Flabbergasted By Fleece!

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MerryPip said:
Pet machines?! That's a great idea! I wish other places would do something like that, so many people would use them especially for bigger pet bed items...
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They're great! You have to remember to bring a cloth to wipe them out before you use them though, otherwise you get dog fur on your pig fleece!
 
AlbiePercy said:
They're great! You have to remember to bring a cloth to wipe them out before you use them though, otherwise you get dog fur on your pig fleece!
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now that would freak me out ! I hate hair & am allergic to dogs lol ! I wash mine in one of those horse wash bags,,, they contain any hair that is left after i shake and batter them outside !
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
Personally I have a big problem with fleece use. Obviously a lot depends on how it is used, but too often I see cages that look like they are fitted out ready to lay a newborn human baby down to sleep in it, rather than a home for animals. I use aubiose in the heated shed hutches and puppy pads in the indoor cages. The hutches and cages are filled with hay and the piggies popcorn non stop as I top up the hay a few times a day. If people use fleece, in conjunction with lots of hay for the piggies to play in, then that's fine, but when they get a small amount in a hay rack or just a little tray with hay, then I feel the guinea pigs can't display normal animal behaviour.
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This was how I felt too, and I don't agree with fleece as the sole bedding as it takes away opportunity for natural behaviours like burrowing and foraging (of course perhaps some piggies have medical needs which might change this).
I'm going to make liners for the open parts of my cage and keep the loft area and under loft area as the hay/foraging part. So a good 2x2.5ft of space for that :)
 
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artcasper said:
now that would freak me out ! I hate hair & am allergic to dogs lol ! I wash mine in one of those horse wash bags,,, they contain any hair that is left after i shake and batter them outside !
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I've just ordered a horse wash bag. Hoping it's better than the duvet cover as I still find hairs everywhere!
 
Great thred, this is something I need to consider drastically as I am blown away by how much wast my pigs are producing every day ! I'm haveingti do a full cage change every 2 days ! If you use a bottom substrate either fleece or vet bed in conjunction with hay would it not potentially block the washing machine ?
 
Alex2016 said:
Great thred, this is something I need to consider drastically as I am blown away by how much wast my pigs are producing every day ! I'm haveingti do a full cage change every 2 days ! If you use a bottom substrate either fleece or vet bed in conjunction with hay would it not potentially block the washing machine ?[/QUOTEII
I shake my fleece and brush it within an inch of its life before it goes into my washing machine.... the horse bag is brilliant and when i have done a wash and turn it inside out, there are hairs inside - which means none in the washer.. no hay goes into the washer at all....
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Next on the shopping list, a horse bag! Found some on ebay so going to get that now. I suppose once you have your liners safely inside one of those, in theory if there's space in the washing machine you can put other stuff in too (outside the bag)? Ideally I like to avoid half filled washes :)

I've been very prepared so hopefully apart from fresh food, I now have bought everything I need to get started!
 
Also, do you have a dustpan and brush ? That's something you will need ! Or a spoon and patience
 
Alex2016 said:
Sorry, ziggys fbk page
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I think I'll stick with a proper horse bag/pet bag rather than one of these. I know it's recommended by Ziggy but I already have one of these which I use for delicates and I reckon the holes in the mesh are large enough that hair could get out. Would be interesting to hear if anyone else successfully uses the cheaper type of laundry bags!
 
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AmyAnn said:
I think I'll stick with a proper horse bag/pet bag rather than one of these. I know it's recommended by Ziggy but I already have one of these which I use for delicates and I reckon the holes in the mesh are large enough that hair could get out. Would be interesting to hear if anyone else successfully uses the cheaper type of laundry bags like these!
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I think you'd be better off with the horse wash bag. :)
 
AmyAnn said:
I think I'll stick with a proper horse bag/pet bag rather than one of these. I know it's recommended by Ziggy but I already have one of these which I use for delicates and I reckon the holes in the mesh are large enough that hair could get out. Would be interesting to hear if anyone else successfully uses the cheaper type of laundry bags!
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I advise you "Google" - Moorland Rider Petwear washbag ..... They are on sale at Amazon, ebay and other sites . I get the jumbo size


They are also on sale here ...



Snoozie's Cozies
 
We use fleece initially because we take ours caravanning and the other half has hay fever so it was used to reduce the amount of hay in the cage. Now we wouldn't go back as it has worked out cheaper in the long run.
 
