Which bedding is best for guineapigs?

Cavyloverxox

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Hello, throughout my years of owning pigs ive always used sawdust and hay as bedding. Ive been looking into using fleece as it would be cheaper than constantly buying more sawdust/carefresh. Just wondering what your experiences with fleece are? I'm worried that it will smell more. Also how often do you change fleece. Thanks in advance
 
Hi there is a whole section in the section you have posted this about Fleece bedding - worth a read if you are considering it.

I have been using it for 4 years now - 2 girls - cheaper in the long run especially as I make my own liners. I change smaller ones after maybe 2 days if they feel at all damp and do a full change once a week... Very rarely do they smell.
 
We bought fleece liners and have no issues with smell. We put puppy pads under them but not sure we really need to. They do most of their toileting in the hay tray so it doesnt really get that wet. We only change them once a week (Poo pick daily) and have left them little longer on occasion with no smell. The best thing is no mess.
 
I love our fleece so much I’m considering getting it for their kitchen area too! Sooo much easier to pick up poos and no issues with smell. We have two sets and wash every 4 days, and have a couple of pee pads in there too.
 
If you don't buy the proper stuff before doing it (liners, pads, etc.) I find it can smell a lot, I've tried with towels and other things under the fleece but it's never smelt great, maybe it's just my pigs though, I'm too stingy to buy liners I might not use so I've never tried it long term
 
I tried fleece which was lovely but found that I just could not cope with the laundry.
I kept some of the fleece for standby and use during playtime but reverted to wood shavings which I find much easier to deal with
 
I really like fleece. Sometimes it is, admittedly, a bit of a pain to try and get all the hay (I've given up on keeping the hay in one spot) off it before washing (now I just fling it in the washing machine and don't care if there are still little bits on it), but I find that I much prefer it over other bedding. It's a lot easier and quicker for me to do the daily poo pick, my piggies seem to prefer it, it's less expensive in the long run, a lot quicker to do a full clean out, less waste (not got the bags and bags of used woodshavings to get rid of), and the main thing for me is that, allergy wise, it's a lot better. I found that I really struggle with wood shavings and aubiose due to the dust. It was constantly making me sneeze, and I really had a hard time when it came to cleaning them out. I'd say it also smells a lot less.

I do a complete change of the girls' cage every four days (the cage is smaller and the girls are only babies and so much messier xD), and the boys' cage once a week. I think it's worth perhaps making your own liners first to test. You can get cheap fleeces from places like Asda or B&M, and also cheap cotton mattress protectors to use as the inner material. It's a loss less expensive way (even if you just fold it all together to be begin with rather than stitching) than buying ready made ones, and it's not such a big deal, then, if it isn't right for you.

Again, it's down to personal preference and what fits in with your life! The downside is there is a lot of washing.
 
I use kiln dried American pine shavings. I open the bag and let it air out for a couple days before using it sure, but have not had any issues with them. For a guinea's, they like to nest so a nesting material is a great idea! If toilet paper works, I'd personally go that route! LOL! It's super cheap. My friend uses a Carefresh type bedding and gives them toilet paper rolls to chew. They normally use half the roll then give it to the gerbils and they make nests out of it, then the Carefresh is under for absorbency.

Optionally, you can use bedding for gerbils for guinea and hamsters too.
 
I have a cardboard tray on each end (shallow amazon box or pizza box works) where the litter pan (aka bed) and hideys are. a puppy pad and paper and wood bedding are in those and over the one area is a platform where the hay and food is and water. in the middle I have hospital (washable) pads with fleece on top. I sweep up the poo and any mess daily but really its mostly contained in the trays because that is where they eat and sleep so that is where they go! seems to work well for us and having the lip on the boxes helps with bedding being dragged around. I put my fleece and pads outside for a few days after cleaning day...I have enough that I can go quite a while without doing laundry although I don't. It has rained sooooooo much here that it helps alot for my cleaning bedding before I wash...if it hasn't rained I just use the hose and then let it dry before washing. It works for me and I don't really have to change the fleece every week as they don't do a ton of their business there. Really it is whatever works best for your house. The paper and wood bedding drives me insane! but I do use it becuase it is so much easier where they go alot!
 
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