Fleece?

[Miss_Mumm]

Ok, so I have three guinea pigs and I have aways used care fresh natural bedding. I'm wondering about switching to fleece because they like to kick the bedding all over the floor. Can anyone tell me more about the pros and cons? And how fleece bedding works? How often it needs changed and how to clean it?

 

[madguinealady]

mine are on fleece and i love it. I have a ground sheet or shower curtain then incontinence pads then a main fleece. I have litter trays then smaller bits of towel and fleece where they pee sometimes (doesnt happen very often). The main fleece gets changed once a week and puppy pads once a week if soiled and the towels and smaller fleece gets changed when wet. I have a bag used for horse riding wear that i wash them in so i dont get hay etc in the machine. I think it is cheaper but it is a fair bit of washing and you have to factor in electric for drying and washing. I dont use washing powder but some people use non bio. Wash at 60 degrees.My piggies love being on fleece and love their fleeecey items.You can buy cage liners but i dont have correx so use normal fleece. If you have piggies that dig or correx chewers you could peg the fleece over the correx. Good luck

 

[AbiS]

I use fleece with towel and newspaper underneath. At one point my washing machine broke so they had to go back to fitch through the hutch - they fought with each other non-stop from dawn till dusk (and probably beyond) for a week until the moment the fleece went back in and they became all happy again - it was really interesting to see. I change it all every 6days and poo pick daily.

I put fitch and meadow hay in the bedroom and log hidey as this is where they pee and poo the most. I change this every 3 days.

I find that this is the combination that works best for us and ensures that they always have plenty of hay - it gets topped up daily.

I don't find washing the fleece a problem - just make sure you don't use fabric conditioner - it will stop it wicking. I don't put mine inside a bag before washing but it is probs a very good idea to do so - I will learn my lesson once the filter blocks!

 

[piggyfan]

I changed my fleece and towels every three days. I do not believe it is hygienic to leave it any longer.

 

[Bekki]

I no longer use fleece it's too much of a time effort 30 minutes a day sweeping and several hours washing etc isn't worth it for me. It can be cheaper to use bedding than electricity and laundry soap too.

 

[Goth Mummy]

I switched to fleece last week mainly because the boys popcorn so much round their cage that they were throwing out so much bedding all over the floor, and because my Teddy Girls have sensitive skin.

I have commercially made Ferplast style cages. I have a bottom layer of several sheets of newspaper, then a towel, then a layer of a type of washable (flat) nappy called Prefolds or the traditional Terry towelling squares. This is just because I had them left over from my children! Then a layer of fleece on top.

For me (so far) its worked well. I actually am changing the cloth fleece and cloth nappies on the top of the towel every other day and the towel if its soaked through the cloth nappy.

I have noticed the pigs are lying flat out or "chicken legs" style on the fleece! They look very happy.

I do also have hay trays (actually the bottoms of old hamster cages) lined with paper and hay and they do most of the wee/poos in those and I change those every day. And I sweep the fleece twice a day as well.

So far, though its really only been a week, I am happy and the pigs are happy. I could see that in the middle of winter when the house is damp and cold it would be harder because I struggle to get family laundry dry. But now the weather has warmed up I think its do-able.

 

[madguinealady]

I use fleece with towel and newspaper underneath. At one point my washing machine broke so they had to go back to fitch through the hutch - they fought with each other non-stop from dawn till dusk (and probably beyond) for a week until the moment the fleece went back in and they became all happy again - it was really interesting to see. I change it all every 6days and poo pick daily.

I put fitch and meadow hay in the bedroom and log hidey as this is where they pee and poo the most. I change this every 3 days.

I find that this is the combination that works best for us and ensures that they always have plenty of hay - it gets topped up daily.

I don't find washing the fleece a problem - just make sure you don't use fabric conditioner - it will stop it wicking. I don't put mine inside a bag before washing but it is probs a very good idea to do so - I will learn my lesson once the filter blocks!

I have had to empty my filter three times,already and you end up with water everywhere.That's why I bought the bag

 

[madguinealady]

I switched to fleece last week mainly because the boys popcorn so much round their cage that they were throwing out so much bedding all over the floor, and because my Teddy Girls have sensitive skin.

I have commercially made Ferplast style cages. I have a bottom layer of several sheets of newspaper, then a towel, then a layer of a type of washable (flat) nappy called Prefolds or the traditional Terry towelling squares. This is just because I had them left over from my children! Then a layer of fleece on top.

For me (so far) its worked well. I actually am changing the cloth fleece and cloth nappies on the top of the towel every other day and the towel if its soaked through the cloth nappy.


ere aren't loops on the nappies they can catch their feet on are there'

 

[Bekki]

I have had to do my filter even though I was meticulous at cleaning my fleece with several brushes before washing!