I haven't really tried anything other than fleece but my boys seem to love it. They have hay in either a hay (dog!) bed, or on the floor at one end of the cage (dependant on my mood - I like to change things up for them regularly!). I will say, they much prefer easy access to their hay. They have a hay rack but barely use it.

As for sleeping - they don't seem to have a preference. Sometimes they snuggle down on the hay, and sometimes on the fleece. Must just depend on their mood lol.

Incidentally re newspaper - one of my boys gets snuffly and the vet did suggest just to use newspaper bedding rather than fleece - she thought it could have been a dust mite allergy!
 
ARGH SO ANNOYED!

I have everything I need to make my fleece liners and washed everything before starting to allow for shrinkage, just as well!

I've measured my mattress protector after washing once (and air drying) and it's lost 10cm from the width and 15cm from the length!!

Now it's not big enough to make the 2 x liners that I planned. Gutted. And since I've already cut off the elastic skirt, I'm guessing my eBay seller won't do a refund either! Definitely followed washing instructions etc etc.

Don't know whether to attempt making one liner out of it (allowing another 10cm each way for further shrinkage?! How much will it shrink on the second wash?!) and buy the other mattress protector I was considering to make the second, so I can compare the two. The other liner I was looking at is £29.99 from Argos for the king size, and has a cotton top and a polyester hollowfibre filling.
Buy Snug 100% Cotton Percale Anti-Allergy 1cm Mattress Topper at Argos.co.uk - Your Online Shop for Mattress toppers.

Was looking forward to a day of sewing after successfully making a hay bag last night. Boooooo :(
 
Tigermoth said:
That's a HUGE amount of shrinkage! My word! It wouldn't fit on the bed after that, surely?
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Certainly not a king sized one, no! Can't believe it's that much but the tape measure doesn't lie! I'm going to mention it to the eBay seller and see what they say.

Inside the John Lewis bag it came it in said "This product has been specifically designed so its dimensions take shrinkage into account".

Erm... no it doesn't...

I've found a cotton topped, hollowfibre filled protector from Tesco for a tenner. Lots of good reviews including some that say it washes well, so I've ordered this now.
Tesco direct: Tesco Anti Allergy Kingsize Mattress Protector
 
ayemee said:
I've just ordered a horse wash bag. Hoping it's better than the duvet cover as I still find hairs everywhere!
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they are great.... no probs with mine apart from the zip pull thing breaking off !
 
maybe cheaper to buy a ready made liner! Amyann.could you wash the matress protector a second time?[if you are unable to send it back]then you can be sure what size liner you can make from it.
 
What a fiasco! Thanks all for your comments and advice :)

Ah well, I've made the liners now and am really pleased with how it looks. Managed to get two liners out of one fleece, which I didn't think I'd be able to, so now if I want to I have enough fleece to make another 2 liners. Or a lot of lovely fleecy accessories!

Here's the finished effort, including a homemade pirate fleece snuggle bag and a hanging hidey thing :)

I've also made a couple of fleece covers for the ramp, they tie on underneath at the top.

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AmyAnn said:
What a fiasco! Thanks all for your comments and advice :)

Ah well, I've made the liners now and am really pleased with how it looks. Managed to get two liners out of one fleece, which I didn't think I'd be able to, so now if I want to I have enough fleece to make another 2 liners. Or a lot of lovely fleecy accessories!

Here's the finished effort, including a homemade pirate fleece snuggle bag and a hanging hidey thing :)

I've also made a couple of fleece covers for the ramp, they tie on underneath at the top.

View attachment 44809 View attachment 44810 View attachment 44811

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love it ! looks great... I really like the little hanging fleece tent on the top - might have to pinch that idea ! xx
 
artcasper said:
love it ! looks great... I really like the little hanging fleece tent on the top - might have to pinch that idea ! xx
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Go right ahead (and post pictures!) :) I bought a fleece offcuts bundle from eBay for £7 and made the hanging tent, 2 x ramp covers and the snuggle bag. Still have enough to make more things too, excellent value for money!
 
If you have fleece offcuts left you can cut them into small pieces or leaf shapes and put them in a tray - my piggies love burrowing in them and then hiding in them. Or you can make little pads to,go under hideys to catch the pee.
 
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