Hay for bedding and eating

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ninz

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I saw some cheap hay in Sainsburys and I thought if I buy cheap hay for bedding and expensive hay for eating... would it work?

For example, put cheaper hay first and then cover it with more expensive hay. Would guinea pigs eat more of the top layer than the one underneath?

Also, when you have their bedding as hay, do they eat the hay that has been covered in poo and pee? I know it may sound like really stupid questions but I find it difficult to understand, mainly because I have only kept budgies. Budgies do not eat what they have soiled. Also, they live on perches so their droppings fall down to the ground. Guinea pigs are on the ground so it's completely understandable in that respect.
 
i recently brought some timothy hay by alfalfa king and before they just had medow hay so at the moment i am putting the leftover medow hay in for their bedding then i put the timothy hay in the hay rack for them to eat, they do eat what i put in their sleeping area too though and regarding eating what they have poo/weed on mine are quite fussy and dont but then i think its party due to i always top it up with fresh!
 
Hay isn't ideal as a bedding as it's not absorbent, but they do appreciate it to nestle in.

Mine have wood-shavings across the base, then I put the hay over one side, away from their bowl and bottle.

It shouldn't really bother them what is and isn't soiled, they'll eat around it but if you're worried, could you attach a hay rack to the side of their home? Then to encourage natural foraging behaviour (which is what I also do with their veg) you could sprinkle hay lightly throughout the cage :)
 
I thought woodshaving was not a good bedding? ?/ I read on this forum somewhere that it can cause respiratory problems? I am not sure...

My bedding for the piggies will be newspaper and lots of hay. The reason for this is because I will be changing the bedding everyday. It's easier to roll the paper up with the hay and just put new bedding in. I was recommended this by my local rescue.
 
ninz said:
I thought woodshaving was not a good bedding? ?/ I read on this forum somewhere that it can cause respiratory problems? I am not sure...

My bedding for the piggies will be newspaper and lots of hay. The reason for this is because I will be changing the bedding everyday. It's easier to roll the paper up with the hay and just put new bedding in. I was recommended this by my local rescue.
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People have different experiences and opinions of wood-shavings, but cedar is the one that shouldn't be used at all. Pine (which is what I use), depends how you keep and use it. Aspen is said to be ok, but I've never used that one before. May do actually, I'm curious so Googling it :p

I used to do that with newspaper but my pigs all decide they were going to pull it up, eat it, hide under it rolleyes so I gave up lol plus I'm not a fan of changing bedding every day, I think it should be left a couple of days, take the worst out and mix in some fresh bedding so they still have a familiar smell.
 
I see, thank you, I never knew that.

If you don't mind me asking, how is the pine bedding? Does it smell quickly? Is it easy to clean out?

I know that the guinea pigs will definately pull the paper and go under it :)) I am not too worried about them eating newspaper as it is not poisonous but would definately change to a different bedding if it was frequent.

I might just spot clean and then clean the whole thing every other day.
 
Of the types of shavings, Aspen is expensive but BRILLIANT. You can get it from Surrey Pet Supplies but I believe you have to go and collect it. I am lucky in my friend who used to keep snakes used it, and has a spare bag or two I am having off her, but I won't be able to use it after that.

Pine is ok, yes it can cause respiratory issues but it depends entirely on the quality of what you buy. In my opinion P@H shavings are literally useless, I have taken bales back twice as I found them way too dusty and told them so in no uncertain terms. If using shavings I use Hunter, they are a brand of shavings designed for equine use and are more expensive than other brands but my God, the difference is amazing. Virtually no dust, very absorbent, and unlike a lot of commercial shavings they don't use any chemicals on them - they are literally the wood shaving as it comes off their softwood production line. Your best place to buy them will be an equine stockist, I get them from my local in Biggin Hill.

You can also try Megazorb which I am a big fan of, I use this over my hutch or cage floor with Supreme supersoft bedding over the top to make it a bit softer for their paws. This is by far the most absorbant bedding and the easiest to clean out, but at around £8 a bag it isn't cheap and I sadly can't afford to use it all the time.

Sadly these days decent shredded newspaper is hard to come by, I know as we use it for one of my horses, or we did before most of the equine places in the South East stopped doing it! We were using, for her and the piggies, recycled egg boxes, but our stockist for these has now stopped them and I got a dodgy batch with mushroom spores in that GREW MUSHROOMS when it got damp eugh it was ming, never again!

The main issue if your piggies go under your paper layers will be them peeing on the plastic floor of the cage, then lying in it. This results in wet and potentially poorly piggies, and stinks too!

As for your ORIGINAL question ;) I am cheap and all my pigs get farm hay for their food and bed! To be fair it is excellent quality, I know the fields it comes from (to the point when we found a crisp packet in a bale, our farmer admitted he like salt and vinegar and dropped it as he was cutting it!) and if I had any worries about it, would look elsewhere. They get Readigrass every third day to mix it up and if I get a bonus from work get Excel Herbage but as long as our hay stays good quality, and bales are still only £5, this is what they will get.
 
