pads. Or wick the picnic blanket and see how you feel about it. Its so rainy in Scotland that I change the blanket weekly, and I just hang it on the washing line and let all the pee be washed out, then I dry it to be used again. I then wash all blankets properly once a month.
 
We used to make a floor run with our spare CC grids. Recently we have run out of grids & have used the hall. ( approx once a week) With a couple of flat weave rugs and fleece blankets on top, with a few spare pee pads. I pad up underneath with newspaper if it’s chilly( old house, wooden floors). No pig is in there long at the moment, as it’s taken them a while to get used to the space. Approximately a hour each. Not too many wee spots yet, but it does add to the washing pile.
I hope you find something that works for you.
 
We use a plastic sheet (a plastic shower curtain would be fine) to protect our carpet topped with cheap fleece blankets from Ikea. You will need to give the fleece blankets a couple of washes before you use them though. VITMOSSA fleece throw, grey, 120x160 cm - IKEA

We just shake these onto the lawn and then wash them. They come out of the washer almost dry.

We also put out a couple of trays of hay. These are potting trays, which we line with puppy pad and newspaper before adding the hay. You can get them from Amazon or your local garden center.

Amazon.co.uk
 
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