Outdoor Frugal Owners/ and indoors owners as well

[Susye]

Apart from food and hay I am going to try and be as frugal as possible regards buying items for my piggies, have been looking on ebay/esty/amazon and instore, wow you could spend thousands on items for your cage, a lot of the time just to make it look lovely to look at.
These people are on a winner here to get us to spend our money on items we don't really need.
I have already started saving my toilet and kitchen rolls to stuff full of hay, have some small plastic bottles that going to cut holes in and fill with pellets etc, and saving small cardboard boxes to make into houses.
At the end of the day the piggies aren't going to know, and do they really need bunk beds and a sofa to sit on etc. Doubt they have these items in the wild or go to the local guinea pig store and buy with pellets and straw for these items.

So question is how frugal are you when it comes to buying items for your piggies and what do you make from items around the house etc

 

[Piggies&buns]

I would not use plastic bottles for pellets. Simply throw the pellets into a pile of hay - no bowls, no containers etc for pellets. That way they forage through the hay as a form of enrichment and mental stimulation of find the pellets instead of mindlessly sitting and eating them From a container.

The beds and soft furnishings are mainly things used by indoor piggy owners. Not something you can use outside anyway. They are fun for the people and I am sure the piggies do appreciate a soft cosy to snuggle up into. Perhaps the piggies don’t need them (they’ll sleep in a cardboard box with hay) but it’s also about making a cage indoors aesthetically pleasing.
My lot do have a fleece tunnel each for autumn which I used between the end of summer warmth and before needing heatpads (I don’t use it in winter but I can get away with using them for a while as mine are in the shed so the issues faced with damp aren’t the same).

I have six animals - four piggies and two rabbits so having them is expensive!
My animals get meadow hay bedding from a local farm. I buy it by the bale so works out much cheaper than pet shop bags. I also buy bedding by the bale from the same place.
I do buy more expensive hay for eating online from Happy Hay Co.
I grow my own veg and herbs during summer so I spend less on veg for the animals. They get the boxes the hay comes in (I cut holes in them). Otherwise I buy a carrot cottage or hay cube occasionally for them. The rest pf their enrichment is foraging, finding their food and of course communication and interaction with each other.

 

[Susye]

I would not use plastic bottles for pellets. Simply throw the pellets into a pile of hay - no bowls, no containers etc for pellets. That way they forage through the hay as a form of enrichment and mental stimulation of find the pellets instead of mindlessly sitting and eating them From a container.

The beds and soft furnishings are mainly things used by indoor piggy owners. Not something you can use outside anyway. They are fun for the people and I am sure the piggies do appreciate a soft cosy to snuggle up into. Perhaps the piggies don’t need them (they’ll sleep in a cardboard box with hay) but it’s also about making a cage indoors aesthetically pleasing.
My lot do have a fleece tunnel each for autumn which I used between the end of summer warmth and before needing heatpads (I don’t use it in winter but I can get away with using them for a while as mine are in the shed so the issues faced with damp aren’t the same).

I have six animals - four piggies and two rabbits so having them is expensive!
My animals get meadow hay bedding from a local farm. I buy it by the bale so works out much cheaper than pet shop bags. I also buy bedding by the bale from the same place.
I do buy more expensive hay for eating online from Happy Hay Co.
I grow my own veg and herbs during summer so I spend less on veg for the animals. They get the boxes the hay comes in (I cut holes in them). Otherwise I buy a carrot cottage or hay cube occasionally for them. The rest pf their enrichment is foraging, finding their food and of course communication and interaction with each other.

I read somewhere that pushing the bottle around and the pellets falling out would be a fun game for them.
Do you not have any feeding bowls in your cage/hutches? I haven't brought any but have found some small bowls in the shed and have mega cleaned them so they are safe to use

 

[Piggies&buns]

I read somewhere that pushing the bottle around and the pellets falling out would be a fun game for them.
Do you not have any feeding bowls in your cage/hutches? I haven't brought any but have found some small bowls in the shed and have mega cleaned them so they are safe to use

No I don’t use food bowls at all. Veg gets mixed amongst the hay. They get dried forage most days as I don’t feed pellets much (only twice a week) and they also get thrown in the hay pile.
None of my piggies or rabbits have ever been interested in those treat balls they need to push round to get the pellets out. Some might be though.