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I've just found out the wood-shavings I use are kiln dried, I never knew, woo! :)

Ahem... :p

The bedding I use is a horse bale called Snowflake Supreme. It hasn't got the best of smells to it in some bales but once fluffed up into a smaller bag I use to air it before I put it into my cages, it does lose that smell. I do suffer quite badly with sinus problems and chesty coughs when I breathe it in too much, which I also get with their hay and disinfectant so I know its just irritations I have, but its never bothered my pigs in the same ways.

It's very absorbent and luckily it only smells from their urine when they really do need cleaning out, but obviously I don't leave it too long before changing it. Its probably the best make of bedding I've used and I've been through loads. Easibed, Megazorb, Hemcore, Carefresh... to name but a few!

Still looking for a reliable aspen make... :{
 
forgot to say mine are on woodchip, they just have hay where they sleep and in hayracks not all over!
 
I use a good few layers of newspapers, a layer of wood shavings and then a thick layer of hay :) my pigs prefer this to everything else, when trying them with fleece they would constantly lay in under their hay rack. I do find it easier and cleaner when doing a big clean to roll up the newspaper underneath but i'd find this difficult to do everyday. To ensure their bedding is fresh, I use igloos filled with hay and will clean these out everyday with disinfectant wipes and fill back up with hay. x
 
Thank you everyone for telling me about what you use for bedding.

It is really good to know that I can use some shavings for bedding. I will have a look around, a good read too and see what will suit the piggies best.

I like hayls<3 idea of using newspaper and then shavings and then hay. That might be best for me... although it might be expensive.

I am going to have a look at Surrey Pet Supplies and Hunter shavings :)
 
ninz said:
Is this any good?

http://www.jrt-forage.co.uk/mainbale_haylage.html#forage

Although its for horses, would it be safe for Guinea pigs? It does not mention timothy hay.
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In a word, No, sorry. Haylage is not hay, it is still cut grass but it is much richer as it is left to ferment more and as such is too strong for piggy tummies. It also, once opened, ideally needs to be used within a few days - and unless you fed them crazy amounts, which would basically kill them, it would go off.

It isn't a bedding for horses but a fibre source/addition/alternative to hay :)
 
ninz said:
I like hayls<3 idea of using newspaper and then shavings and then hay. That might be best for me... although it might be expensive.

I am going to have a look at Surrey Pet Supplies and Hunter shavings :)
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For me, a £3 large bag of shavings lasts me 5-6 week, I use a thin layer, but enough to make the newspapers underneath not visable and a £3 1.5kg bag of hay lasts me 4-5 week. We buy newspapers daily at our house but if you don't have them available, if you have neighbours or relatives which do, just ask them if you can recycle them for them, i'm sure that they wouldn't mind. Instead of cleaning the cage everyday, why not just take the layer of hay out, then if there is any heavily soiled sawdust underneath change this too? :)
 
hayls<3 said:
For me, a £3 large bag of shavings lasts me 5-6 week, I use a thin layer, but enough to make the newspapers underneath not visable and a £3 1.5kg bag of hay lasts me 4-5 week. We buy newspapers daily at our house but if you don't have them available, if you have neighbours or relatives which do, just ask them if you can recycle them for them, i'm sure that they wouldn't mind. Instead of cleaning the cage everyday, why not just take the layer of hay out, then if there is any heavily soiled sawdust underneath change this too? :)
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Ok so I am quite close to having my future piggies home... (Fingers crossed!)

Cage has been dispatched and I am buying main things for cage. I think toys will be last :)

Now the big thing... bedding! I really like your idea. I want to clean everyday but don't want to clean out the whole thing. I like your idea of just having newspaper, shavings and then hay. That might work for me. My mum has a nose for every small smell in the house. She things my budgies smell but infact they don't! So the piggies will most likely make her nose tinger :))

If you don't mind, what shavings do you use? The pets at home ones are no good... so I need one that does not have much dust.

Thanks for your help x
 
Hi Nina a little bird told me you've taken a liking to porridge ;-) He's a Lovely boy! As for bedding I'd say paper and hay is fine. It's what I've always used and it's what we use at windwhistle. Clean out every 2 to 3 days but put a fresh handful of hay on un every night cos they love fresh hay! Try that to begin with and see how it goes. I try and get hay by the bale cos it's cheap but you have to be wary of quality. I find the hay they sell in asda is loved by my pigs! In my opinion pets at homehay is awful and i wouldn't buy from there anyway. Anyway i promise to send you the stuff over today sorry for the delay! Xx
 
yes! I love Porridge, he's so cute. he has been bonded with peach and apricot who look adorable.

looks like hay and newspaper it is. I'm gona be simple and just try that and just see how it goes. other types of bedding are too expensive.

thank you for all your help! if you don't mind me asking.... what is it that you are going to send? :red you may have told me but I often forget things! ill be looking forward to anything you send. :)
 
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