Switching from newspaper, sawdust and hay to fleece?

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maxwellsmummy

Ive just been reading Laura's excellent sticky about different bedding materials and at the moment my boys are on a layer of newspaper,then sawdust then hay. I'm thinking putting them on fleece and towels might be better as the are indoor piggies and also itll be cheaper than buying the amount of hay and sawdust i go through to fill their cages which are quite large.

What do you think?
 
I think it's definitely worth a go. I now use either towels/ fleece or inco pads/ fleece. I'm saving for another set of inco pads so I can swap over completely.
I get through much, much less megazorb and hay now that I only use it in the litter trays (and hay rack) even though I change the hay every day and the megazorb every 2 days.
I personally think towels/ fleece only last 2 (max 3) days so as long as you don't mind the washing it's a good option. :) My piggies love it. :(|)
 
I have the same problem mine are on sawdust and hay and i need something thats inexpensive as I have 2 cages to fill ha ha ha ha
 
i think its definately worth giving the fleece with towels underneath a go!

you can get fleece blankets and towels cheap from asda, home bargains.b&m etc
 
Our two love the fleeces they popcorn everytime they get a clean fleece and theyve got their lovely cosies fae Pollie too :(|) which they love but they dont have them tonight as left two at my parents house and the other two are in the wahsing machine just now for the second time as I'm sure it si on the blink :( as they dont feel as if theyve been washed
 
i changed to towels & fleece a few months ago & wouldn't go back to shavings

my boys love their fleeces especial the pink fleece :)p

i change there bedding on tuesday & fridays xx
 
|I changed over a few months ago as well and wouldn't go back! It's so much less mess!

But a lot more washing - I change every three days as well!
 
i dont mind the washing joke with the boys about it :)p their getting new fleece tomorrow more pink as get loads of popcorning plus a few piggie kisses xx
 
yay go for the fleece, comfy for piggys and saves money for you. Ikea do a fleece throw for under £2.00 it only comes in baby blue though. got some good thick fleece from wilkos aswell, smaller approx 90 x 90 cm and more expencive think it was £5.
 
Aww how sweet! i'm goin to change my boys and girls round tomorrow! :))
 
I also use fleece and find it's brilliant! The only drawback, apart from the washing, is that you'll find that you soon become addicted to buying fleece, as there are soooooo many fab ones around!

I originally switched from shavings to Vetbed, and then quite recently from Vetbed to fleece (Vetbed's great but I found it much easier to sweep and wash fleece, as the Vetbed's thick pile makes maintenance hard work.) I'd never go back to shavings though.

Good luck!

Btw I'm glad to find that I'm not the only cruel piggy mummy who beds her boars on pink fleece!
 
When you go and buy fleece, there are a few things to think of:

- fleece needs to be washed at least twice before use to remove any softener from the fabric. Softener seal the surface and cuase your piggies to sit in their urine, while the advatage of fleece is that every fluid wicks through and you have a lot less problems with tangled hair and wet bums.

- you can end up with a lot of hair and stuff in your washing machine and filter, so you may want to make sure that you either have an old duvet cover or get a very cheap one for washing the fleece in, especially if you have to share your washing machine with other people. Shake your fleece out thoroughly before washing - some hay will stick rather stubbornly! You can wash fleece at 60 degrees is it is very soiled.

- you need to pick up any poo and other messes at least once daily.
 
I use fleece with all 21 of my boars, i have 10 cages so it can be hard work with that many but i still wouldnt change to anything else regardless of how easier it was.I clean mine every 2-3 days.
You wont regret making the change
 
I have used fleece from the beginning and love it too. At first the pen was 120x70 with a separate hay box and I had to change at least twice a week, now it's 1x2 m and lasts more than a week if I change fleece cuts from under their hideys and hoover/sweep once or twice a day. With fleece bigger is way easier!
 
Hi everyone ive change the boys and girls to fleece today, havent bought new fleece already had some thats not in use, also i had towels for under the fleece, i used my hooded baby towels that Harry my 10 month old son is too big for now.

I got a great reaction from both the boys and girls when they got in from their runs and they had comfy fleece in their cages, Maggie and Megan ran round popcorning like mad! wheeking etc the boys where still happy but were more reserved than the girls!

Maddox has tipped his food out all over the place and the girls have had a poo party already so looks like i'll be getting the hoover out before bedtime!

But i definately think I'm going to prefer it to what i was using before. :))
 
Ive seen it mentioned a couple of times in various different posts about the 'hoover' being used for fleece. what do you use a hand held chargeable jobbie or the proper hoover with the hose? i thought about doing that but worried about sucking the fleece up lol does anyone use the hand held things are they any good for the poop and hay? were on fleece and puppy pads with a litter tray which is ace and very easy, i just clean out once every 7-10 days (puppy pads) litter tray i do every day and fleeces ever 4-5 unless they are looking dirty (my lot are generally very good at using their litter tray :) which is great) wondering if i can make life easier still for myself with a hand held hoover rather than trying to sweep fleece with a dust pan and brush as the hay is a so and so and the poop normally is trickey!
 
I have sewn fleeces for my C&C 2 story cage with waterproof liner, zorb, and fleece on top. when it's time to wash I take into the back yard, shake it out then take it in to wash, it is easy. I also have a 'hay corral' hay area so the hay doesn't get stuck all over the fleece.
 
guineawig said:
Ive seen it mentioned a couple of times in various different posts about the 'hoover' being used for fleece. what do you use a hand held chargeable jobbie or the proper hoover with the hose?
Click to expand...

I use my regular hoover, but on the lowest setting. I fill up a bag in a week, though...
 
skrikopanik said:
I use my regular hoover, but on the lowest setting. I fill up a bag in a week, though...
Click to expand...

Don't think I've ever seen a hoover with varied power settings....man, I'm missing out! It's going to take me an age to reach the "Domestic Goddess" status I try to aspire to (sometimes!) :)
 
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