 

[ScrufflesRules]

Just from a safety perspective, I wouldn't recommend plastic bottles.
They have very sharp edges and guinea pigs would be likely to ingest some of the plastic.

My guinea pigs loved playing in cardboard boxes and mountains of hay, I didn't really spend much money on them at all (compared to my hamster, who's nearly bankrupted me!). Any toy I bought them from a shop they seemed to ignore, DIY is definitely the best way to do it.

I did buy them a 'hooded bed' for Christmas one year though, which they absolutely loved: https://www.petsathome.com/shop/en/...K4UhPMrE5Xazee9-jpBoCz6AQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds I bought them relatively cheap hides- the massive bendy bridges seemed like the best option as they have two ends, look natural, and can be stored easily.

 

[Susye]

No I don’t use food bowls at all. Veg gets mixed amongst the hay. They get dried forage most days as I don’t feed pellets much (only twice a week) and they also get thrown in the hay pile.
Not one of my piggies or rabbits have ever been interested in those treat balls they need to push round to get the pellets out. Some might be though.

I was also going to make a treat ball thingy out of toilet rolls cut up and put together.

What other ideas do you have please and thank you

Just from a safety perspective, I wouldn't recommend plastic bottles.
They have very sharp edges and guinea pigs would be likely to ingest some of the plastic.

My guinea pigs loved playing in cardboard boxes and mountains of hay, I didn't really spend much money on them at all (compared to my hamster, who's nearly bankrupted me!). Any toy I bought them from a shop they seemed to ignore, DIY is definitely the best way to do it.

How much pellets do you throw in the cage every day? Think my food bowls are going back into the shed

 

[Piggies&buns]

I was also going to make a treat ball thingy out of toilet rolls cut up and put together.

What other ideas do you have please and thank you

How much pellets do you throw in the cage every day? Think my food bowls are going back into the shed

This is the enrichment thread - Enrichment Ideas for Guinea Pigs

Otherwise, I don’t do anything other than mentioned in my first post.

Pellets is just one tablespoon per pig per day

 

[Sweet Potato]

My boys have quite a lot but it's acumeulated over a long time. I like to buy them a new hidey or tunnel or something every Christmas and gotcha day but they don't really need it. I have some plastic hides that I got from a car boot and cleaned up. A couple of bendy bridges that are relatively cheap and last forever. A couple of times a year I go to my local carpet shop and ask for a cardboard tube which I saw down into various different lengths of tunnels for the pigs to enjoy. I'm not sure if name brand carpet shops let you do this but my little local one will just let me have them for free. They get chewed and peed in and go a bit gross after a bit but as a free option it's good while it lasts, not sure how well they will last outside but would be OK in some sort of hutch or shed. Mine are indoor piggies so the other way I save money is having fleece blankets and towels for bedding which I can wash and reuse and last forever.

The things not to be frugal with are; hay, they need a lot of it and need it replacing regularly so they get through more than you'd think. Pellets, a good quality pellet is important but they don't need much each day so it doesn't cost much long term. Veg, not really something you could scrimp back on anyway. Treats, not essential but if you are going to give them treats opt for some good quality forrage that you feed occasionally rather than cheap rubbish that's not good for them. Vets bills, this is the most important one which can and will cost a fortune so have some money in savings as back up for when it's needed.

 

[ScrufflesRules]

You can save a bit of money by growing your own herbs as tasty treats too.
Steer away from supermarket plant pots, grow your own from seed so you can get healthy, organic plants.

 

[Pantalaimon]

I have made chew sticks for mine. Just cut a young branch from an apple tree, cut to length, then scrub with warm water and a harsh brush to remove algae. They loved chewing the bark off but didn’t like it once the wood had dried out. It does also require access to 100% pesticide and herbicide free trees.

 

[Bill & Ted]

I like to walk around our villages lanes and forage. It’s amazing what you can find, vetch, grasses, dandelion and wild oat grass. As well as young crab apple, willow and Hazel branches. It saves air food miles and my money too. They enjoy forage far more than supermarket salad stuff. I also grow my own salad and herbs so they get those when in season too