How Do You Keep Your Cage Cleaner/toilet Train The Piggies?

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izzyyw

izzyyw

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Hello all, my sisters and I are first time guinea pig owners, we got three boys a couple of months ago. I was just wondering is there a way to toilet train your piggies? Or a way to keep the cage a little more clean... I find that after cleaning the cage, within the next twenty four hours there seems to be an awful lot of poops everywhere, they do have a litter tray and I've been doing my best to encourage them to use it rather than the rest of the cage by moving the poops into it but it doesn't seem like they're getting the idea.

Does anyone have any advice?

Also would you say wood shavings or fleece is better for them? We've been using wood shavings so far, but fleece does look like an easier option for cleaning.

Cheers in advance!
 
I have a litter box filled with hay as they normally like to poop where they eat, so the majority of their mess goes in there and it's cleaned and refilled twice a day or as and when needed

They also wee normally in a certain corner by choice and that's cleaned every day too.

I keep my pigs on fleece with a puppy pad underneath as fleece is not that absorbent, good idea to spot clean your cage once or twice a day too.

Fleece for me is easy to clean the poop's that do go on there I sweep up with a dust pan and brush and to wash I put it in a pillow case to stop any hay or hair getting all clogged in my machine.
 
I've never been successful in litter training my girls, they go where they want to go. I spot clean a minimum of 2-3 a day.

I have fleece and wood pellets underneath as an absorbent layer (no urine smell at all). I wash the fleece once a week and replace the wood pellets every 8 weeks.
 
I've heard that most guinea pigs do not litter train. That said, mine don't pee or poop outside the cage- they will go back in the cage to do that. It's not something I taught them, though... the dominant one of my first pair did it on her own and it seems like subsequent pigs have taught each other. Inside the cave is a free-for-all, though!
 
I have two girls and i have a litter tray, most of the poo goes in there, but i still find the off poo elsewhere in the cage.. I change this twice a day as they poo like a machine lol !
 
The only time my current boy has been ‘tidy’ and used a litter tray was when he was pining firstly after the loss of his companion and then during the 6 week wait for a wifepig after his neutering operation. He spent a lot of his time during those couple of months sitting in hay boxes or hay trays and only coming out to eat or spend time with us on the sofa downstairs. He was remarkably easy to clean out during this time – but he so obviously wasn’t happy.

Since the arrival of his ‘wifepig’ the run has been an absolute mess. But it’s great to see! It means they’re both happy and charging round exploring and playing
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I poo sweep a couple of times a day, and change their fleece liner with absorbent centre every three days. They still have hay trays, there is some poo in there, but whilst they use them for sleeping or munching in, they’re certainly not litter trained!

You may find they get tidier as they get older – but you may not. Good luck, and keep sweeping up after them. :)
 
When we had a kitchen in the older boars cage they would do most of their mess in there which was a lot easier, however, Big E decided he wanted to eat some correx.. yes it was covered the naughty boy decided he wasn't happy with the fleece/cover on there and pull it off :doh: so it's now been removed.
 
Yes piggies are just gross. If they didn't poo so much I would make them wear little nappies :xd:

I do wish they wouldn't do it around their food though, it's SO uncivilised and not lady like at all lol. I also have a bathroom corner...thing for them and I'm starting to wonder if I should just put it where their food is and surrender to their horrifying table manners.

:hmm:
 
with difficulty! :)) i think having a large tray/s works better though. mollie and benjie have a large tray and do the majority of their toileting in there where the most hay is. they do toilet in the rest of the cage but not as much :)
 
biscandmatt said:
with difficulty! :)) i think having a large tray/s works better though. mollie and benjie have a large tray and do the majority of their toileting in there where the most hay is. they do toilet in the rest of the cage but not as much :)
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Well I'm not sure quite how big it is, might look into getting the "rabbit sized" one to see if it helps. They sometimes go to the toilet in it, but they also eat from it (soiled, safe paper bedding and hay... Bon apitite lol) and they also seem to snooze in it even though it's not a hidey.

They also like to push it into the middle of their cage so they can run around it like a race track, I think they do the last part to upset their new mummy and her OCD :)) The little darlings haha.
 
Oh! Is "rodent litter" any good for piggies? Atm in their litter tray I have newspaper, a layer of safe paper bedding and some hay on top (sprinkled with some freshly picked poops to try and send a message lol).

I was just wondering if there was any kind of litter that might be good for them? Idk if it would upset their paws or if they try to eat it and get sick etc so thought I'd see what the general verdict was.

Thanks!
 
Cavy Kung-Fu said:
Well I'm not sure quite how big it is, might look into getting the "rabbit sized" one to see if it helps. They sometimes go to the toilet in it, but they also eat from it (soiled, safe paper bedding and hay... Bon apitite lol) and they also seem to snooze in it even though it's not a hidey.

They also like to push it into the middle of their cage so they can run around it like a race track, I think they do the last part to upset their new mummy and her OCD :)) The little darlings haha.
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garden potting trays work well as they have one low side and are usually decent sizes :)
 
My girls have a large hay box. It has a plastic grow bag tray inside, then newspaper, then hay. They do most of their wees and poops in there.
 
Thanks guys!

I will definitely give that a go. Is there a specific area that you put it?
 
My girls are currently indoors for the winter and are in a c&c cage , and have a 3x1 hay loft. In the summer outside they have a 2 storey and a single storey hutch joined together, and i use 3 cat litter trays for their hay, one for each piggie. I find that really helps to contain their wees & poops.
 
i use cat litter trays and peg a fleece over them. Hardly any wees in cage but poop under tunnels and odd few round the cage.
 
Thanks! Is there a special way to encourage them to use it? Or will I have to beg them and bribe them and hope for the best? :eek: I'll be getting a cat litter tray soon and giving it a go. Anything to minimise the poops haha.
 
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