Hay bags (pic included)

[Shambles]

I was wondering what everyone's thoughts are on hay bags. I have one each for Pippa and Storm which they seem to enjoy but they just forever jump in them and poop and pee in them.

They have litter trays below the bags. I'm worried about someone getting stuck and it's also wasting ALOT of hay as I fill them and they won't eat it after they've done their business on it.

 

[Piggies&buns]

There’s always going to be hay waste so no matter what you use there is no way of getting around it but of course the risk of getting stuck is the greater concern.
I personally don’t use anything - I just throw hay down on top of bedding (aubiose or megazorb in my case) and let them have at it, throwing away anything wet daily and then just throwing more on top

 

[Shambles]

Thank you. Was trying to avoid throwing the hay in due to it being a nightmare to get off the fleece. I might trial taking the bags out until they're too big to fit inside and using the litter trays as hay trays. I found when they had hay in the litter trays they smell really bad though even changing once a day. Any decent sized hay holder I've tried they hide in.. even the little carrot cottage type ones

 

[weepweeps]

I did use metal hay racks until I read a story on here about a piggy getting trapped and passing away . So I just put handfuls in now.

 

[Piggies&buns]

Thank you. Was trying to avoid throwing the hay in due to it being a nightmare to get off the fleece. I might trial taking the bags out until they're too big to fit inside and using the litter trays as hay trays. I found when they had hay in the litter trays they smell really bad though even changing once a day. Any decent sized hay holder I've tried they hide in.. even the little carrot cottage type ones

Just using hay trays is of course an option but another possible alternative is to make a whole hay area. Don’t put fleece on that part and use something else instead, just newspaper even and fill an area with hay.
My two live in a shed but when they do need to come indoors (usually in summer), this is often what I do. I’ll use fleece in the majority of the cage but have a 2x1 section at the end where I put newspaper (or other disposable bedding as I always have a supply of it anyway) and fill it all with hay. My two love nothing more than making hay dens and sleeping in big piles of it!

 

[Shambles]

I did use metal hay racks until I read a story on here about a piggy getting trapped and passing away . So I just put handfuls in now.

Oh this is so sad

Just using hay trays is of course an option but another possible alternative is to make a whole hay area. Don’t put fleece on that part and use something else instead, just newspaper even and fill an area with hay.
My two live in a shed but when they do need to come indoors (usually in summer), this is often what I do. I’ll use fleece in the majority of the cage but have a 2x1 section at the end where I put newspaper (or other disposable bedding as I always have a supply of it anyway) and fill it all with hay. My two love nothing more than making hay dens and sleeping in big piles of it!

That's a good idea. I need to make some new liners anyway so might make them smaller and do that! Thank you

 

[h.h.lovecraft]

I did use metal hay racks until I read a story on here about a piggy getting trapped and passing away . So I just put handfuls in now.

I used a hay rack for the first few days I had my piggies. It wasn't a folding one so I thought it was safe. One day I left the living room for about five minutes and when I came back one of my piggies was in the hay rack. She wasn't injured, but she clearly didn't know how to get out and was very stressed. After that, I decided to use nothing at all and they seem the most happy with piles of hay and toilet paper rolls. Unfortunately it does waste a lot of hay, but I am so much less stressed about them hurting themselves now.

Yes hay gets stuck to the fleece, but rubber gloves and a vaccum help a ton! The rubber gloves work wonders to get large pieces of stuck hay off. It also helps to put a pee pad under the main hay pile. I can just lift the whole thing and dump it! They have a hay tray in their run which also works well.

 

[weepweeps]

I used a hay rack for the first few days I had my piggies. It wasn't a folding one so I thought it was safe. One day I left the living room for about five minutes and when I came back one of my piggies was in the hay rack. She wasn't injured, but she clearly didn't know how to get out and was very stressed. After that, I decided to use nothing at all and they seem the most happy with piles of hay and toilet paper rolls. Unfortunately it does waste a lot of hay, but I am so much less stressed about them hurting themselves now.

Yes hay gets stuck to the fleece, but rubber gloves and a vaccum help a ton! The rubber gloves work wonders to get large pieces of stuck hay off. It also helps to put a pee pad under the main hay pile. I can just lift the whole thing and dump it! They have a hay tray in their run which also works well.

Yeah. I couldn’t risk it after reading that. .

 

[Black piggies]

I do different things but at the moment I have half the cage as a folded over cage liner tunnel, like a guineadad liner with 2 ended hideys holding it open, and the other half of the cage is free hay. The hay spread on a bigger area doesn't get smelly after a day.
My ideal for easiness for me, is fleece in cage and a loft full of hay, but then it got too territorial. But it's the only time the fleece was free of hay.

 

[Shambles]

I do different things but at the moment I have half the cage as a folded over cage liner tunnel, like a guineadad liner with 2 ended hideys holding it open, and the other half of the cage is free hay. The hay spread on a bigger area doesn't get smelly after a day.
My ideal for easiness for me, is fleece in cage and a loft full of hay, but then it got too territorial. But it's the only time the fleece was free of hay.

Could you possibly add a pic of this please. Sounds like a good way of doing it!

 

[Black piggies]

This is what it looks like now, it works better with the 2x4 cage liners which are in the wash. These are 2x3 cage liners. I put fleece fabric or a blanket or vet bed in the tunnel bit, and change it often. (Lots of poopies in there, so maybe that's why the hay's not so bad).
I used to use free newspapers from Morrisons instead of puppy pads, but they stopped having them. I'm on the lookout for an alternative to puppy pads.
I have another pair of piggies alongside, one of which is very undersize and elderly, and I don't make the tunnel for them in case she suffocates. All my piggies love hiding under Amazon packing paper, looks a mess but hey

 

[Black piggies]

Or back in April when I just had 2 live alongside ladies, I had the hay and fleece like this because the newly adopted lady who sadly didn't last long, liked to sleep on hay. Mostly the hay kept off the fleece.

 

[Merab]

I reckon with the loving attention of 3 piggies a large, good quality hay bag lasts no more than 5 days.
For some reason a hay bag that has been well watered and pooped in is piggy heaven!

 

[Shambles]

Thank you so much. I will have a rearrange later and try a section just for hay and see how they get on. All trial and error I suppose. So worried about them getting stuck in the bags. Especially when they're full

 

[Black piggies]

Yes the photo of her inside the hay bag is so cute, but not worth it if it's a worry.

 

[Shambles]

I've taken the bags out and they're enjoying the trays so I will see how this goes for now. The wooden house is a hit so going to get another and give them a house and a tray each so they have their own end of the cage (if they want to use it) thanks everyone.

 

[Ninarodders]

I have one of those hay bags for mine. They get meadow hay just chucked in to hay area with a bed and its completely changed everyday. But then they have excel timotht hay in the bag (am switching to haybox as they prefer it). I figured as the holes aren't small enough to strangle it would be fine? My bigger one cant really fit in (just stick his head and a leg in) and the smaller one can only just so soon won't I assume. He seems to quite enjoy getting in once the hay starts to get low. He jumps in and out of it like a tunnel

 

[Shambles]

Mine jump in even when it's freshly filled I've removed them for now but I'll keep them until they're too big to squeeze inside. Had a rejig and given them an area with no fleece and just hay. Thought I'd trial it before sewing the lines so it's just layered fleece and puppy pads for now. (They're having floor time in this pic hence why it's all in one place and you can't spot the piggies )